The 15 Most Iconic Landmarks in Reykjavik
15 landmarks with verified facts and stories
Alþingishúsið (Parliament House)
Austurvöllur, Reykjavik
Alþingishúsið is Iceland's parliament building — a relatively modest two-storey basalt-and-rhyolite stone house on Austurvöllur square completed in 1881, housing the Alþingi (one of the oldest parliaments in the world, founded in 930 AD at Þingvellir and moved to Reykjavik in 1844 after centuries of Danish rule).
Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur
Tryggvagata 1, Reykjavik
Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur ('the town's best hot dogs') is Reykjavik's most famous food stand — a tiny red-and-white kiosk on Tryggvagata near the old harbour that has been serving hot dogs since 1937.
Blue Lagoon
Norðurljósavegur 9, 240 Grindavík
The Blue Lagoon is Iceland's most visited attraction — a geothermal spa in a lava field on the Reykjanes Peninsula whose milky-blue, mineral-rich water (70% seawater, 30% freshwater, heated to 37-40°C by the nearby Svartsengi geothermal power plant) has become the image that sells Iceland to the world.
Geysir & Strokkur (Day Trip)
Haukadalur, Bláskógabyggð, Iceland
The Geysir geothermal area in Haukadalur valley is the second stop on the Golden Circle route — the site that gave every geyser in the world its name.
Golden Circle (Day Trip)
Mánaleið, Skuggahverfi, Reykjavík, 101, Iceland
The Golden Circle is Iceland's most popular day trip — a 300-kilometre loop from Reykjavik that passes through three of the country's most important natural and historical sites: Þingvellir (where the world's oldest parliament met from 930 AD and where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates visibly separate), Geysir (the geothermal area whose Strokkur geyser erupts every 5-10 minutes, shooting boiling water 30 metres into the air), and Gullfoss (a two-tiered waterfall on the Hvítá river that plunges 32 metres into a canyon).
Gullfoss Waterfall (Day Trip)
Gullfoss Waterfall, Iceland
Gullfoss ('Golden Falls') is the most famous waterfall in Iceland and the third stop on the Golden Circle route — a two-tier cascade on the Hvítá river that drops a total of 32 metres in two stages into a 70-metre deep canyon, generating enormous clouds of spray that create rainbows on sunny days and give the waterfall its name.
Hallgrímskirkja
Hallgrímstorg 101, 101 Reykjavík
Hallgrímskirkja is Iceland's largest church and Reykjavik's most recognisable landmark — a 74.
Harpa Concert Hall
2 Austurbakki, Miðbær, Reykjavík, 101, Ísland
Harpa is Reykjavik's most striking modern building — a concert hall and conference centre on the harbour front designed by Henning Larsen Architects and Ólafur Elíasson (the Icelandic-Danish artist whose light installations have appeared in major museums worldwide).
Höfði House
Borgartún, Tún, Reykjavík, 105, Iceland
Höfði House is a white wooden mansion on the north shore of Reykjavik — best known internationally as the site of the 1986 summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev that helped end the Cold War.
Northern Lights & Midnight Sun
Various viewing locations, Reykjavik & surrounds
The Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) are visible from Reykjavik and the surrounding countryside from September through March — curtains of green, purple, and white light that ripple across the sky when charged particles from the sun interact with the Earth's magnetic field.
Reykjavik's Colourful Houses
Various streets, 101 Reykjavík
Reykjavik's colourful corrugated-iron houses are the city's visual signature — small, brightly painted buildings with tin roofs and cladding that were built from the late 19th century onward and give the city centre its distinctive toytown appearance.
Snæfellsnes Peninsula (Day Trip)
Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Western Iceland
The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is 'Iceland in miniature' — a 90-kilometre finger of land northwest of Reykjavik that contains a glacier-capped volcano (Snæfellsjökull, the setting for Jules Verne's 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth'), black sand beaches, dramatic sea cliffs, lava fields, fishing villages, and the full range of Icelandic landscapes compressed into a single day trip.
Sun Voyager (Sólfar)
101 Sæbraut, Lækir, Reykjavík, 105, Iceland
The Sun Voyager is Reykjavik's most photographed sculpture — a stainless steel representation of a Viking longship by Jón Gunnar Árnason, installed on the harbour front in 1990.
Tjörnin (The Pond)
Tjörnin, Reykjavik
Tjörnin is the small lake (literally 'the pond') in the centre of Reykjavik — a rectangular body of water bordered by Ráðhús (Reykjavik City Hall), the Lutheran Free Church, and the National Gallery of Iceland.
Whale Watching from Reykjavik
2 Ægisgarður, Vesturhöfn, Reykjavík, 101, Iceland
Whale watching from Reykjavik's Old Harbour is one of Iceland's most popular activities — boat tours departing year-round into Faxaflói Bay where humpback whales, minke whales, dolphins, and porpoises are regularly sighted within an hour of the harbour.
Explore iconic in Reykjavik
GPS-guided narration at every landmark. Tap a spot on the map, hear the story. Every fact verified.