Solar eclipse fills western Iceland’s hotels and rental cars

Hotels are fully booked and rental cars are unavailable across western Iceland ahead of the total solar eclipse on Wednesday, mbl.is reports. Tourists made arrangements well in advance to watch the event in the Suðurnes region.

“It is the reason we knew in the spring that all hotel rooms and all rental cars would be fully booked,” Berglind Kristinsdóttir, director of the Association of Municipalities in Suðurnes, told mbl.is.

Preparations have been under way for nearly a year. Berglind said organisers had known since April that not only local rooms, but hotel rooms throughout western Iceland, would be fully booked.

“We have heard that people are renting out their homes,” she said.

The total eclipse on August 12 will be clearly visible in Suðurnes, the capital region, Mýrar, Snæfellsnes and the western Westfjords. It will be accompanied by a very brief period of darkness, even if the weather is cloudy.

In Reykjanesbær municipality, the partial eclipse will begin at 4:47:11 p.m. Totality will start at 5:48:04 p.m., reach its peak at 5:48:54 p.m. and end at 5:49:44 p.m. The partial eclipse will end at 6:47:52 p.m.

Reykjanesbær has published further information about the eclipse on its website.