Reykjavík
The small, red former home of writer, illustrator and naturalist Benedikt Gröndal beautifully evokes turn-of-the-century Reykjavic life. Gröndal lived here from 1880 to 1907 and exhibits include his famous Fauna of Iceland collection of colour drawings. Look out for the majestic great auk, a flightless bird hunted to extinction by the mid-19th century.
Gröndalshús opened in 2017 to promote Reykjavík’s status as a Unesco City of Literature.
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The world’s oldest parliament, Althingi (pronounced ál-thingk-ee; also called Alþing) was uniquely situated at this monumental site where two tectonic…
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Near the dramatic Almannagjá fault and fronted by a boardwalk is the Lögberg (Law Rock), where the Alþingi (Parliament) convened annually. This was where…
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The Þingvellir plain is situated on a tectonic-plate boundary where North America and Europe are tearing away from each other at a rate of 1mm to 18mm per…
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Reykjavík’s immense white-concrete church (1945–86), star of a thousand postcards, dominates the skyline and is visible from up to 20km away. An elevator…
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Artefacts from settlement to the modern age fill the creative display spaces of Iceland's superb National Museum. Exhibits give an excellent overview of…
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Housed in an imaginatively restored warehouse by the harbour, the must-see Settlement Centre offers fascinating insights into the history of Icelandic…
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This fascinating archaeological ruin-museum is based around a 10th-century Viking longhouse unearthed here from 2001 to 2002 and other Settlement-Era…
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With its ever-changing facets glistening on the water's edge, Reykjavík’s sparkling Harpa concert hall and cultural centre is a beauty to behold. In…
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Reykjavík's oldest timber house dates to 1762 and is now home to changing exhibitions charting the course of the city's history.
2. Reykjavík Museum of Photography
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This gallery room, high above Reykjavík City Library, is well worth a visit for its top-notch exhibitions of regional photographers. If you take the lift…
3. Icelandic Printmakers Association
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The Printmakers' Association sponsors occasional exhibitions of Icelandic art.
4. Reykjavík Art Museum – Hafnarhús
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Reykjavík Art Museum's Hafnarhús is a marvellously restored warehouse converted into a soaring steel-and-concrete exhibition space. Though the well…
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Displays works by some of the country’s top modern artists, many of whom show overseas as well.
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This modern theatre with a hands-on lava exhibit in the foyer screens a 55-minute pair of films in English (hourly) about the Vestmannaeyjar volcanoes and…
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This statue represents Skúli Magnússon, the ‘Father of Reykjavík’, who organised the city's early industry.
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This fascinating archaeological ruin-museum is based around a 10th-century Viking longhouse unearthed here from 2001 to 2002 and other Settlement-Era…