In western Iceland on a hill by the beautiful river Hvítá sits a farm. This is where I grew up with my family. In later life I moved away to form my own family, but deep within, this place still is my home.
I have come to see that it’s a privilege to grow up with such freedom, where work and play would often merge into one, whether riding my horses or herding the cows to and from the pasture. I learned to work with the seasons and the tides, to dry and gather hay, to pick eiderdown from the nests of wild ducks, and to pluck wild salmon from our nets. Through this I developed my work ethic, and a deep respect for our nature.
The long winters under the northern lights also provided a magical playground for my younger self. I was often to be found skating on an icy pond, or building snow houses with my siblings. I want to share with you places that capture that magic, to claim a piece of your heart and create a strong connection with our enigmatic country.
- Kristín Birna Óðinsdóttir
The Ad Astra name was coined by Kristín's father in law, the late Dr. Pétur H. Blöndal, who served as a deeply respected member of Icelandic Parliament for many years. He founded a group to instruct gifted children on subjects not normally taught in school. One of this group’s projects was to found a real company, and together they named it Ad Astra. This small part of Pétur's legacy lives on through this travel agency co-founded by his son Davíð Blöndal and his daughter-in-law Kristín Birna Óðinsdóttir.
For many guests, traveling in luxury means experiencing spectacular nature in utter privacy but also safety. That is the very essence of what we do at Ad Astra Travel. Our head guide Jónas is one of the most heavily experienced people in the business with an impressive track record spanning over 30 years. His work for the National Association of Search and Rescue in Iceland ( Landsbjörg) is well known in Iceland since he was mainly in charge of tourist safety issues but also coordination on a national level when disaster struck. Weather conditions, volcanic eruptions and rescue of lost and / or injured people is something that is not unusual in Iceland and then Jónas would coordinate actions on a national level when needed.
Jónas is also a best selling author of books on interesting hiking trails to explore in the highlands and has published a number of articles on nature, the outdoors and traveling in Iceland in general. So in short, his record is unparalleled and he highly enjoys sharing his experience and knowledge with our guests.
