Seeing a significant spike in popularity among travelers over the past decade, the Nordic nation of Iceland attracts adventure-seeking visitors with natural phenomena such as fjords, the Northern Lights and the famous Blue Lagoon geothermal spa.
Due to its small population and remote geography, Iceland is also considered among the world’s safest countries to visit. The U.S. State Department rates it “take normal precautions,” meaning the country is just as safe or safer to visit than America is.
While the country’s crime rate is still among the lowest in the world, the Icelandic Tourism Agency has put out a new warning about a recent string of pickpockets targeting foreigners at popular sites.
Incidents have been on the increase particularly in Thingvellir National Park (spelled Þingvellir in Icelandic). The historic site and national park is located east of the capital, Reykjavik, and is known worldwide for its unique geological formations caused by tectonic shift over thousands of years.
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Group targets tourists at Iceland park, elsewhere
In a Facebook post park authorities described a late February incident in which a group of pickpockets tried to surround a park visitor, who was able to fend them off by waving her hands and making noise.
A few days later, the same group, several men and women, was spotted targeting tourists in the Almannagjá and Hakið areas. They tried to drive away and were stopped by police.
“Closer investigation has revealed that the band arrived at Þingvellir at the same time every morning for five consecutive days, and then after raiding Þingvellir they headed further east on the Golden Circle to Geysir and Gullfoss to pillage from tourists,” Thingvellir authorities described.
Iceland is home to numerous world-famous national parks.
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‘Part of a structured criminal enterprise’
Local park rangers have also been drawing attention to the problem and the method the thieves employ.
The pickpockets will typically join a large group gathered around popular attractions like the Strokkur geyser and rummage through bags while their victims are turned around and distracted by the sights.
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“This is a highly organized operation and clearly part of a structured criminal enterprise,” Garðar Már Garðarsson, chief superintendent of the South Iceland Police, said in a statement on the situation. “We suspect that around 10 people are actively involved in these thefts.”
Pickpocketing has traditionally been more of a danger in larger European capitals, such as Paris and Rome. But as the numbers of visitors to Iceland have spiked, both local and foreign criminals have been seizing opportunities at popular destinations like Thingvellir and Blue Lagoon.
With a local population of just under 400,000, Iceland saw more than 2.3 million international arrivals in the country in 2024.
To mitigate some of the environmental impact on remote natural parks, the Icelandic government in January 2024 introduced a sustainability tax added to stays in hotel and vacation rental properties.
“Most of our guests visit our unspoiled nature and obviously that creates a pressure,” said Katrin Jakobsdóttir, who then was the country’s prime minister and addressed the new charge.
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