If you're craving an unusual holiday adventure and a distinctive 'Out of Office' email, why not hit two birds with one stone and consider Iceland?
Visit Iceland's Outhorse Your Email campaign gives you the unique opportunity to have Icelandic horses reply to emails on a giant, fully functioning QWERTY keyboard while you immerse yourself in otherworldly landscapes and completely ignore your electronic devices.
You can take your pick out of three horses 'trained in corporate buzzwords' to carefully craft your unique out-of-office reply.
Like the tens of thousands of others, I had to try it; I chose a horse named Litla Stjarna frá Hvítarholti for his relatable description, "Types fast, but might take a nap."
Here's what I got:
As you would expect, Icelandic horses don't rely on natural instinct to type emails; it took some training and practice. Before building the real keyboard, the equine interns learned to type on a full-scale replica, ensuring their comfort, ability and suitability to manage their workload. Before long, the three-horse team of leave management specialists were ready to try the real thing and have successfully served Iceland's visitors since 2022. Their performance has been so spectacular that they were shortlisted for the D&AD and the Cannes Lion Awards in 2023.
If your holiday plans for this year involve crisp, clean air, cascading waterfalls, a vibrant night sky and a complete break from technology, Iceland and its horses have you covered.