Journey To Iceland

When Auden and MacNeice travelled in Iceland together in 1936, the verse, prose, letters and notes they recorded would appear the following year as 'Letters from Iceland'.

A classic of northern exploration and adventure, LAST PLACES is Lawrence Millman's marvelously told account of his journey along the ancient Viking sea routes that extend from Norway to Newfoundland. Traveling through landscapes of transcendent desolation, Millman wandered by way of the Shetland Islands, the Faeroes, Iceland, Greenland, and Labrador. His way was marked by surprising human encounters--with a convicted murderer in Reykjavik, an Inuit hermit in Greenland, an Icelandic guide who leads him to a place called Hell, and a Newfoundlander who warns him about the local variant of the Abominable Snowman. By turns earthy and lyrical, LAST PLACES is an ebullient celebration of the exotic North.

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

From vast glaciers to steaming volcanic lakes, experience the land of the midnight sun with Rick Steves. Inside Rick Steves Iceland you'll find: Comprehensive coverage for spending a week or more exploring Iceland Rick's strategic advice on how to get the most out of your time and money, with rankings of his must-see favorites Top sights and hidden gems, from the stunning northern lights to hidden hikes and cozy bookstores How to connect with culture: Soak in hidden hot springs, sample smoked fish, and chat with locals in welcoming rural towns Beat the crowds, skip the lines, and avoid tourist traps with Rick's candid, humorous insight The best places to eat, sleep, and relax Self-guided walking tours of lively Reykjavík and incredible museums as well as mile-by-mile scenic driving tours Detailed maps for exploring on the go Useful resources including a packing list, a historical overview, and helpful Icelandic phrases Over 500 bible-thin pages include everything worth seeing without weighing you down Complete, up-to-date information on Reykjavík, the Ring Road, the Reykjanes Peninsula, the Golden Circle, the South Coast, the Westman Islands, West Iceland, the Eastfjords, and more Make the most of every day and every dollar with Rick Steves Iceland. Expanding your trip? Try Rick Steves Scandinavia or Rick Steves Scandinavian & Northern European Cruise Ports.

Poet and novelist Lavinia Greenlaw's poetic reflections on William Morris's Icelandic Journal, one of the overlooked masterpieces of travel literature The great Victorian designer and decorative artist William Morris was fascinated by Iceland and wrote a book documenting his travels there. He gets caught up with questions of travel, noting his reaction to the idea of leaving or arriving, to hurry and delay, what it means to dread a place you’ve never been to or to encounter the actuality of a long-held vision. He is sensitive to the emotional landscape of his band of travelers and, above all, continuously analyzing and fixing this “most romantic of all deserts.” Lavinia Greenlaw follows in his footsteps, and interposes his prose with her own “questions of travel.” The result is a new and composite work that brilliantly explores our conflicted reasons for not staying at home.

"When Jon Sveinsson wrote this travelogue in 1894, there is no way he could have known of the fame he would one day acquire as a writer. In fact, it was not until some twenty years later that his children's book "Lost in the Arctic" ... was first published ... and the fame of 'Nonni' ([his] boyhood Icelandic nickname) spread ... his books were eventually translated into some 40 languages ... Jon Sveinsson is the only Jesuit priest ever born in Iceland. He left his homeland as a boy ... to follow [the] call ... Still longing to follow his dream to become a missionary, he ... volunteered to travel to Iceland in order to care for the souls of his fellow countrymen"--Publisher's foreword.