“Foreign tourists get exclusivity and convenience as well as great value for money when they stay at summer cottages in Iceland,” says Petur Oskarsson, the co-owner of Viator summer cottage rental agency. Oskarsson says that staying in summer cottages is the ideal accommodation alternative for families or small groups visiting Iceland because it is less expensive - yet exclusive and more suitable than staying at hotels and guesthouses.
Traditional options for accommodation while on holiday in Iceland sometimes prove too costly for families and small groups. Foreign tourists looking for bargain travel deals in Iceland get great value for their money while staying in a summer cottage rather than in a hotel or a guesthouse. Viator provides an exclusive but inexpensive booking service on behalf of 130 owners of privately owned summer cottages in all parts of Iceland.
The popularity of summer cottages in Iceland continues to increase both by the local population as well as tourists from abroad. Most of the 14,000 summer cottages in the country are privately owned, but some belong to labour unions such as The Commercial Workers’ Union (VR) and The Association of Academics in Iceland (BHM). Each association owns 40 summer cottages that are hugely popular amongst members, especially during summer.
Nearly half of all summer cottages in Iceland are located within an hour’s drive from Reykjavik, the country’s capital, where 65 percent of the population lives. Most of the summer cottages that are built today are made of wood imported from the Baltic countries – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – as well as from Finland and Russia.
Northern Lights from a geothermal pool
The Northern Lights attract thousands of people to Iceland each winter, mostly from Europe, America and Asia. The Japanese are especially keen on seeing the Northern Lights. There are two reasons for visiting Iceland rather any other place for gazing at the Northern Lights. First, the country is located in a place geographically well suited to see the Northern Lights, and second, it is accessible in winter.
“About 80 percent of our customers spend their time here in Iceland during the summer season, which coincides with the traditional school holidays in Europe and North America,” says Oskarsson. Those visiting the country in winter can expect a different kind of experience, such as sitting in a hot-tub heated with geothermal water while gazing at the Northern Lights.
Useful service to families and small groups
Viator.is is an online reservation/booking service founded in 2002 by Petur Oskarsson and Bjarnheidur Hallsdottir. Viator represents the owners of 130 privately owned cottages, located in all parts of the country, who make their cottages available for rent to foreign tourists visiting Iceland.
Although each cottage is furnished and decorated differently, they all include hot and cold water as well as heating. The cottages also include a shower or a bath, fully equipped kitchen and one or more bedrooms.
Further information about renting privately owned summer cottages in Iceland is available both in English and German on Viator’s website: www.viator.is