Reykjavík Grapevine - jul 2022, Síða 9

9The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 07— 2022
tive—cue the video of a drunk Scottish
guy bellowing “AH HATE ICELAND,”
behind a frustrated news anchor’s
back—but it put the country in every-
one’s minds.
The post-tourism pull of the hard-
to-reach, unusual place that nobody
else was going to was the final piece
of the puzzle that chimed with a new
breed of social-media savvy travel-
ler. In 2009, 494,000 visitors came to
Iceland. In 2019, that figure was over
two million.
“MCDISNEYIZATION”
Along with this marked increase in
visitor numbers has come a dramatic
change in the landscape of Iceland—
both environmentally and culturally.
For instance, the post-modern tourist
does not desire to stay in traditional
hostels or hotels as their parents did.
Instead, they have turned to compa-
nies like Airbnb, who offer the oppor-
tunity to stay smack dab in the middle
of downtown Reykjavík, in apartments
that are desired for both their simu-
lacra of ‘authenticity’, as well as their
aesthetic currency for sharing online.
The fact that Iceland is currently expe-
riencing its worst rental shortage of all
time does not feel unrelated.
It’s a phenomenon that American
sociologist George Rizter refers to
as “McDisneyization”—the idea that
increasingly, cities and spaces are being
rationalised for consumption by the
visiting tourist, often at the expense
of those who actually live there. Kyana
recognises the issue in some of her
audience, who come to Iceland expect-
ing to be swept away in a fairytale expe-
rience.
“I think the biggest ‘Instagram vs
reality’ experiences people have when
they come here is the amount of
people,” she says. “Because of course,
you were inspired by a small person
standing in front of a beautiful water-
fall, and you thought, oh my gosh that’s
amazing. But then when you actually
come here, you might be on a tour or it
might be peak time, and there will be
hundreds of people standing in front
of Skógafoss.”
Kyana herself now frequently travels
Iceland during the night in summer
time, in order to get the photographs
her followers expect, devoid of crowds.
“It’s my way of doing my job more
effectively,” she says, matter-of-factly.
“THIS COULD KILL YOU”
What Kyana sees as a real concern,
however, is the way that social media
may be encouraging people to interact
with Icelandic nature in ways that risk
harm to individuals—or the landscape
itself.
“We’re all the same: we go some-
where new and think, oh I have to take
that photo, we’re never coming back,
let’s just do it,” she says, with empathy.
“But in some cases in Iceland you could
really regret doing it.”
Kyana continues: “For example, the
volcano: I know we were lucky in that
there were no deaths or major inju-
ries, but there were a lot of people who
messaged me saying they were going to
go up, even if there was a big storm.”
Jewells shares similar worries
regarding safety at Fagradalsfjall:
“People were walking on the lava like it
was fine,” she says, incredulously. “But
it’s like no, this could kill you!”
Jewells also believes, however, that it
is the responsibility of her and others in
her industry to set a standard of behav-
iour that others can follow: “If you’re
an influencer, and you’re doing some-
thing reckless, there’s a good chance
that people that people will copy you
and try and get that same picture.”
“I’m not saying it’s one person’s
fault,” she adds. “But let’s not try and
encourage behaviour that could have
people jumping off a cliff, or standing
on the moss.”
THE BIEBER EFFECT
Perhaps the most famous moss-
wrecker of them all is pop star Justin
Bieber. In 2015, Bieber filmed the
music video for his song “I’ll Show You”
in Iceland, which included scenes of
him running on protected moss in the
Fjaðrárgljúfur gorge of South Iceland,
as well as swimming in Jökulsárlón—
aka the ‘diamond lagoon’—which can
be incredibly dangerous.
Since then, footfall in Fjaðrárgljú-
fur—which was previously relatively
unknown to tourists—has increased
substantially, and park rangers have
reported damage to the moss, which
can take many years to grow back.
Kyana feels frustrated that the
Icelandic government seem to
acknowledge the damage that can be
caused by one influencer’s actions,
without engaging with those who want
to help protect Iceland’s nature, as well
as the safety of those who want to visit
it responsibly:
“With this black beach situation,
people are just walking past the signs,”
she says, regarding the recent deaths at
Reynisfjara. “I don’t know if that’s to do
with where they’re located, or if they’re
not big enough. But what I do know is
that changing these things can only do
so much, because travellers relate best
to other people.”
She goes on: “There are tonnes of
travel influenc-
ers in the coun-
try who inspire
people to come
h e r e , a n d I
think we’re the
ones who need
to share this
message. I don’t
know why the
Minister or the
To u r i s m B o a r d
isn’t coming to us to help get across
this huge safety message.”
CONSCIOUS TOURISM
Jewells echoes Kyana’s sentiments,
saying that there is a big interest from
her audience for content regarding how
to be a responsible tourist.
“More and more people want to be
seen as conscious tourists,” she says.
“I try to cater to that, educating people
on different aspects. Maybe it’s just my
community, but I feel like people really
appreciate that.”
While the government so far has not
taken the initiative to recruit influenc-
ers for major safety campaigns, both
Jewells and Kyana, as well as other influ-
encers, have taken it upon themselves
to inform and educate their followers,
with content such as “8 Mistakes Tour-
ists Make” (Kyana) and “7 Ways Iceland
Can Kill You” (Jewells).
However, one aspect where Jewells
and Kyana feel differently is on the
subject of geotagging locations—the
method by which those sharing content
on social media can pinpoint the exact
spot where it was produced.
“Sometimes people share pictures
but don’t share where the location is,”
Jewells says. “I get that you want to
make travel inspo, and there are some
places where perhaps you shouldn’t
share the location because it’s danger-
ous for people to go there, or they could
cause damage. But in my opinion I love
when people share information about
a place, what you should and shouldn’t
do—interesting places to go, but also
what to watch out for.”
KEEPING SECRETS
But Kyana feels strongly that some
places should not be shared on social
media at all. “If it’s a place where you
don’t want to share the location, it’s
quite possible that you shouldn’t even
put it on Instagram,” she says.
“All it takes is the awareness of loca-
tion,” she adds. “You may not think it’s
a big issue, but there have been a few
hot springs in Iceland that have been
Instagram vs Reality
How The Digital Age Of Tourism Changed
Iceland Forever
WORDS: Josie Anne Gaitens PHOTOS: provided by influencers
“If you’re doing something reckless, there’s a good
chance that people will copy you.”
Jewells Chambers (All Things Iceland) teaches her followers about Icelandic life on Instagram