Iceland is a country that celebrates diversity and equality with enthusiasm throughout the year, but especially during August, Iceland’s Pride month.
The rainbow flags are out and proud, decorating various businesses and institutions across the country. It's a clear sign: LGBTQ+ Pride month is here!
At Icelandair, we're proud to foster and promote the inclusive spirit of Iceland, with an emphasis on equality, diversity and non-discrimination. We're proud to celebrate Pride, and to fly with pride.
The Icelandair staff is a large and diverse group of people – and we wouldn’t want it any other way!
To celebrate Iceland’s Pride month, every year we aim to fly a Pride Flight during Reykjavík's Pride week.
The cabin crew and pilots on our Pride Flights are all proud members or allies of the LGBTQ+ community. The service on board is themed accordingly – we serve treats, rainbows, and a fun and festive mood.
In 2024, we celebrated the beginning of Pride week with our Pride Flight between Keflavík and Copenhagen on August 6.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Reykjavík Pride, so we felt the occasion deserves a little extra sparkle. Aboard the flight was a crew of LGBTQ+ community members and allies, including Miss Agatha P, a bona fide cabin crew member who brought their fabulous drag alter-ego along for the rainbow-fueled ride.
Check out our crew as they prepare for our Pride Flight on August 9, 2023.
The Icelandair staff is a large and diverse group of people – and we wouldn’t want it any other way!
To celebrate Iceland’s Pride month, every year we aim to fly a Pride Flight during Reykjavík's Pride week.
The cabin crew and pilots on our Pride Flights are all proud members or allies of the LGBTQ+ community. The service on board is themed accordingly – we serve treats, rainbows, and a fun and festive mood.
,In 2024, we celebrated the beginning of Pride week with our Pride Flight between Keflavík and Copenhagen on August 6.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Reykjavík Pride, so we felt the occasion deserves a little extra sparkle. Aboard the flight was a crew of LGBTQ+ community members and allies, including Miss Agatha P, a bona fide cabin crew member who brought their fabulous drag alter-ego along for the rainbow-fueled ride.
,Check out our crew as they prepare for our Pride Flight on August 9, 2023.
,In 2023, on August 9 we marked our continuous support of equality by dedicating flight FI216 between Keflavík and Copenhagen, to the visibility of the LGBTQ+ community.
In 2022, on August 4 we flew Pride Flight FI318 between Keflavík and Oslo, and FI319 between Oslo and Keflavík.
,In 2020 there was no Pride Flight due to COVID-19.
In 2019, we celebrated Reykjavík Pride turning 20 with a Pride Flight between Keflavík and Philadelphia.
2023 and 2022 Pride Flight images and video by Egill Árni Jóhannesson
Every year many families, businesses, organizations, artists, and politicians take part in the Pride festivities and express their support and recognition of the LGBTQ+ community. From an international perspective, Iceland has a prominent role in advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, and that is widely felt across the country.
At Icelandair, we're proud to be part of a community that values and supports equality every day of the year. We're happy to partner with Reykjavík Pride to transport special guests to the event. We're also pleased to partner with Samtökin '78, the National Queer Association of Iceland, whose work centres around the fight for equal rights for queer people in Iceland.
Photo and banner photo: Icelandair's Pride Flight, 2022.
,Rainbows are everywhere here in Iceland. Whether it’s a sculpture right outside Keflavík airport, a street permanently painted in rainbow colors in a remote fjord town or in the capital, or even misty rainbows seen in the Icelandic landscapes, you'll find rainbows wherever you look, all sending a message of equality and acceptance.
Photo: Rainbow over Landmannalaugar.
,As an open and inclusive country, these are some of the milestones reached in Iceland on the path to equality:
1996: Same-sex couples are legally allowed to register as living together.
2006: Icelandic law gives equal access to adoption and IVF; adopting a partner’s child has been legal since 2000.
2010: Same-sex marriages are legalized. It's worth noting that the prime minister at the time, Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, and her wife Jónína Leósdóttir were among the first same-sex couples to be married in Iceland.
2019: A law simplifies the process for trans people to obtain the needed medical resources plus adds a third gender option – X – to the National Registry.
Photo: A display in Hallgrímskirkja church during Pride week.
,If you're looking for more information on LGBTQ+ news or travel tips in Iceland, check out these helpful resources:
Samtökin ‘78 – the National Queer Association of Iceland
Gay Iceland – LGBTQ+ guide to Iceland
GayIce – LGBTQ+ news from Iceland
Photo: Rainbow over Reykjavík, as seen from atop Hallgrímskirkja.
,Every August, Reykjavík Pride takes over the capital for one week with a fabulous event program, ranging from educational lectures and discussions to dedicated pool parties, pub crawls, and karaoke. Past events have included drag bingo, bake-offs, movie nights, queer-themed history or literary walks, harbor cruises, comedy shows, intimate concerts, and so much more.
The official Pride event days reach their climax with the main Pride Parade at 2pm on the final Saturday, leaving from Hallgrímskirkja in downtown Reykjavík. Once the Parade is done, festivities move to an outdoor concert in nearby Hljómskálagarður park.
With nearly one-third of the Icelandic population attending or participating in Pride celebrations, it's become one of the most popular events in Iceland. And while Reykjavík Pride itself may only last a week, as one of the world's most LGBTQ+-friendly countries, Iceland celebrates diversity and inclusion the whole year round.
Photo: Skólavörðustígur (aka Rainbow Street) in downtown Reykjavík.
,There was a big, joyful crowd and lots of sunshine for Reykjavík’s annual Pride Parade in August 2023.
At Icelandair, we partnered with the iconic Páll Óskar to create a parade float – check out the gorgeous results, and get a taste of summer on the streets of our welcoming city in this video.
,To honor the rainbow celebrations, we want to do our part to help amplify queer voices in Iceland and beyond.
We met with a diverse group of people and spoke with them about the history of Pride in Iceland, the state of queer rights today, and the interplay between the spirit of Iceland and the spirit of Pride.
The result is 'The colorful spirit of Iceland'.
Watch our video and hear the stories of Iceland’s LGBTQ+ community.