Akureyri

Iceland's second city on a fjord in the north — botanical garden, ski slopes, and the base for Myvatn and whale-watching.

Akureyri is Iceland's second city at 20,000 people, which tells you something about the country. It sits at the head of Eyjafjordur, the country's longest fjord, with mountains rising 1,500m on both sides and — improbably given the latitude — Iceland's only proper botanical garden. The pedestrianised strip on Hafnarstraeti has decent restaurants (Rub23, Strikid, Kaffi Ilmur), a working harbour, and heart-shaped traffic lights that the town installed in 2008 to cheer itself up during the financial crisis. At 9pm in July the light is still gold and the harbour cafes stay half full until eleven.

It's the natural base for the whole north — Myvatn (90km east), Husavik whale-watching (90km north), the Trollaskagi peninsula, and the ski hill at Hlidarfjall which is 10 minutes from town. Doubles ISK 17195-ISK 27020. Winter is a proper season here: you can ski by day and see the Northern Lights from your hotel window. Skip Reykjavik in favour of Akureyri if you want a quieter, colder, more genuinely Icelandic city. Suits ring-roaders, skiers, and northern-lights hunters. Families doing the Diamond Circle in a week usually spend two nights here and wish it were three.

Akureyri's harbour has real working boats, not tourist replicas — herring trawlers moor alongside the whale-watching skiffs that leave for Eyjafjordur most mornings between May and September. Cafe Berlin and Bautinn on Hafnarstraeti fill with locals after the pool closes, and by 9pm in winter the streets empty out fast; this is a town that goes to bed early even on a Friday. The Christmas House on Kaupvangsstraeti sells ornaments year-round if you want proof the town takes the season seriously. Summer solstice weekends bring midnight sun hikers up Kjarnaskogur forest, 10 minutes south of the centre.

If you want nightlife on the scale of Reykjavik's Laugavegur, look elsewhere — Akureyri has two or three bars that stay open past midnight and that's it. But if the plan is a week circling the north — Myvatn, Husavik, Godafoss, Dalvik — Akureyri is the only sensible overnight base with enough beds, restaurants and a proper supermarket (Bonus, on Furuvellir). Day-trippers arriving on the Ring Road sometimes push straight through to Myvatn without stopping; that's a mistake, because the town rewards an evening. Travellers wanting total isolation should look at cabins outside town instead, like Akureyri cabin with an amazing view or Dreamy Cabin with Sea Views North Iceland, both a short drive from the centre.

Where to sleep

The compact centre between Hafnarstraeti and Kaupvangsstraeti puts you walking distance to everything — restaurants, the church, the pool. Expect ISK 18423-ISK 28249. The Kea Hotel and Icelandair Hotel are on the main strip; smaller places on the hill above (Brekkugata, Adalstraeti) have fjord views and cost less. Avoid roadside motels north of town on Route 1 — you'll drive to eat and miss the point of Akureyri, which is walkability by Icelandic standards. High season (June-August) sits at the top of that band, low season (November-March) can undercut it by 20-30%, especially midweek. Streets like Brekkugata and Adalstraeti climb steeply — expect a 5-8 minute walk uphill from the harbour, worth it for the view over the fjord. Book the walkable core over anything on Route 1; if you want a car-based stay with more space and better light, the cabins outside town such as Akureyri cabin with an amazing view suit a two-night detour, but for a straightforward central stay, book something on or just above Hafnarstraeti.

The essentials

Akureyri centre and church walk (3 km)

Start at the harbour on Torfunefsbryggja, walk south along Hafnarstraeti past the shops and cafes to the Akureyrarkirkja church steps — climb the 100 steps for the panorama over the fjord. Continue up to the botanical garden, then loop back down Eyrarlandsvegur past the town hall. About 90 minutes with photo stops. Finish with a coffee at Kaffi Ilmur on Hafnarstraeti to warm up before heading back to the harbour.

Getting there & around

Akureyri airport (AEY) has 4-5 domestic flights daily from Reykjavik (45 minutes, ISK 18423-ISK 27020 return). Straeto bus 57 from Reykjavik takes 6h30, ISK 8597. Ring Road drive is 390km, 5 hours. Once in town everything's walkable in 15 minutes. City bus 6 runs to Hlidarfjall ski area (ISK 614). A rental car makes sense for day trips to Myvatn (90km) and Husavik (90km); rentals available at the airport. The airport terminal is a 10-minute walk or a short taxi ride from Hafnarstraeti, so you rarely need a transfer booked in advance. Parking in the centre is free and easy to find outside July and August weekends.