Less Room at the Inn

As if amazing itineraries, great food and incredible guides wasn’t enough to book an Iceland ProCruises journey this summer, consider the fact that hotel rooms are getting harder and harder to find on the island.

Harpa, Reykjavík’s Concert Hall and Conference Centre. Courtesy Visit Iceland

An article in The Guardian newspaper revealed how the country is considering a crackdown on Airbnb rentals while at the same time failing to keep pace with new hotel construction. Last year, the nation’s supreme court ruled that anyone wishing to rent their apartment through Airbnb or a similar service needed permission from all the other residents of the block before doing so. Two town councils have already implemented strict restrictions on vacation rentals.

Elvar Orri Hreinsson, an analyst for Islandsbanki, told the newspaper that Iceland managed to add just 300 hotel rooms last year despite the need for at least a thousand more. “We are only building 30% of what we need in the capital area.”

Ah, but who needs Airbnb or a hotel room when you’ve got a cozy cabin waiting on the Ocean Diamond?

Summer Day in Reykjavik, courtesy Visit Iceland

Marching Band, Reykjavik, courtesy Visit Iceland