2026 Eclipse - Spain vs. Iceland
Currently going back and forth between the two and hoping to make a decision next month.
Iceland - Pros
>Place I was planning on going to anyways
>Lots of reputable existing tour companies offering fairly reasonably priced excursions where they will drive to wherever the best weather is day of ($100-200 per person)
>Possibility to see auroras during the eclipse, odds are supposedly low but a literal once in a lifetime event if it does happen
Iceland - Cons
>Really really cloudy, odds of any location having clouds is 80%, but odds of all locations having clouds is 30-40%
>Tiny island so going to be super swamped with talk of road closures and skyrocketing prices
Spain - Pros
>Large country with many places to view so demand curve will be flatter which hopefully means lower risk of last minute cancellations and price gouging
>Great weather
>Can move around day of or in days leading up to it to account for weather thanks to comprehensive train network
Spain - Cons
>Better viewing spots are much cloudier
>Eclipse is basically at sunset so you need a specific viewing spot since the sun will be so low in the sky which is hard in such a mountainous country
>Spain is way more accessible and has better weather than Iceland so will hundreds of thousands if not millions more people
>Even the best parts of Spain have 30% cloud cover and trains/buses may be sold out if you need to find a new spot last minute
What are /trv/'s thoughts?
Iceland seems easier, simpler, and more relaxing with the highest reward if things go right but the highest chance of things going wrong. But with Spain I don't know if it's enough of a sure thing to justify the hassle and rush day of.
Iceland - Pros
>Place I was planning on going to anyways
>Lots of reputable existing tour companies offering fairly reasonably priced excursions where they will drive to wherever the best weather is day of ($100-200 per person)
>Possibility to see auroras during the eclipse, odds are supposedly low but a literal once in a lifetime event if it does happen
Iceland - Cons
>Really really cloudy, odds of any location having clouds is 80%, but odds of all locations having clouds is 30-40%
>Tiny island so going to be super swamped with talk of road closures and skyrocketing prices
Spain - Pros
>Large country with many places to view so demand curve will be flatter which hopefully means lower risk of last minute cancellations and price gouging
>Great weather
>Can move around day of or in days leading up to it to account for weather thanks to comprehensive train network
Spain - Cons
>Better viewing spots are much cloudier
>Eclipse is basically at sunset so you need a specific viewing spot since the sun will be so low in the sky which is hard in such a mountainous country
>Spain is way more accessible and has better weather than Iceland so will hundreds of thousands if not millions more people
>Even the best parts of Spain have 30% cloud cover and trains/buses may be sold out if you need to find a new spot last minute
What are /trv/'s thoughts?
Iceland seems easier, simpler, and more relaxing with the highest reward if things go right but the highest chance of things going wrong. But with Spain I don't know if it's enough of a sure thing to justify the hassle and rush day of.