Environmental Policy

Sustainability at Iceland Travel

As the country’s largest and oldest tour operator, we believe it is vital to respect Icelandic nature and keep our country a vibrant and exciting destination. We are fully committed to sustainable tourism and continued improvement in our operations.

Certified Commitment to the Environment

Through Travel Connect, we are a member of Travelife, an internationally recognized training, management, and certification program for sustainability in tourism. Travelife is recognized by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council. 

We are very proud to announce that we’ve received their top recognition, Travelife Certified. This makes us, along with Travel Connect and some of our sister brands, the first in Iceland to have achieved this certification.

These accolades confirm that when you book with Iceland Travel, you ensure working with a company that takes environmental matters and the protection of nature seriously.

Iceland Travel’s Responsibility 

The growth of tourism throughout the world inevitably impacts upon the fragile environments that guests are there to see and experience.
Many of our tours, by definition, travel through a variety of different environments. The goal of our environmental policy is to try to minimize our impact and, where possible, act in such a way that benefits the local communities and environments.
We understand the impacts that our operations may have and pro-actively seek to ensure our operations are as locally sustainable as possible. We are fully committed to following Iceland’s environmental laws.

To meet our environmental sustainability goals, we have implemented an environmental management system as follows:

• All our escorted tours and self-drive tours are carbon offset through Kolviður – the Icelandic Carbon Fund*.
• Reducing waste in our operations.
• Subsidising public transport and healthy lifestyles for our employees.
• Limiting our environmental impact and implementing responsible tourism practices in our Iceland operations.
• Choosing environmentally friendly tour suppliers and services.
• Raising awareness regarding environmental issues among our guests, staff and guides.
• Aiming to adhere to these principles and continuously improve on our environmental management system.

* Kolviður works on the concept of capturing carbon from the atmosphere through tree planting. The primary goal of this project is to store carbon in forests, reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This project also supports soil formation, wildlife and biodiversity, which all support our environment. Iceland Travel purchases carbon credit that will, with time, carbon neutralise your travels. It takes time for trees to grow, so carbon capture is a valuable work in progress. 

Iceland Travel’s Social Responsibility:

As well as our environmental impact, we also take our social responsibility very seriously, whether that be within the company or as part of our local communities. 

Here is how we aim to be more socially responsible as a company:

• Playing an active part in promoting cultural diversity as well as a variety of jobs in local communities.
• Working to strenghten the economy of urban as well as remote areas.
• Treating all stakeholders with respect, whether they are partners, customers or local residents of our destinations.
• Growing as a company through a culture of continuous improvement with a focus on work-life balance.
• Providing an inclusive work environment where employees can balance their work and personal life.

Sustainability at Travel Connect

You can read the Travel Connect Sustainability Policy, which we adhere to, on the Travel Connect website. There you’ll also find a summary of our future goals as we continue to work on becoming more sustainable. 

For questions or comments about our Sustainability Policy, please contact Travel Connect’s sustainability coordinator, Kristín Halldórsdóttir, at kristin[at]travelconnect.com.