[cko]

I assume the reason is more banal - that Iceland is a high cost of living country. I can't imagine groceries to be very cheap. So after those high basic expenses, I'm sure there needs to be enough fun money left over to throw at the Icelandic economy.

[ohashi]

I went probably 5 years ago and found it to be one of the most expensive places I've ever been. I lived in the Nordics for years, I've been to around 50 countries. The only other country that I felt gave it a run for the money in terms of my spending was Norway. I was a tourist, so lots of eating at restaurants, no cooking, but average meal for a basic drink + entre out I was averaging ~$50. I think you're right about the costs, it's a very high COL place and they probably don't want to encourage cheap backpacker type nomads who don't add a whole lot to the economy.

[sofixa]

Have you been to Switzerland and if yes, how does it compare? It's the most expensive county I've been to, and it was a bit shockingly so ( an example i recall was a burger in some random restaurant (nothing fancy) in Geneva costing 30CHF, which is a lot even compared to Paris, which is already an expensive place).

[ajmurmann]

I've been visiting regularly over the last 10 years or so and it's definitely gotten more expensive the last few years. Also much more tourist oriented...

[Ansil849]

> definitely gotten more expensive the last few years.

Is there any place which has gotten cheaper in recent years? Genuinely wondering.

[newsbinator]

Any place where the currency crashed, crashes regularly, or which is economically unstable.

E.g. Turkey, Belarus. They haven't necessarily gotten cheaper, but they probably have to tourists shopping in USD.

[pavlov]

So, almost back to where it was before the 2008 crash?

[MattGaiser]

I had a friend travel to Iceland. She was a student, so doing it on the cheap. Didn't eat a lot while there as the food was so expensive.