Things to Do in Reykjavik, Iceland - Reykjavik Attractions
Things to Do in Reykjavik
Natural wonders abound in the Golden Circle. Relax at the Blue Lagoon, take a day trip to Gulfoss waterfall, or spot the Northern Lights on a nighttime excursion. For personalized recommendations, try our AI trip-planning product.
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Private and Luxuryfromper adult$159- fromper adult$125
Private and Luxuryfromper adult$229
Culinary Toursfromper adult$134
On the Waterfromper adult$99
Half-day Toursfromper adult$116
Theater Showsfromper adult$44
Private and Luxuryfromper adult$93
On the Waterfromper adult$119
Day Tripsfromper adult$174
Churches & Cathedrals
Speciality Museums
Admission tickets from $47
Interactive natural history exhibits, ice cave exploration, and a planetarium focusing on northern lights, set under a glass dome with panoramic city views.
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Architectural Buildings
Modern concert hall featuring striking architecture with colorful glass windows and panoramic views. Includes shops, a cafe, and a children's play area.
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Monuments & Statues
Modern art installation on the waterfront resembling a Viking ship, with panoramic harbor and mountain views, symbolizing Iceland's history and culture. Ideal for photography and scenic strolls.
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Points of Interest & Landmarks
Pedestrian-friendly street lined with colorful buildings, diverse shops, and eclectic dining options, ideal for leisurely exploration and local culture discovery.
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Speciality Museums
Museum with a well-preserved 10th-century longhouse, interactive displays, and artifacts showcasing early settler life. Features a unique underground exhibit.
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Interactive Northern Lights exhibition with insightful displays, original photography, and VR experiences. Complimentary hot drinks available. Ideal for a quick, educational visit.
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Scenic Drives
Scenic route encompassing natural wonders, from waterfalls to glaciers, with strict speed regulations and challenging driving conditions including gravel paths and one-lane bridges.
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Sports Complexes
Icelandic leisure center with a range of thermal pools and hot tubs, Olympic-sized outdoor swimming, family-friendly indoor pool with water features, and inclusive changing facilities.
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Speciality Museums
Eclectic museum showcasing a collection of animal reproductive anatomy, with a twist of mythical creature exhibits, educational signage, and a themed cafe.
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Speciality Museums
Museum dedicated to the maritime heritage, detailing Iceland's fishing industry with interactive exhibits and a retired Coast Guard cutter tour.
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Historic Walking Areas
Historical village with interactive displays and costumed guides, providing insights into traditional Icelandic life. Features reconstructed buildings and a family-friendly playground.
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Other Top Attractions around Reykjavik
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
What travelers are saying
- Macaramorrison11137 contributionsIt was a really good experience to visit the iconic Icelandic church, guarded by the founding Viking of Iceland the structure of the church is visibly stunning and worth a visit, within the main halls of the church you can light a candle, make a prayer or just have a moment. You can take the elevator on the goth hand side on the entrance which takes you to the top showing. Stunning 360 views of Reykjavik, the bells are directly above and go off every 15 minutes make sure you stay to hear them bellow.Written January 12, 2025This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Shimpy5Damascus, MD10 contributionsThe real attraction here is the 360 degree view from the observation deck - you can take it all of Reykjavik (and beyond) and get amazing pictures that show some of the variety of the Icelandic landscape.
The ice cave is great for those who can't do a real ice cave due to cost or age - having done both, I can confirm it's a close enough substitute for the real thing to make you feel like you've experienced an iconic Icelandic outing.
The Planetarium show is great if you don't have time to go chasing the Northern Lights. (But absolutely nothing is as good as finding the aurora outside!) And of course the talk is quite educational.
You can easily spend half a day or more here!Written January 12, 2025This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Hulafille119 contributionsWe attended a Christmas concert as well as Jazz Wednesday with a view here. The building both inside and outside is beautiful. There is a self serve coat room that is very handy. The bathrooms are accessible by having a paid ticket or by paying a fee.
The concert hall acoustics were fantastic. I don’t think there is a bad seat in the house. The Jazz with a view of the piers and bay was nice, and there is a bar inside the Jazz room.
If there is a concert event you want to go to while there in Iceland , the Harpa is a beautiful place to be.Written December 20, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - LouDerbyshire, UK496 contributionsIf you’ve been lucky enough to visit Iceland then I’m sure you will have seen this sculpture.
It’s a Viking ship skeleton and is truly beautiful.Written January 3, 2025This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Małgosia SLeczyca, Poland524 contributionsÍsland is amazing. I love her harsh climate. But Reykjavik is a very beautiful city. Low architekturę and beautiful streets.Written November 14, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Craig R6 contributionsI started at the northeast entrance at the corner of Adalstraeti and Grjotagata, which was a bit backwards historically but I might have missed interesting bits had I started at the main entrance. I saw, first, one of the oldest surviving houses in town, with a bit of history on its occupants, then saw two (smallish) floors of Reykjavik's development in the last few centuries before descending to the basement for the main attraction, which really was well done. Be sure to take the time to read all the screens on the interactive exhibit about language and genealogy on the periphery. The main dig was well explained, and the use of dating techniques was interesting.Written January 10, 2025This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Daphne RBrighton, Canada59 contributionsVery good experience and movie. The VR glasses in the egg chairs was interesting. Liked all the information. Only reason not rated 5 is we never got any of the pictures we took at beginning that were to be sent to our e-mails.Written August 24, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- Tom&NikkiTravelLondon, UK1,905 contributionsIt is really quite hard to summarise the "Ring Road" of Iceland in words but I'm certainly going to give it a go! One of the first things to mention is that the Ring Road is not fully paved nor does it include ALL of the big sights in Iceland - you will often have to detour from the ring road to see some of these - albeit for the most part they are very worth it.
When you google "how many kilometres is the ring road in Iceland?" you will likely get the answer it is 1332km. In reality by the time we'd driven all of the little side roads and detours we clocked in 2500km!!! This will largely be dependent on what you want to see and when you go to visit as there are parts of the ring road that are not accessible all year round.
On that note...if you are considering driving the ring road there are a couple of key considerations you need to make.
1. Time of Year
The ring road as I mentioned above is not fully accessible at all times of year and this needs to be considered before simply booking. It is also worth noting that due to weather you could wake up one morning and find a section of the road closed so when thinking about hotels etc you need to be flexible when booking on the shoulder seasons.
2. Sights and Activities
If you are considering the ring road I would first detail out what you want to see and where it is, that way you can evaluate if driving the full loop or only part of it is the best option. The south and south-east coast offer some of the typical "highlights of Iceland" and are the "busiest" areas to visit due to the accessibility and proximity of the sights to the road. On this part of the ring road the surface is also mostly tarmac and smooth sailing.
3. Driver confidence
As with anywhere in Iceland the weather can change at the blink of an eye, even more so when you get up the east coast and into the north. We visited in August 2024 and had beautiful sunshine on the south-east coast but a day later driving up the east towards Lake Myvatn we had snow driving over mountain roads...in AUGUST!
4. Preparation
It really can't be stressed enough but preparation will be key to a decent road trip in Iceland. There are 2 applications that should be downloaded and checked before each driving stint that of SafeTravel.Is and the more local Vedur app. These cover road closures, eruption updates and key information. The Vedur app is better for more local weather and road information updates. Another thing to make sure of is that you have a couple of bank cards specifically for fuelling the car. We used both Credit and Debit cards whilst out in Iceland of which were Mastercard and didn't have any issues.
-----------A HUGE TIP-----------
When fuelling the car do not, I repeat DO NOT use the "Fill Tank" option as this will put a huge hold on the card of around £100-200. Instead use the preselected Krona options and either use the largest number if you need to put a significant amount in or a smaller number if you're just topping up - you will only pay for what you use and avoid the large hold.
-----------The Road and Attractions-----------
The South Coast
After picking up your car at Keflavik if you take the counter-clockwise route you will be driving the South coast first. Often the busiest area due to the world famous sights on offer and the close proximity to Reykjavik its no surprise people are keen to see it. Some key sights include:
- Seljalandsfoss
- Skogafoss
- Reynisfjara Beach (Black Sand Beach)
- Solheimajokull Glacier
- Crashed DC-3 Plane
- Dyrhólaey (Great for puffins)
- Vik town
- Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon
- Skaftafell
- Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon & Diamond Beach
The East Coast
Driving further on from Jokulsarlon up the east coast this is where the really "untamed" side of Iceland started to appear. Once you drive past the town of Djúpivogur the option to drive the 939 (shorter route) to Egilsstaðir as opposed to an extra hour or so up the coastal 1 road. The 939 is a mountain pass, very gravelly and plenty of steep drops so be sure to be comfortable if you consider it, we did it but it quickly started to rain and fog rolled in - not fun!
Other key sights include:
- Hofn
- Vestrahorn
- Stokksnes
- Eystrahorn
- Seydisfjordur
- Egilsstaðir
- Hengifoss
The North
So this leg of the drive was probably the most interesting for us, having stayed in the coastal town of Seydisfjordur we then drove through Egilsstaðir and over to Lake Mývatn before finishing the day in Akureyri. This felt like a lot of driving for the single day and would best be broken up to allow for more time to take it all in. The roads from Egilsstaðir to Akureyri go up into the mountains and are truly beautiful. We had a blizzard when driving through this leg and to see the snow covered highlands in August was phenomenal! There are some fantastic and other worldly sights up this way including the rather eggy sulphur rich Mývatn area.
Other sights to include:
- Studlagil Canyon
- Lake Mývatn
- Hverfjall
- Viti Crater
- Dettifoss
- Goddafoss
- Grafarkirkja
- Hvitserkur
The West Coast
When people want to see some of the best of Iceland whilst only staying in Reykjavik they'll often be referred to the Snæfellsnes peninsula on the west coast as it is perfect for a day or two from the city.
- Kirkjufell
- Kirkjufellsfoss
- Snæfellsnes National Park
- Saxholl Crater
- Arnarstapi
- Budakirkja
- Reykjavik
Hopefully the above may prove helpful if you are considering it, if you are and are at a point of 'Yes' or 'No' - just do it! Its the trip of a lifetime and regardless of the weather you get - you won't forget it!Written December 23, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - SercivecriticNI21 contributionsWith blue lagoon trip cancelled and other locations booked up/no car. This was a fantastic substitution, the outside pool was very quiet and there was a number of hot thermal water pools beside the main pool all of which were a different temperature (also a 4-8degrees pool or ice pool) as well as a steam room. It was -7 outside however it was great to relax and chill out after lots of walking,
The location is fairly accessible to from the centre and although the facility has probably been there for a number of years it is still a greet facility.
Highly recommended if visiting Iceland
Very pleasant staff.
Do what the locals do would be my tip.Written November 30, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Emma SBristol, UK34 contributionsI wish to dedicate myself to something as much as the founder dedicated his life to collecting dicks. It’s a very good collection with interesting cultural elements weaved within, all in good taste. Ever wondered what Jimi Hendrix’s penis looked like? Look no further.Written January 7, 2025This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
- GarybaldbeeLondon, UK34 contributionsMy expectations were pretty low. This is, after all, essentially a museum about fishing, which sounds about as dull as it can get. But I must admit that I enjoyed my visit. The museum is small - it only takes an hour or so to cover it fairly thoroughly - but its thoughtfully presented and visually interesting. Yes, there are displays about fishing industry processes but there are also plenty of interesting artefacts and some fascinating model ships. We didn't realise the boat outside was also part of the museum until we overheard another visitor enquiring about it just as we were leaving, which was a shame. Perhaps that aspect needs to be advertised a little more prominently.
This isn't going to be the highlight of your trip to Iceland but its definitely worth a short visit.Written October 5, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. - Fidya GKaty, TX1 contributionNice place to visit, great landscape with informative and well-preserved and well decorated houses. Bonus: if you come at the right time, there are sheeps you can pet!Written November 13, 2024This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
When to Visit
- January32 ºFColdest month16 days of rainWettest monthLess busyLeast busy month
- February33 ºF