Iceland

Iceland

Location: Iceland is located in the North Atlantic Ocean. The main island is south of the Arctic Circle, Iceland is nearer to Greenland than Europe, the island is generally included inEurope. Geologically the island is part of both continental plates. The closest bodies of land are Greenland (287 km) and the Faroe Islands (420 km). The closest European country is the UK (Scotland) 900km away. Norway is about 970 km away.
Population: The country has a population of about 320,000 inhabitants.
Capital: The capital and largest city is Reykjavík.
Currency: Icelandic krona.Official language: Icelandic and this is an Indo-European language belonging to the North Germanic or Nordic branch of the Germanic languages.
Climate: The climate of Iceland's coast is sub polar oceanic.The warm North Atlantic Current ensures generally higher annual temperatures than in most places of similar latitude in the world. Regions in the world with similar climate include the AleutianIslands, the Alaska Peninsula, and Tierra del Fuego, although these regions are closer to the equator.
In general the south coast is warmer, wetter and windier than the north. The Central Highlands are thecoldest part of the country. Low-lying inland areas in the north are the most arid. The highest air temperature recorded was 30.5 °C in 1939. The lowest was −38 °C.
History: the settlement of Icelandbegan in AD 874 when the chieftain Ingólfur Arnarson. Most Icelanders are descendants of Norse and Gaelic settlers.

Rural tourism sector: tourism in Iceland has mainly been developed around Naturetourism. There are around 120 farms within the farm holidays association, where you could practice traditional farming activities.
The accommodation is diverse; made up beds in three differentcategories, with or without private bathroom, sleeping bag accommodation, cottages, unit cottages and camping. There are also various recreations; horse riding, fishing, hunting, sailing, swimming,...