Blue Lagoon geothermal spa in Iceland closes after series of earthquakes | Hacker News Reader

Blue Lagoon geothermal spa in Iceland closes after series of earthquakes

theguardian.com

60 pointsbookofjoe47 comments

> The Blue Lagoon, a geothermal spa south-west of Reykjavík, announced it would close its doors on Thursday for a week

This is temporary, not permanent. Short of the whole thing being swallowed by a lava fissure there's no way they will close Iceland's most famous tourist trap.

Yep. But: the upcoming eruptions could limit or destroy access routes, change geothermal patterns, create other nearby health risks – or even, as you put it, result literall in "the whole thing being swallowed by a lava fissure".

I'm not sure why this is being downvoted since there is considerable evidence that a new fissure might open very close to this area. The three eruptions in the last few years on the peninsula have not been far from Blue Lagoon.

There's a gentleman who came across my radar, who follows this kinda stuff much like a 'storm chaser' might in the US. He has a recent (Wednesday) video where he found hotspots on the surface with a thermal camera - close enough to the Blue Lagoon that it's in-frame. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KV75cDceExw&t=115s

It's worth noting the area is surprisingly flat. Flat like sandpaper - it's not at all smooth, but there's not much of a gradient either. Essentially whatever the volcanic version of a flood plain is. So a surface fissure here could be quite problematic. It's very close to the power station, very close to the resort, and there's not a lot of geography to channel it away.

Yep. I was lucky to visit to see the nearby 2021 eruption – and also got in a Blue Lagoon stop.

Peninsula / coast / power / airport / key roads all pretty close, and an eruption could be bigger & longer.

I do have immense confidence in Iceland's ability & expertise to adapt no matter what. They know their land, & the geo science, very well and can coordinate/cooperate on a rapid, large scale.

I liked my time there, but yes it's a tourist trap.

Is there a comparable experience elsewhere (in Iceland or not) that's not overpriced, overcrowded, or out of the way? (a lot to ask I know)

When I spent a week in Selfoss, the landscape was littered with natural hot pools. Local guides could help you navigate them safely. It was sublime to be in them mid-day, mid-winter, with nothing around you for miles in every direction.

Depends on what you mean by comparable. Pretty much every midsized town in Iceland (and many of the small ones) have hot springs for the locals to frequent. If you want the whole trifecta of fancy hotels, crowds, and high end dining, there aren't that many. Myvatn meets the criteria though.

If you simply want a nice view with some hot water, my family says that sky lagoon in Reykjavik is just as nice for less.

I recently stayed at the sister resort, the Silica Hotel, and found it quite pleasant. It has its own lagoon and it’s a much quieter experience. It’s a 5 minute walk from the main resort so you can still take advantage of all the accommodations.

https://www.bluelagoon.com/accommodation/silica-hotel

Yes. It's a short flight to a colony of Iceland called Japan. The locals call them onsen there. The local Icelandic dialect is very different but there are signs in English.

As a sibling commenter said, Sky Lagoon may be worth a look. It’s still a tourist destination, but my experience there was very quiet and tranquil. I think if people want to show off and take selfies, maybe party a little bit the Blue Lagoon might be the place, but for relaxation and an experience, sky lagoon really ticked the boxes for me.

You need to drive or get a bus there, but it wasn’t too far a journey from Reykjavik city centre.

There’s a in-spring bar there, which is practically the only time I was in close proximity to other people, except my party. The rest of the ritual and ‘journey’ space you go through was all really roomy, quiet and clean.

I think it was around £60, or ~$70 including the journey there and back, and a drink.

> tourist trap

We visited Blue Lagoon on Monday. It’s definitely a tourist destination and slightly gimmicky, but overall we enjoyed it. It’s organized, relaxing, and a great photo op.

Maybe the term is fair if you’re expecting something “authentic locals” do, but it has none of the long lines, price gouging, or disgruntled staff of real “tourist traps” I’ve landed in.

I still remember going to the lagoon back when there were only a couple of portable container houses there for changing your clothes before going in. No charging, no tourists, almost no people.

Back then, before the commercialisation of it (which btw I am fine with) it was just what it is; the run off from the Svartsengi powerplant.

The important context for this story is mentioned in the last couple if paragraphs: there is a large buildup of magma underground very near the Blue Lagoon.

Not mentioned is that the water in the Blue Lagoon is waste from a large geothermal plant that provides power and municipal heating to every home in the peninsula, so the residents of Grindavík have more to worry about than being directly threatened by erupting lava.

It is for tourists, but I would not categorize it as a trap. However, I do wonder why this tidbit is hacker newsworthy

I was there in January the weather was hailing and of course it's Iceland, windy as all get out. Love Iceland yet the Blue Lagoon compared to the govt run bathhouses in Reykjavik (where I socialized & met locals/made friends) was lacking for me.

I had a better and probably cheaper experience at one of the thermal pools on the golden circle. I think I paid a $35 USD entrance fee per person when I was there several years ago which for Iceland is pretty dang reasonable

Agreed. Blue lagoon has public pool vibes for sure. I still think its worth doing if you have the time, but if you're choosing between that and (probably) any other hot spring/bath house experience I'd advise doing something else.

I went to the Sky Lagoon too and at night. Had I see the northern lights there or at blue lagoon I'd be a ton more positive about these places.

Overall both to me are must visits and fun i just had a better experience at Reykjavik's govt run bathhouses. My friend i met there just sent me northern light pics from this evening. I didn't get to see them during my nine day visit there last winter. They are elusive.

The city's bathhouses are great. During Airwaves you meet people from all over the world.

oh cool it happens in November and my friend I met during my visit just sent me Northern Light pics last night. Makes me to go hop on a plane for a visit and hopefully finally catch the lights.

I always found it interesting that Iceland has no indigenous population (like the inuit), prior to Scandinavian and British immigration. Like, what if it's because it is regularly buried in lava or something.

What makes the Icelandic people not indigenous?

Probably because they're Vikings who came from Scandinavia around the 8th-9th century, whereas the Inuit/other indigenous people have lived in their region since the BC times. Iceland seems to have only been habitable with the "modern" technology.

I also find it fascinating, it's a place where there's no "colonializers" and "colonized"...

Not strictly true as Iceland was ruled by Denmark for a long time and only became fully independent in 1944.

Not sure exactly which point you're refuting, but for a long time Vikings and Danes were synonymous, as preserved in terms like Danegeld or Danelaw.

That Denmark treated Iceland as a colony (and very poorly for a long time) isn’t exactly news despite there being common lineage all over Western Europe.

They’re living there not long enough compared to the rest of Europe? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Settlement_of_Iceland

I think the implication is, that like the Maoris in New Zealand, they're only faux indigenous, as they arrived on boats. Probably doesn't matter much as there is no grift to be had.

You could kind-of say the same thing about the Anglo-Saxons, it's interesting where we choose to draw the line sometimes

Lava doesn't cover all of Iceland anywhere near enough to regularly bury things on that timescale. There was arable land and forest when the Norse came.

There is some evidence that Irish monks were on Iceland before the Norse: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Iceland#Irish_monks

Were there another non-European population earlier, they would need to get there by sea. I would expect archeological evidence of sea-worthy ships, which we do for the Norse.

It is a long way from Greenland to Iceland - far greater than the ~35 km from Ellesmere Island to Greenland, which is how we think the Dorset and Thule people got to Greenland. (And that was on the other side of Greenland.)

The 1783 Laki eruption killed roughly a quarter of Iceland's human population via famine & majority of its livestock via poisoning.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki

Thanks for the mention. That was an interesting read!

Not sure if it's cause & effect, but forests were mostly cut down. The largest "forest" nowadays is 740 hectares (7.4 km2) (2.86 mi2).

I had read that they believe a volcanic eruption is imminent. The resort is in the path of a lava flow if the eruption occurs.

If you've lived through even a tiny earthquake it's much like if you've experienced a solar eclipse: even when short and mild, they elicit an otherworldly body-terror.

The people living on that peninsula right now are stressed out in a way most of us have never experienced.

Disagree with this - I was in Iceland this summer when the volcano erupted (ironically at Blue Lagoon just 2 hours before it erupted) and people there just go about their daily business like nothing happened. There was a 5.2 earthquake the day before it erupted and kids kept playing in the street.

I live in downtown Reykjavik and unless you’re paying attention you miss most of them even the strong ones. Definitely more of a thing in Grindavík and I don’t envy the people living there although they’re probably used to it by now. The big earthquake a day or two ago did cause an exodus of tourists from the Blue Lagoon Hotel though.

Hmm. I've done both. Tiny earthquake is no big deal. A big one, different story.

Also, when you experience an earthquake at the top of a tall building that oscillates and it sounds like it is going to fall apart, this is far more scarier than experiencing a stronger earthquake, but outside, on flat ground.

I have experienced big earthquakes in the former circumstances, and the sensation was confusing, until the earthquakes stopped you were not sure whether your building level is still firmly attached to its base, or it has started to travel independently towards an unavoidable fall.

Disagree: I lived through several short/mild earthquakes in California and Tokyo.

Visitors freaked a little, but locals looked up from their phones, confirmed with each other, then everybody guessed the magnitude and checked USGS to see who came closest.

Kinda like seeing a rat in NYC.

Soon to reopen rebranded as the Blue Lava Flow

The Red Lagoon

liquid hot magma

https://youtu.be/8MYAFfeNO00

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