18 projects awarded grants from the Tourist Site Protection Fund

Minister of Industries, Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, has awarded grants to 18 projects from The Tourist Site Protection Fund for the year 2026. The total amount of grants amounts to almost 490 million ISK, which will be distributed to projects across the country.

Special emphasis was placed on safety at tourist attractions during this allocation, and the fund's quality assessment took that emphasis into account.

"Safety at tourist attractions in Iceland is not only the responsibility of the government, but a joint project of all of us who work on tourism issues," said the Minister of Industries. "Iceland's vast nature is certainly fascinating, but it can also be unforgiving. One of the roles of the Tourism Development Fund is therefore to ensure the safety of visitors."

The largest grant from the fund this year goes to Vestmannaeyjar island for the construction of footpaths on Eldfell in connection with Ólafur Elíasson's artwork entitled The Wanderer's Perspective. The main goal of the project is to ensure the safety of tourists and protect the sensitive nature of the area, while at the same time commemorating the volcanic eruption on Heimaey in 1973.

The goal of the Tourisim Development Fund is to promote the development, maintenance and protection of tourist attractions, promote a more even distribution of tourists throughout the country, and support regional development.