All good points SQ!
I believe on June 1st, Iceland will provide an update on travel regulations. The CDC came out this week and things look pretty good for vaccinated individuals here in the US, even the mask mandates are being relaxed... unless a very deadly covid strain takes over, it appears that we are in the beginning of the end stages of this pandemic... I can't help but think that Iceland will somewhat relax its requirements as the summer season begins...we'll see...
I'm writing this as a fully vaccinated traveler (2 shots, Pfizer vaccine and more than 2 weeks since second shot)...The requirements for Iceland as of now are very clear, testing for everyone at the airport and await results at their accomodations. It doesn't say anywhere about where the location should be (in fact there a list of allowable accomodations all over Iceland, as far out as the North Iceland)...So, after I pick-up my rental car, If I decide to travel 5 hrs away for my first accomodation, how can they "enforce" that I don't interact with anyone? Do I have to buy the food I need in the airport and take it with me and drive non-stop until I reach my destination? There is an app Rakning C-19 that travelers are supposed to download with real-time GPS tracking, maybe this is the way they'd know travelers are complying... but what if I stop en-route and walk around an outdoor crater with very few people around? (leave my phone in my phone with the tracker GPS)... What if I decide to stop by a gas station/mini mart, is the attendant going to ask me for proof of vaccination/clearance in order to allow the sale? ... my "guess" (and it's just a guess) is that as long as the traveler doesn't "deviate" from the proposed route and within a reasonable amount of time on the road (maybe they'll say I ought to be in my accomodation no later than say 5-7 hours from then), there wouldn't be a claim for non-compliance... It's a bit of a gray area and the lack of information online made me ask this question in this forum... It's still somewhat subject to interpretation... the final say may be based on the discretion of the Icelandic authorities... I am aware of this...
Travelers have been successfully going to Iceland since early April, there are written reports of what to expect, where to get tested for PCR testing in Iceland prior to coming back (which by the way this too could be relaxed in the next few weeks for returning US travelers)... I think it's safe, there are minor annoyances like the one we're describing, but it should be awesome to travel this time of the year with fewer crowds... I like the odds of making this a successful trip... worse comes to worse, I may have to spend the first night somewhere in Reykjavik... my itinerary can still be adjusted to the realities on the ground...
Alex
