By Joanna Plucinska and Krisztina Than
LONDON/BUDAPEST (Reuters) - When the glowing river of lava from a volcano that erupted in Iceland last week subsided, not everyone was happy.
Hazel Lane, a 49-year-old dental practice manager in London, had booked a ticket to Reykjavik as soon as she saw footage of the eruption on television, hoping to witness spectacular lava flows under a molten red sky.
Lane had already visited Iceland the month before, but it was too early. Although authorities had evacuated nearly 4,000 residents of the nearby town of Grindavik by then, weeks passed before the volcano - which is located about 40 km (25 miles) southwest of Reykjavik - erupted on December 18.
"I had this crazy idea to go to Reykjavik for a day to fly over the volcanic eruption," Lane said. She arrived with her son and his girlfriend on December 22 to find that the lava flows had already subsided.
"We are disappointed that the volcanic activity has stopped, but we will still have a beautiful day in Reykjavik."
Lane probably won't have to wait long for the next blowout. Iceland, which is about the size of the US state of Kentucky and has fewer than 400,000 inhabitants, has more than 30 active volcanoes.
That makes the northern European island a top destination for volcano tourism - a niche segment that draws thousands of thrill-seekers every year to locations from Mexico and Guatemala, to Sicily, Indonesia and New Zealand.
The reduced activity of the volcano at Grindavik quelled concerns about a repeat of the travel chaos caused by ash from a major eruption of the island's Eyjafjallajökull volcano in 2010.
But for local travel agencies, who wanted to bring tourists to the location, it was a missed opportunity. Recent eruptions - such as the 2021 Fagradalsfjall volcano in southwestern Iceland - have attracted thousands of visitors.
Troll Expeditions - which offers excursions to Iceland's ice caves, glaciers, geothermal pools and a range of volcano tours - said tourist bookings to Iceland fell before the Grindavik eruption due to the earthquakes that preceded it. But the eruption itself quickly brought back interest.
"People are very excited to see the volcano. Unfortunately, the eruption has stopped for now," the company said by email, noting it was the fourth eruption in the area in the past three years.
"The other eruptions were great for tourism because they were so-called 'tourist eruptions' where you can get quite close to the crater and witness the lava flow."
Iceland's former president, Olafur Ragnar Grímsson, already encouraged visitors to prepare for January.
"The predictions are that in two weeks the eruption could start again! Book your flight now so you can witness the formation of the Earth!" he said in a Dec. 23 post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
MANAGING RISKS
For dedicated 'lava hunters', nothing beats a tough climb to the top of a volcano, the walk around a crater and the smell of sulfur in the air.
Often eruptions can be predicted well in advance, leaving plenty of time for evacuations and warnings.
When Hawaii's Mauna Loa, the world's largest active volcano, erupted late last year for the first time since 1984, thousands of awestruck onlookers flocked to view the glowing lava flows. Hawaii's Emergency Management Agency had already said there were no signs lava would threaten populated areas.
But in some other cases, tourists have paid with their lives.
Early this month, Indonesia's Marapi volcano erupted, killing 22 people: climbers who died near the crater. Marapi is one of the most active volcanoes on the island of Sumatra and previously erupted in January and February this year.
Indonesia, which straddles the so-called "Ring of Fire" around the edge of the Pacific Ocean, is home to more than 100 active volcanoes.
New Zealand's White Island, also known by its Maori name Whakaari, has been closed since a disaster in 2019 when a volcanic eruption killed 22 people, mostly tourists. It used to receive visitors regularly, although eruptions were not uncommon.
Despite such incidents, visiting volcanoes remains popular and properly managing risks can minimize the risk of accidents, said Tom Pfeiffer, a geologist and volcanologist who heads VolcanoDiscovery, a company in Germany.
They organize trips in small groups to volcanoes all over the world, taking about 150 people per year to Java, Sulawesi, Sicily and also Iceland. He said interest in visiting volcanoes fluctuated somewhat depending on the amount of media attention they received, but was generally quite stable.
"I am sure that the average number of accidents among volcano tourists is much lower than the average number of accidents in mountain sports," Pfeiffer said by email. "This also applies despite the fortunately very rare cases of major disasters such as the recent one at Marapi."
Pfeiffer said many of the accidents that occurred were due to a lack of preparation or information, or excessive risk-taking. Relying on local advice from authorities, volcano observatories and relying on guides with extensive experience can all reduce the chance of something going wrong.
"When in doubt, we never take the risk," he added.
Iceland has witnessed several eruptions in recent years, from eruptions where lava flows from fissures - like last week's - to explosive eruptions from ice-covered volcanoes spewing ash plumes where fire meets ice. Many of them were major tourist attractions, with the risks well identified by local authorities.
The area around Grindavik remains closed for now and the Icelandic Metrological Bureau said on December 27 that magma continued to accumulate under Svartsengi on the Reykjanes Peninsula, meaning there is a chance of another eruption.
Arnar Mar Olafsson, director general of the Icelandic Tourist Board, said some travelers had not respected the closure zone around the eruption site and had to be turned away because they were heading to the volcano.
"People want to get really close and get closer to see, but they often don't realize how dangerous it is," he said.
(Writing by Krisztina Than, editing by Daniel Flynn)
