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Reykjavik City Breaks

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Reykjavik City Breaks & Holidays

The capital of Iceland is definitely a hot spot, renowned for its lively pubs and clubs, which draw hundreds of merry-making visitors, particularly during the long, light, bright summer nights.

Reykjavik's growing reputation as a fun tourist destination is enhanced by its fiery but friendly inhabitants, relaxed pace of life, many cultural attractions, and dozens of opportunities for fascinating day trips, not to mention the novelty of bathing in one of the steamy public geothermal swimming baths.

Reykjavik has a small-town atmosphere, its centre easily explored on foot, the quaint whitewashed wooden buildings and colourful houses interspersed with plenty of open space. Even those who come to indulge mainly in the hedonistic nightlife cannot fail to leave Reykjavik feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.


Things to do in Reykjavik
Hallgrimskirkja - Hallgrímskirkja is a Lutheran parish church in Reykjavík, Iceland. At 74.5 metres high, it is the largest church in Iceland and among the tallest structures in the country.
Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre - Modern glass honeycomb concert hall & conference center, home to the national opera & symphony.
Laugardalslaug - Laugardalslaug is a public thermal baths and swimming pool complex located in the Laugardalur district of Iceland's capital Reykjavík.
Whales of Iceland - Educational exhibit dedicated to regional whales, with life-sized models & interactive features.
Perlan - Futuristic revolving glass-domed fine dining restaurant in park setting, with cocktail bar.
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Mother nature

Feel at one with nature with a geothermal seawater spa day at the Blue Lagoon, and you’ll leave feeling rejuvenated and ready for more sightseeing. If you’re looking to pack in plenty of top attractions, think the Golden Circle tour, which includes Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss, Geysir and Skalholt.

Independent explorer

Whether you’re out in the countryside or roaming around the remarkably compact capital on your Reykjavík city break, there’s so much to see and do. Don your woollens and see where waterfalls cascade and icy mountains meet. Hit the shops, feast on the finest foods, and discover gorgeous churches and intriguing, historic museums.

Dig deep into the culture

In the city of Reykjavík, you’ll stumble across various key landmarks and treasures. Hallgrímskirkja is the Lutheran church with the iconic, imposing height, dominating the skyline. Among a few museums, there’s the Sun Voyager monument and Perlan. The latter doubles as one of the main must-visits and a critically-acclaimed fine dining restaurant.

Destination Reykjavik in Detail

Back in the first century AD, legendary Viking, Ingolfur Arnarson, named the settlement he founded on a southwestern peninsula Reykjavik, meaning 'Smokey Bay'. The smoke he found wafting over the area, however, had nothing to do with pollution, but rather the bubbling, boiling natural geysers and geothermal springs that now underlie the modern capital of Iceland. This source of heat and water has ensured that Reykjavik has no need to burn fuels to warm its heart, and the crisp, clean air is delightful.

The sky is not always blue, however: Reykjavik receives more than its fair share of rainy weather blown in from the sea, and during the long, bleak winter its northern latitude ensures that the sun makes no more than a brief appearance every day.

Reykjavik's setting on the southwest corner of Iceland is another drawcard. Panoramic views surround the majestic Mount Esja rising behind the bay, while vistas stretch as far as the crystalline Snaefellsjokull Glacier to the west across the Atlantic. The city is well-positioned to act as a springboard for southern Iceland, and many of the country's most popular attractions are within easy reach.

The best way to travel around Reykjavik is on the excellent bus service that covers downtown and the outer suburbs from the central terminals at Hlemmur and Laekjartorg. Buses run from around 7am to 11pm on weekdays and less frequently on weekends. Passengers should pay the exact fare to drivers, as they are not permitted to give change. Bicycles are an extremely popular form of transport and the city has a network of cycle lanes. Car hire is recommended as there is little traffic congestion and local drivers are typically considerate. The Hreyfill taxi app is another option.

There may be limited sunlight in the northern city of Reykjavik, but the locals here really know how to make good use of those long, cold, and dark winter nights. The bright lights of the bars and clubs that line the streets will blow visitors away, and they can heat things up even more on the dance floor.

Due to the high cost of alcohol, the nightlife only gets going very late, as most Icelanders tend to have a few drinks at home before hitting the town. Travellers arriving in Reykjavik by air should not pass up the opportunity to buy cheap alcohol in the duty-free store at the airport.

Once sufficiently warmed up for the night, travellers can head to trendy Laugavegur, where most of Reykjavik's 100 or so bars and clubs are located, dotted around the strip and its side streets. On busy Friday and Saturday nights, it's not uncommon for the street to be filled with people all night long. On a side note, the drinking age in Iceland is 20.

Although a beautiful, cosmopolitan, and vibrant city, many of Iceland's best tourist attractions are actually located outside Reykjavik. Luckily for visitors, Iceland is a small country and none of the tourist attractions mentioned here requires a significant amount of travelling to get to.

As far as attractions in Reykjavik are concerned, travellers shouldn't miss the Botanical Gardens, which are full of interesting indigenous plants and trees; the Einar Jonsson Museum, which displays works by Iceland's greatest sculptor; Hallgrimskirkja, one of the weirdest, most grandiose churches on the planet; and, to satisfy any Viking curiosity, the National Museum, Saga Museum, and the Reykjavik City Museum.

As visitors enter the remarkable hinterland, the real tourist gems can be found, and luckily the south of the country is home to most of Iceland's top tourist attractions. Travellers should be sure to check out the Blue Lagoon, a manmade geothermal spring and spa; Geysir, the world's original hot spring; the truly transcendent Gullfoss Falls; Thingvellir National Park, with its incredible hiking trails; and Jokulsarlon, a glacial lagoon full of eerie, luminous-blue icebergs.

No matter what travellers decide to see and do in the 'Land of Fire and Ice', one thing is for sure: they mustn't forget to take a camera along, as Iceland is a country uniquely full of sights that beggar belief. Travellers should also consider arming themselves with the Reykjavik City Card, which gives discounts on tourist attractions and restaurants and allows unlimited bus transport.

Although the national diet is quickly diversifying, fish and lamb are still consumed in great quantities in Iceland, and reportedly it can reportedly be quite hard to find a vegetarian option on restaurant menus.

Despite this, Reykjavik's restaurant scene is exciting and becoming increasingly cosmopolitan as restaurateurs rush to embrace fusion cooking, attempting to offer fresh interpretations of international dishes using local ingredients.

Traditional fare, available everywhere, but probably only tempting for the more gastronomically adventurous, includes harðfiskur (dried fish-meat, eaten with butter); svið (singed sheep's head); slátur (sausage made from blood and offal, like black pudding); hrútspungar (pickled ram's testicles); and hákarl (putrefied shark-meat).

There is also, controversially for some, the option of eating whale meat while in Iceland. And if you really want to push the boat out, you can get it with some grated puffin on the side. Those with tamer appetites will be relieved to know that a staple of the Icelandic diet is the pylsa, a good, old-fashioned hot dog, served with fried onions, ketchup, and mustard.

Despite its extreme north Atlantic location, Reykjavik's temperate sub-polar oceanic climate is not as cold as might be expected, its average mid-winter temperatures being no lower than those in New York City. Winter temperatures average between 28F (-2C) and 38F (3C). This is because the Icelandic coastal weather is tempered by the warm waters of the Gulf Stream. The city's coastal position does, however, also mean it is prone to wind, and gales are common in winter. Summer temperatures in July, the warmest month, peak at around 59F (15C).

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