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#Post#: 19322--------------------------------------------------
Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to WOW
air’s demise..
DIR By: SHL
Date: September 5, 2019, 3:32 pm
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I thought this was sort of an interesting story. Iceland’s
tourism industry boomed until WOW air went bankrupt this year.
Bad business planning and over-expansion far too fast is
probably what did it.
I flew them in 2016, 2017, and 2018 to Germany. The first time I
swore I’d never fly them again. I thought it was worth a few
hundred extra bucks to be comfortable and have a break in the
trip, so I picked Iceland for a layover because it was the
closest European travel destination from San Francisco. I always
thought it was amazing that a country of only 325,000 could
operate two big airlines and it was obvious that the travel
industry was the major economic force in the country. But with
tourism down, Iceland could slide back into the recession it had
in 2008.
HTML https://mentalfloss.com/article/594875/iceland-massive-decline-tourism-due-demise-wow-air
Interesting story.
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HTML https://ibb.co/Yh8HGz8
HTML https://i.ibb.co/Pz36DMM/EC428-D41-929-D-4-A35-85-EF-5704-CF45-CAF7.jpg
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#Post#: 19327--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: Pasha
Date: September 6, 2019, 7:19 am
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It is not a bad thing. If they go into recession, their currency
will devalue and their stuff will get cheaper. Steve, next time
when you go to Germany, cost of staying in Iceland hotels will
be less.
#Post#: 19328--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: NealC
Date: September 6, 2019, 7:42 am
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I am not sure that low price air travel is the right market
position for tourism to Iceland, and the whole "Gateway to
Europe" thing leaves me flat.
It will be interesting to see what comes of this.
#Post#: 19330--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: SHL
Date: September 6, 2019, 10:08 am
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--- Quote from: NealC link ---
>
> I am not sure that low price air travel is the right market
position for tourism to Iceland, and the whole "Gateway to
Europe" thing leaves me flat.
> It will be interesting to see what comes of this.
>
--- End Quote ---
Yes, I always found their marketing strategy odd. Low airfares
to Iceland and Europe from the US. And to Iceland and the rest
of Europe. But, if you stay in Iceland as a tourist, it’s one of
the most expensive places in Europe to be. A hamburger with
fries for 26,00$ USD? A 3-star hotel room for $250 a night? Not
cheap. That’s why I only stayed one night. But that one night
each way added 500$ USD to the travel cost.
#Post#: 19331--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: NealC
Date: September 6, 2019, 10:39 am
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They might be better served as an expensive/exclusive
destination. Permits needed to visit their ecologically
important sites.
Perhaps a separate airline to handle the "Gateway to Europe"
stuff, with an inexpensive hotel attached to the airport. No
exit visa from that hotel, only transfer.
#Post#: 19332--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: NealC
Date: September 6, 2019, 10:44 am
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On a related topic, one of the reasons air travel is down to
Iceland is they have 9 of the 737 max aircraft still grounded
due to the Boeing software glitch.
This is a big problem now and Boeing stands to lose a lot of
credibility in the market. It was one thing to have a problem
in the product, but their customers are waiting how many months
with grounded airplanes? Wasn't it the beginning of the year?
This might really bite Boeing in the ass
#Post#: 19333--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: Nikola
Date: September 6, 2019, 10:55 am
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There's still Norwegian. I flew with them last year from Prague
to New York JFK with a short layover in Oslo. It cost me $180. I
thought that was the ultimate gateway to the US. I wouldn't want
to stay in Oslo, though, it's probably as expensive as Iceland.
I bought a sandwich at the airport, thinking "that's my budget
for tomorrow, gone".
#Post#: 19335--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: SHL
Date: September 6, 2019, 12:51 pm
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--- Quote from: NealC link ---
>
> On a related topic, one of the reasons air travel is down to
Iceland is they have 9 of the 737 max aircraft still grounded
due to the Boeing software glitch.
>
> This is a big problem now and Boeing stands to lose a lot of
credibility in the market. It was one thing to have a problem
in the product, but their customers are waiting how many months
with grounded airplanes? Wasn't it the beginning of the year?
>
> This might really bite Boeing in the ass
>
--- End Quote ---
When Boeing didn’t get their 737MAXs back in the air within a
month, I said this is going to be a major hit on Boeing. It’s
could put them on the verge of going under. The 737MAX has been
grounded over 6 months now. Some have said it might be back in
service before the end of the year. Others have said 2020.
Either way, it is going to cause major problems for Boeing and
lawsuits over revenue losses by their customers.
I had to take a EuroAtlantic 767 last August from Berlin to
Reykjavik, which Icelandair chartered, because their 737MAX
fleet was grounded. The crew was half Portuguese and half
Icelandic.
That’s a Portuguese airline, but I have never seen smaller seats
in my life on a plane, outside of their business class. It was a
very unpleasant 3 hours. I can't imagine they would fly one of
those across the Atlantic.
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#Post#: 19336--------------------------------------------------
Re: Iceland’s economy takes major hit as tourism drops due to
WOW air’s demise..
DIR By: SHL
Date: September 6, 2019, 1:00 pm
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--- Quote from: Nikola link ---
>
> There's still Norwegian. I flew with them last year from
Prague to New York JFK with a short layover in Oslo. It cost me
$180. I thought that was the ultimate gateway to the US. I
wouldn't want to stay in Oslo, though, it's probably as
expensive as Iceland. I bought a sandwich at the airport,
thinking "that's my budget for tomorrow, gone".
>
--- End Quote ---
Flights to New York are much shorter from Europe than from the
West Coast. I think a London to NY flight is only like 7 hours
or something. It’s like 11 to San Francisco, a huge difference.
That’s why a mid-way layover point is something I choose. I
couldn’t imagine sitting on a plane for 11 or more hours.
40 years ago, no one went As a tourist to Iceland. It was just a
1 hour stopover in route to Luxembourg, usually from the East
Coast or Chicago, and the airfare was the lowest going. It was
an exotic destination and a charming place with an economy based
on fishing and raising sheep. Hardly anyone even heard of
Reykjavik.
I always lamented that it turned into a tourist destination over
the last 5 years. In a way I rather hope it recovers it’s sense
of isolation and charm and can build an economy on something
other than tourism.
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