Six tips for climate-friendly travel

Iceland is a land of dramatic contrasts—volcanoes, glaciers, geysers, and endless lava fields. Yet beneath this raw power lies a landscape of remarkable fragility. A single tire track off-road can scar the moss for decades, while the climate crisis is already taking its toll: puffins are endangered, glaciers are retreating, and heavier rains increase the risk of landslides.

This means Icelanders are ambitious in their efforts to go green. The country aims to be carbon neutral by 2040 and already produces 100% of its electricity with hydropower and geothermal energy. For visitors, traveling responsibly is key to protecting this extraordinary island. Here are six tips for a more climate-friendly journey.

The Icelandic Tourist Board offers an official Vakinn certification issued only for environmentally friendly businesses. Look for their distinctive seal, which indicates that the company operates ethically and sustainably.

1. Electrify your travel

Many of Iceland’s buses are already electric, and in the capital, it’s easy to rent bicycles, electric bikes, or electric scooters. If you’re renting your vehicle, most companies offer electric cars. There’s a great network of fast-charging points around Iceland and in the parking lots of many hotels. While driving an electric vehicle in other countries means you’re still charging with electricity created by fossil fuels, in Iceland, since renewables produce all electricity, it’s a truly green way to move.

2. Drink tap instead of bottled

Instead of creating plastic waste, enjoy some of the freshest, cleanest tap water on earth. Water melted from glaciers filters slowly through lava rock over hundreds of years and springs from the tap pristine, so all visitors are encouraged to drink tap rather than buy bottled water. Bring a reusable bottle around, and request tap water rather than bottled water at restaurants.

3. Eat sustainably

Iceland is a fishing nation in the middle of the Atlantic. Imported products, by default, carry a high carbon footprint. Sheep run wild, and many vegetables are grown inside geothermally heated greenhouses.

Keep in mind that not all local cuisine is eco-friendly cuisine. Foods now marketed to international tourists as exotic local delicacies - like puffin and whale meat - are borne out of a legacy of native Icelanders making the best of the scarce resources available. In fact, the majority of whale meat now caught by Icelandic whalers goes not to locals but to tourists - less than 2% of Icelanders report eating whale meat regularly, and the country plans to end commercial whale hunts. Overall, they’re not a sustainable food choice, particularly puffin, which is now an endangered species. Aquaculture has become a large industry in Iceland over the years, but keep in mind that salmon farmed on land has less environmental impact than open-pen sea cages in fjords.

Instead, check out some farm-to-table restaurants for truly sustainable eating - whether a bowl of tomato soup inside the geothermal greenhouse where they’re farmed, fresh cheese at a goat farm, or brunch at a pioneering organic farm. If you’re really focused on eating sustainably, there are even an impressive number of excellent vegan restaurants in Icelandic cities.

4. Eco-friendly shopping

Some brands are deliberately sustainable. The Blue Lagoon has a Research and Development Centre that uses ingredients from geothermal fluids and cultivated algae for many of its skincare and wellness products. Other brands, like Aftur, create their clothes from recycled materials, while Sapusmidjan makes soaps from organic Icelandic herbs. Studio Plastplan works with several Icelandic retailers to turn plastic waste directly into new products, from flowerpots to furniture.

For a cheaper and more eco-friendly souvenir, Reykjavík has several great secondhand options. The Red Cross Shops, found in towns across Iceland, and the vintage favorite Spútnik are good places to start. You can also browse the famous Kolaportið Flea Market in Reykjavík for pre-loved treasures—since reuse is one of the best ways to minimize your climate impact. And if you don’t feel like lugging your camping supplies back to your home country, consider donating it to a secondhand shop: it’ll reduce waste, and proceeds from many secondhand shops go to charitable causes.

5. Decarbonize your hotel

Thanks to the abundance of geothermal energy, hotels will, as a rule, run on renewables. However, some accommodations will take it a step further: Deplar Farm sources organic linens and uses low-flow shower heads. At the same time, the ION Adventure Hotel was built with reclaimed wood and other recycled materials, with electric car charging ports in the parking area. Gróðurhúsið (the Greenhouse) is a boutique hotel powered by geothermal energy and built with sustainable materials. It’s a stylish eco-retreat featuring vintage furnishings and Nordic minimalism. And at Hótel Fljótshlíð, you can be part of the reforesting of Iceland: the hotel sits on a family-run farm called Smaratun, and guests can take part in an initiative to plant native birch trees.

6. Respect the landscape

This one might sound basic, but litter in Iceland sticks out like a sore thumb. If you’re camping, remember to pack your trash with you. And recycle where possible—Iceland was the first country in the world to adopt a nationwide recycling fee for disposable drink cans and bottles. 

This also means respecting regulations and signs. They protect a fragile environment from the irreversible damage that can be caused by driving off-road or treading down moss away from designated hiking trails.

There’s one more way to keep the landscape clean: wash off before you dip in any geothermal pools. These pools don’t use chemicals to stay clean, so you can avoid introducing oils, soaps, and sunscreen to these natural spring waters.