Icelandic Explorer

Introduction

My name is Laufey Hanna (25) and I am from Iceland. I have visited 9 countries so far and I am a recent social work graduate, currently working in a small Icelandic town at a centre for teenagers.

Instagram: @Laufeyhanna

What is the best thing about living in Iceland?

It definitely has to be the nature!

I feel like because I have lived here my whole life, I am used to it and this is my normal, so I don’t find it as exciting as other people that come and visit do. But I do love it here and I feel that the nature has a calming effect on me. In the summertime, I travel around my country a lot.

What inspired you to travel?

I feel like I have always wanted to travel alone.

I am 25 now and I feel like life is moving so fast. It is crazy. The feeling I have is that I need to travel now because in future years maybe I will start my own family or focus more on my career.

I also feel that the experience you get whilst travelling solo is a way to get to know yourself in a different way because you are completely reliant on yourself and usually, I am dependant on others to think for me. So it was such a good learning and development experience for me to travel solo.

Have you travelled much in Europe?

In summer 2023, I started my solo trip in Vienna (Austria) and I had no plans at all.

I just knew I wanted to visit cities I had never been to before and also places that I would probably never visit again. Places like Liechtenstein and Luxembourg, for example.

I just made things up as I went along. At some points, it was 5PM and I had still not booked a hostel or hotel to stay in for the night.

The other thing was, on this trip, I didn’t just visit big cities, I would travel 30 to 60 minutes away to experience smaller towns and cities. But like I said, there was no plan that I created beforehand and I visited some really random places.

Which countries are your favourite?

Austria and Switzerland.

After leaving these countries and continuing to travel, I would always keep thinking about them two in particular. Everything about them was just amazing. I went to this place about 40 minutes out from Saltzberg called Saalbach-Hinterglemm and it was beautiful. It was a small town and I just kept thinking about it all of the time.

How do your family feel about your travelling?

My family were mortified when I told them I was going solo travelling.

I felt like nobody had faith in me that I would actually survive. I feel as though I am like a butterfly and just go where I feel I want to. I usually have people think for me when I travel but this time, I had to think for myself and figure trains, buses, flights and accommodation out on my own.

My uncle said that 90% of the world is good and you don’t have to think about the worst part, as there are more good people than bad.

I was completely fine during the whole time of my trip. Of course, you have to go with your gut, that is like the most important thing. Your gut is never wrong!

How do you travel safely?

My Mum has this app tracker linked to my phone, so she knows where I am all of the time, so that also made me feel safer.

For me, if I have any sense or a feeling that something is wrong, I try and get out of that situation quickly. I remember when I was in bigger cities and out alone at night, nothing happened I was completely safe. But of course, you have to be aware of your surroundings all of the time.

What was Dublin like?

I have been to Dublin 4 times but every time I go there, there is something new and every trip is different. I also love the people. I feel that they are so friendly, like just extra nice. Generally, the vibe is just great.

Have you met many people whilst travelling?

Yes! I have met a lot of people.

I met two American girls in Lucerne (Switzerland) and they were really sweet. And you know when you meet people and you say, “hey how are you? Are you travelling?” Well, we just clicked and talked about everything in our lives. It wasn’t just sharing basic information but like a deeper conversation.

I also met a Danish girl and we just got on right away. We talked like we already knew each other. I will never forget her.

What is the most dramatic travel event you have experienced?

I was travelling from Cologne (Germany) to Dusseldorf (Germany) to Dublin (Ireland) towards the end of my solo European trip. So far during my trip, everything had been going quite smoothly but that soon changed.

This was because trains stopped travelling to Dusseldorf, so I had to take a bus instead, which made me an hour later that anticipated in getting to the airport. Then when I got to the airport, (an airport which I have not been to before which was massive), I went to the wrong boarding gate twice and had to go through security both times.

My boarding gate was going to close at 11:15 and I was about 1KM from the gate, with my flight departing at 11:45.

When I arrived at the third boarding gate, I started to have a panic attack and I was struggling to breathe. It was horrible. None of the people there would help me.

There was one guy on the bus we had to take to the plane and on it I completely blacked out with panic. He woke me up after I had passed out and asked if I was okay but I wasn’t. But I did make it on to the flight, as for some reason there was an hour delay. It was all just a terrible experience but I overcame it all.

In contrast, when I was at Dublin airport, I was there 5 hours before my flight and everyone was so nice and it was all smooth.

If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would it be?

Austria!

I just love the country so much. I just get a good feeling when I am there. The culture and nature there are also great and I just liked everything about it.

If you could travel with anyone famous, who would it be?

I think it has to be someone who is fun. Maybe Will Ferrell.

Where would you like to travel to in the future?

In my last European trip, I met a lot of people from Australia and New Zealand.

I was thinking from Iceland it is like the opposite side of the Earth. So, on my next big trip, I definitely want to go there. With the people from New Zealand which I have met on my travels, I felt as though we are very similar types of people and could easily relate to each other.

What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about travelling?

Just do it. Definitely do it. Don’t wait!

Please share an interaction you will never forget.

So, when I was in Lichenstein, I met some older guys and they were really nice and one of them told me that when he was 25 he travelled a lot. He then asked me if I kept a travel book of notes throughout my journey. I replied, “no.” He said, “definitely buy a travel notebook tomorrow which you can read back when you are older.”

So, the next day I bought a notebook and I am so glad that I did.

Sometimes I only write a few sentences but that is okay. It is so easy to forget those little moments on your trip but now I have everything written down in my notebook, I have those experiences forever.

Any final thoughts…

If you are travelling on your own, you have to be open minded. As my Uncle said, 90% of the people in the world are good. So you can’t close yourself off from experiences just because of the bad 10%.

Instagram: @Laufeyhanna