Flights beyond the big three: pdx to reykjavik and other US gateways

Nonstops from the United States to Iceland are not spread evenly across the map, and a search for pdx to Reykjavik turns up a connection, not a direct flight, because Portland is not one of the sixteen US airports on Keflavik's route list. That surprises travellers from the Pacific Northwest more than any other US region, since Seattle sits three hours south with its own nonstop. This page settles which of the smaller US and Canadian gateways fly direct, which only fly part of the year, and how long each hop actually takes in the air, using Isavia's own published route data rather than a seasonal snapshot that goes stale by the time a reader packs.

The pattern worth knowing before booking anything: thirteen of the sixteen US routes to Keflavik run all year, and three do not. Detroit and Pittsburgh fly only in summer, and Miami flies only in winter. A route that shows up in one search in July and disappears in a December search is not an error. It is the schedule doing what it always does.

Two Southern gateways with opposite seasons

Travellers booking bna to Reykjavik expect a summer-only window because Nashville is a warm-weather leisure market, and that expectation happens to match the schedule: Nashville's nonstop to Keflavik runs in the warmer months and is not sold as a year-round route. What catches people out is assuming a connecting itinerary through a bigger hub will always be cheaper or faster outside that window; Isavia's own list shows the nonstop exists only for part of the year, so a trip planned for the off months needs a connection through one of the thirteen year-round US gateways instead.

Detroit sits on the opposite side of the calendar in one sense and the same side in another. A flight search for detroit to Reykjavik works only in summer, since Detroit's nonstop to Keflavik is listed as a summer-only route, not a year-round one. Readers who flew it in July and try to rebook the identical nonstop in January will not find it; the route itself, not the airline serving it, is seasonal. Anyone travelling outside the window should look at the year-round gateways, which include Boston, Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis, New York, Seattle and Washington DC among others, rather than waiting for a route that has not opened yet.

Detroit and Nashville, and what "summer only" means in practice

A search for dtw to Reykjavik in the shoulder months often returns fares that look like the nonstop is still running, when the flight shown is actually a connection through another US or Canadian gateway. Detroit's own nonstop to Keflavik is on Isavia's list as a summer route, so it exists for part of the year and not the rest, and the fare engine keeps quoting the itinerary through a different city once the direct flight stops operating. Confirming the actual flight number, not just the two airport codes, avoids booking a connection while expecting a nonstop.

The same logic applies from Tennessee. A traveller typing nashville to Reykjavik into a booking site in January will not find the nonstop, because it is not flying that month; Nashville's route to Keflavik is a summer listing, matching Detroit's pattern rather than the year-round routes out of Boston or New York. Both cities share one more thing worth knowing: Icelandair operates most of the transatlantic map into Keflavik, and it is the carrier behind both of these seasonal routes as well as the year-round ones, so a seasonal gap in the schedule is the route disappearing, not the airline switching to a different one.

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, two different Pennsylvania routes

phl to Reykjavik is not on Keflavik's list of US nonstops at all. Philadelphia does not appear among the sixteen US airports Isavia publishes, so any itinerary out of PHL involves a connection, typically through Boston, New York or one of the other year-round gateways that do fly the nonstop. That is a different situation from a seasonal route: this one simply is not scheduled, in any month, on Isavia's current list.

Pittsburgh is the closer case, and the one that trips readers up more. pittsburgh to Reykjavik does exist as a nonstop, but only as a summer route, alongside Detroit rather than the year-round set. A Pittsburgh traveller flying in August has a direct option; the same traveller flying in November does not, and needs to route through a year-round US gateway or through one of the Canadian cities that also serve Keflavik. Confusing the two Pennsylvania cities, one with no nonstop and one with a seasonal nonstop, is an easy way to book the wrong connection.

Houston has no nonstop, Vancouver's is seasonal

A search for houston to Reykjavik will not surface a direct flight, because Houston is absent from Isavia's list of sixteen US airports with Keflavik nonstops. Every itinerary from Texas connects, usually through one of the year-round gateways such as New York, Boston, Washington DC or Chicago, all of which carry the bulk of the US traffic into Keflavik. There is no season in which a Houston nonstop appears; the route is simply not flown.

North of the border, vancouver to Reykjavik behaves differently again. Vancouver is one of only two Canadian cities, alongside Toronto, that fly to Keflavik all year, while the other five Canadian gateways, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax and Winnipeg, are summer only and drop off the map in winter. A traveller comparing a Vancouver connection against a US one should note that Vancouver's own nonstop runs year round, which puts it ahead of most of the seasonal US options covered above.

Pittsburgh in full, and where it sits against the rest

Coming back to pit to Reykjavik with the full picture: Pittsburgh is one of only two US cities on Isavia's list, alongside Detroit, whose Keflavik nonstop is marked summer only rather than year round. That places it apart from the thirteen US airports flying the route all year, and apart from Miami, which is the single US route that runs in winter instead of summer. A Pittsburgh traveller booking outside the summer window should expect a connection through one of the year-round gateways rather than a direct flight, and should check the season on the booking page against the current date rather than against a flight searched months earlier.

Common questions

Is there a direct flight from Portland to Reykjavik?

No. Portland does not appear on Isavia's list of US airports with a Keflavik nonstop, so any pdx to Reykjavik itinerary connects through another US gateway.

Which US routes to Keflavik run only part of the year?

Detroit and Pittsburgh fly in summer only. Miami is the one US route that flies in winter only. The other thirteen US airports on Isavia's list run all year.

Does PLAY still fly to Iceland?

No. PLAY ceased operations on 29 September 2025 and no longer appears on Isavia's airline list, so it is not a way to reach Keflavik from any US city.

Which Canadian cities fly to Keflavik all year?

Only Toronto and Vancouver run year round. Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax and Winnipeg are summer-only routes.

Who operates most of these US and Canadian routes?

Icelandair carries most of the transatlantic map into Keflavik, including the seasonal routes from Detroit, Pittsburgh and Nashville, alongside Delta, United, Alaska, Air Canada, Air Transat and WestJet.