Iceland has lifted all COVID restrictions as of today.
You no longer need to prove vaccination status or take any COVID tests to enter the country. All mandates regarding limitations on gatherings, quarantines, and masking have also been removed.
Of course you will still need to take a COVID test to fly back to the US. I wrote about using an eMed telehealth test when I returned from Iceland to the US last July.
Iceland’s chief epidemiologist notes that the daily infection count remains high, but severe infections have not increased in the highly vaccinated country. He notes that herd immunity is the way out the pandemic and that the country at 366,000 people has 110,000 with confirmed infections and another 110,000 estimated infections based on antibody testing.
Herd immunity is a strategy that was originally tried by the UK and Sweden, before they both backtracked on it. But in an era when we have vaccines and several good treatment options for COVID, I imagine we’ll see more countries dropping all requirements in favor of a herd immunity strategy. At least until the next variant that manages to break through previous immunity comes along. Then again, if the next variant is less virulent, perhaps aiming for heard immunity would be the best exit path.
Iceland is a truly incredible country to visit with endless breathtaking sights to see, and it’s just a short nonstop flight from many US cities. You can read more on DDF in the Iceland Master Thread.
Will you visit Iceland due to the end of COVID rules?
What would be a good itinerary for summer, with 3 kids between 6-12?
Read more and ask here 🙂
https://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=9572.0
I would love to see the US drop testing requirement for citizens returning.
This is also know as “what Jewish communities in Brooklyn did 2 years ago”
Good point.
Because they are intelligent and because it works!
Delta does not have direct flights anymore, my itinerary (end of December to January) was canceled. I have booked through United for the next month but it is a headache: fly to germany, stay overnight in Denmark and then Iceland. They have already changed the return flight, meaning they added one more leg in US.
Fly Icelandair?
Delta and United fly direct in the summer.
Thank you for the Icelandair tip. I will stick to United this time, I’m using miles.
It does make sense about direct flights only in the summer. I went back and checked my Delta itinerary and it was perhaps a glitch in their system? Booked during July last year for a Dec-Jan trip, gotten the confirmation with a direct NYC – Reykjavik. It stayed there for quite some time but cancelled I think in October.
It certainly will be high on my list now.
Any kosher food in Iceland?
Grocery store or contact Chabad there.
Or bring your own as we did.
Was their a few years ago most basic food in groceries has OU, like cereal, ketchup, mayonnaise, tuna and so
I sure will…
I never understood this aim to reach herd immunity. If there are new strains constantly emerging, and we know that you can get omicron after delta, then how is it possible to reach herd immunity?
Some people don’t get ill from any of the strains.