General Tour Information
ENTERING ICELAND: United States citizens will need a passport valid for six months after the date of entry. No visa is required.
MAP AND COUNTRY INFORMATION: You can view maps of Iceland in the University of Texas series here. You can review the U.S. Department of State background notes on Iceland here.
HEALTH: For visitors arriving in Iceland, no vaccinations are required, but you should have an up-to-date tetanus and diptheria booster. Black fly can be a problem at Lake Mývatn but is mostly absent in July; even so please bring suitable clothing and repellant. It is possible to buy head-nets at Mývatn if you wish to do so. If you suffer from motion sickness then appropriate pills/wrist bands/patches are strongly advised.
CLIMATE: Generally the weather is changeable throughout the year and you should be prepared for the unexpected. Summers are usually cool and cloudy with periods of sunny weather (July average 10.6°C /51°F, maximum 24.3°C /76°F).
PACE OF TOUR AND DAILY ROUTINE: This is not a particularly strenuous tour, the plentiful hours of daylight, and limited (yet exciting) species list means we’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the birds we see. We’ll have breakfast at our hotels, lunch will normally be in the form of a picnic and we’ll return to our hotel in plenty of time to shower before dinner. With so much daylight on some evenings there will be the option to go out birding again after dinner. On some days there will be some long drives; on one day in particular there will be a 500km (310 mile) drive, but the scenery will be pretty unusual.
ACCOMMODATION: At the time of writing, all our hotels will have private facilities (toilet, shower, etc.) in the room. However guaranteeing accommodation in some places is proving difficult and we may end up moving to accommodation other than we originally planned to use. Should this happen, we may find that some bathroom facilities are shared. If you have difficulty sleeping at night because of the natural light you may want to bring an eye-mask for total darkness.
DRESS: Dress is informal throughout.
TRANSPORT: Transportation is by bus or minibus.
SMOKING: Smoking is not allowed in the vehicles or when the group is gathered for meals, checklists etc. If you are sharing a room with a non-smoker, please do not smoke in the room. If you smoke in the field, we ask that you do so well away and downwind from the group if possible.
GENERAL INFORMATION & CONDITIONS OF WINGS & SUNBIRD TOURS: Please take a moment to read the WINGS General Information & Conditions. This section contains important information about how we conduct tours, e.g., what is included in the tour price, refund and cancellation policies, pace of the tours and other information that will help you prepare for the tour.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: A more complete General Information for Tours to Iceland will be sent to each registrant on receipt of their booking. Final information with instructions for meeting the group, hotel addresses, etc., will be mailed about three weeks before trip departure. Other news will be communicated as necessary.
Updated: September 2006