Travel with Katie Butler: Warning to stay away from Icelandic capital of Reykjavik this summer

Katie Butler writes: Thirteen years ago the Icelandic volcano (that no-one could pronounce – me included) Eyjafjallajökull erupted sending plumes of volcanic ash spreading nine kilometres into the sky.

The eruption in the grand scheme of volcanic eruptions was relatively small. However, the impact of the 'ash clouds' was massive and unprecedented.

Last week there was an update on the FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) website, with a warning that Iceland has begun experiencing 'intense seismic activity', which could lead to a volcanic eruption.

The update said the activity had been detected on the Reykjanes Peninsula, the most densely populated region of Iceland. The Foreign Office advice said: “A volcanic eruption may start with short notice and police have advised that people stay away from the area.”

It certainly made me reflect on the impact of the 2010 eruption – over 100,000 flights were grounded over a six-day period. At the time, I remember thinking it was one of the most stressful and difficult travel issues we’d had to deal with... if I knew then – what I know now…

I will continue to keep a close eye on those updates.

Last week the Spanish government declared an end to the health crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, again in an update on the Foreign Office website.

The country has lifted all remaining compulsory requirements to wear face coverings, including in pharmacies and health care facilities.

It seems hard to believe that just a couple of years ago – travel around Europe, and indeed around the world, was so severely restricted due to Covid-19.

Of course whilst the virus continues to circulate, thankfully life has pretty much gone back to normal, and most countries have lifted all restrictions.

As it stands, there are now only a handful of countries that still have some rules in place. Most of these are not particularly top tourist or holiday destinations.

The following countries are however still closed to unvaccinated travellers – Liberia, Marshall Islands, Pakistans, Solomon Islands and Indonesia, to name a few.

If you are due to travel overseas it is advisable to keep an eye on the status of any country you are planning to visit, just in case the requirements do change,

The good news is that since countries have dropped restrictions we are not aware of any destination that has reversed their decision and put restrictions back in place, travel is pretty much back to normal.

An absolutely storming week at Total Travel HQ last week, we certainly did not see that coming, and found we were almost as busy as January.

Majorca and Turkey retained their spot as our best selling destinations for the week, and again 36 per cent of our new bookings were 'late deals' to travel within the next 12 weeks.

Summer 2024 bookings also showed an increase, as many of you are now returning from your summer holiday and booking for next year!