New Icelandic airline Niceair is launching flights to the north of the country from Stansted and Manchester.

The first to take off is a twice-weekly service starting on 3 June between Akureyri and Stansted Airport, operating on Mondays and Fridays.

Then, in October, a new twice-weekly route from Manchester to Akureyri will launch, with tickets on sale this week.

Flights start from £240 return.

Akureyri, which is 100km from the Arctic Circle, was previously only accessible via a five-hour drive or connecting domestic flights from Iceland’s largest airport, Keflavik.