at reasonable priees. At this tiitte ol
year. the (ianila Stan's main square. the Stortorget. hoasts numerous ('hrisimas-themed stalls ol'lering tood and drink. hand-erat'ted elothes and aeeessories. And there ean surely he no more enjoyable \yay to end a tsliorti day‘s tiestiye sightseeing than by sipping a warming eup ol glog tintilled yyinei and inunehing on a gingerbread and einnanion hiseiiit.
www.visit-stockholm.com
Rocking with festive fun The ride lroin Kellay ik Airport into Reykjayik is your introduetion to the extraordinary lL‘elantliL‘ landseape. and it is breathtaking. The road is eary ed t'roin eolossal hleak lziyzt lields L‘oyet'cd in strange green itioss. and it‘s easy to understand why they used this eny'ironinent to train astronauts lor moon landings.
While lltost ot' leeland is made up of sueli jaw-dropping unspoilt yy'ilderness. Rey kjay‘ik is the Very pieture of modern liy'ing. 'l‘he \yorld‘s niost northerly eapital eity is a thoroughly eosmopolitan plaee. yet also so eoinpaet that it leels like a small. l'riendly Village.
The eity"s name means ‘sinoky hay". and its sheltered loeation gives it a more tetnperate eliinate than the rest ol' the eountry. but it still gets extremely eold (it this time ot' year. so he warned. Around Christmas. you'll only see a few hours of daylight. but that doesn't seem to get the loeals down. and there's eettainly plenty to keep you oeetipied.
A quiek eayeat: leeland isn't eheap. ll. you‘re looking for a bargain getaway. Reykjavik isn’t for you. The shopping is lantastie. espeeially for interesting jeyy‘ellery
and arty and eral'ty stut‘t'. most of
‘REYKJAVIK HAS A REPUTATION AS A PARTY TOWN'
\yhieh is eentred around the tyyo main streets ol l.auga\egui and Skolayordustigur. but it all hits the poeket pretty hard.
The same goes tor eating out. yy here a meal t'or tyyo in a deeeni restaurant \in| set you liaek a small littl‘ttllit‘. ililtL‘ liootl l\ L'\L‘L'llt‘lil. though. \yith great \L‘ttlootl and smoked lainh amongst loeal staples. alongside more unusual otterings like put'l'in and e\ en \y hale arid shark. A lk‘L‘l' will set you haek around (will) kronur trouglily a then. \yhieh is \yhy niost liars and eluhs don't get busy 'til \eiy late all the loeals get tanked tip at home lii‘st.
Rey kiayik has a reputation as a party [out]. and rightly so. 'l'liings get going around I lpni. and at the weekends inost hars stay open all night. NASA on Atisturyollur Square is king ol the eluh eireuit. \y'hile great liye inusie t'roin leeland's \ihrant seene ean he lound round the eorner at (iaukurinn and Organ. ln l'aet. alinost ey'ery bar has a hand or DJ playing at weekends. and it you‘re on a serious puh erayyl. it \youldn‘t
he eoinplete \yiilioiit a \isit to l‘ttlll lsatlihai‘inn ipart oyynetl lty llainoii .\l|\arnt and holieinian late liltjlll liatittt Sit‘ktis treeently teatiiied ill a ltiork \ideoi. .\iid you should note that. \yliile ('lii'istiiias is ltiisy. it's \eyy \ear that leelanders really go nuts with tii'e\\oiks and deliatieliei‘y guaranteed all night.
l~or daytiine etiltuie seekers. tlieies plenty to see. the highlights heiiig llallgriiiiskiikia. the \llllsltl‘.‘ elitireli that o\et'looks the eity. the lainai‘ .loiisson Seiilptuie \ltiseiiin nest door. and the tantastie ('tiltuie llotise.
lhere are also loads ot great day trips otilsltle the eity. to see the likes ot' the original (iey set. the (illllltiss
litt‘.
Reykjavik is famed for its bars and Clubs like Sirkus. which recently featured in a Bjork Video. It also boasts a number of stunning natural attractions including the Blue Lagoon, bottom
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it l‘t'llt'tl lt‘l‘ t'li [at ’i', vlil illt
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www.icetourist.is
I Return flights from Glasgow to Reykjavik cost around 2250—350. Flights from Scottish airports to Stockholm cost from around £200. However, if you don’t mind going via London prices start from about £40 with budget airlines.
I t: 1' i' '1' ‘
I Accommodation in Scandinavia is similarly priced to most European cities, but food and drink are relatively expensive.
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