 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm visiting Iceland in late February and have noticed that they have a few resorts that don't seem too far away from Reykjavik. The nearest seems to be Blafjoll. Have any of you been there and if so how did you get there? Was it a bus ride from Reykjavik or car hire?
Any information greatly received.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Skied in Blafjoll 2 years ago
Very very windy, poor visibility and dark all around (slopes were well lit) but great fun
Similar to skiing in Finland but warmer and without the local facilities - just one building at the top of a mountain
Getting there is the biggest problem
We had a 4x4 hire car which was fine on the ring road between Selfoss and Reykjavik but the route up to the slopes was very icy so you need to take care if you're not used to driving in such conditions - don't know about busses
Also check opening times - not sure it's open during the week - we could only ski in the afternoon/evening on a Saturday
Nearby is the famous "inside the volcano" tour - the meeting point is the ticket office/ski rental/cafe building - only open in summer when the snow has gone - but it gives you an idea of what the terrain is like - it's definitely not an alpine valley
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Blafjoll is the one nearest to Reykjavik. (20 minutes drive). There is also one other, Skalafell, (25 minutes drive). Blafjoll is opened 14-21 mon-fri, but 10-17 on weekends. But although their homepage says they open at 14 on mon - fri, most often they don't open the whole area until 17 o'clock (before that it is only some nursery slopes). Skálafell is only open in weekends. The homepage for both areas is http://skidasvaedi.is/ The english part of it is here http://skidasvaedi.is/english/
They have bus transfer from Reykjavik. Return ticket seems to be arount 13pounds. More info on the webpage. The bus goes from either bus station or gas station in suburb of Reykjavik. So you would have to take regular city bus from downtown to the bus station where you could get the ski bus.
To drive to Bláfjöll and Skálafell is really easy. The last 10 km of the road can be icy but they both put salt and sand on it so that is never any problem. And if it is icy, you just drive carefully. Also most rental cars in Iceland are fitted with studded tyres. I have never had any problem there, even though I have caught heavy wind and snow and I don't use studded tires. Also if the conditions of the road is not good or the weather bad, they don't open the ski resort.
But then the bad news, there is hardly any snow in the ski resorts or in Iceland in general now. So the ski area is closed. But that can changes very quickly, and in late February there is most often plenty of snow in Blafjoll. Just check the webpage before you decide to go there.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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But then the bad news, there is hardly any snow in the ski resorts or in Iceland in general now. So the ski area is closed. But that can changes very quickly, and in late February there is most often plenty of snow in Blafjoll. Just check the webpage before you decide to go there.
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Thanks for the reply. I notice that there seems to be a load of snow on the webcam but a lot of red dots next to the lift status. Is the website 'live' and if so, when is the area likely to open?
Sorry for the daft question but I have no experience of skiing in this part of the world. 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It has been snowing in Iceland the past few days.
Bláfjöll is rumored to open from this Thurs / Fri.
Been a bad season, uptonow.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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It has been snowing in Iceland the past few days.
Bláfjöll is rumored to open from this Thurs / Fri.
Been a bad season, uptonow.
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Thank you. Hopefully will be open when we are there.
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Bláfjöll was open yesterday, though it's closed again today. I suspect that's more because of too much wind or snow rather than too little of the latter. I live in Reykjavik and it's been snowing every day since Saturday. In Reykjavik itself there's a good 30 cm on the ground, so I imagine there's now plenty in Bláfjöll to open it up.
I haven't been to the resort yet (this year hadn't been good for snow here up until last week-end), but am tossing up with the idea of popping over on Sunday (if it's open). If I do, I'll drop back onto this thread and let you know what it's like.
Worth noting that if you're getting the bus there and back you'll only get 3-4 hours skiing in: there's only one bus per day, which leaves at 12:40 from Reykjavik at week-ends (16:15 on week days) with the return from Bláfjöll departing at 17:05 (21:05 on week days). Then again, the area isn't exactly huge, so maybe 3-4 hours is enough for a decent look. The bus is cheap enough (certainly by Iceland standard of prices), though lift passes and ski hire are a bit more (all prices on website). Mjódd (where the bus leaves from) is a big bus terminal, so easy to get to on the local bus system (which runs very well). Info on local buses here: www.straeto.is/en
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