Maximize Your Stopover: 10 Adventures You Can Have with 24 Hours in Reykjavik

Iceland is such an amazing country with so much to do and see. However, if you have only 24 hours to see the entire country, it’s probably best to stay in the country’s capital, Reykjavik.

Icelandic Air has a great program that offers varying lengths of stopovers on your flights. You could fly from Miami to Rome, with a 24-hour stopover in Iceland, for no extra fee.

This city is known for its museums, thermal baths, colorful buildings, and more. I narrowed down everything there is to do here to just 10 things to do on a 24-hour stopover in Reykjavik.

10. Try Traditional Icelandic food at Café Loki

If you like fish, then you are in for a treat. Icelandic food is almost all fish, and Café Loki is no exception. Some of the top dishes on their menu are the fermented shark, lamb, and rye bread ice cream. Imagine going home and telling your friends you ate a fermented shark!

This cute little cafe is right in the center of the city and is open from early in the morning until late at night. This makes it the perfect spot for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. If you want to try more Icelandic food, try booking a food tour. It’s the perfect way to spend an evening and learn about a country’s culture and cuisine.

9. Sky Lagoon

This thermal bath is about an hour away from Reykjavik by public transportation or about a 15-minute drive, but it is worth the trip! It’s located in the city of Kópavogur, which is just south of Reykjavik. The infinity pool-style lagoon is known as where “the sky meets the sea” because cliffs surround it and have endless ocean views.

The lagoon is the main attraction, but there’s also a cold plunge, sauna, cold mist, sky body scrub, steam room, and shower. There is also a restaurant here that serves traditional Icelandic food and drinks, making this an experience you will never forget.

8. Perlan

Perlan is the natural history museum of Iceland, and it is just as amazing inside as it looks on the outside. There are over eight different exhibits here that talk about the wildlife of Iceland, the natural disasters that have happened here, and the world’s first indoor ice cave. 

The museum is up on a hill above Reykjavik, so you get an amazing 360-degree view of the city below. Once you are done exploring the museum, you can head to the restaurant, bar, café, ice cream parlor, and gift shop that are inside the building. This is the perfect place to take your kids so that they can learn about Iceland in a fun, interactive way.

7. Harpa Concert Hall

The Harpa Concert Hall is a beautiful modern building that sits right at the water’s edge in Reykjavik’s main harbor. You can decide if you want to see a concert or opera, but the building is worth the trip. It was only recently opened in 2011, but since then, it has won many awards for its architecture and sustainability.

Once you are done admiring the beauty of this building, you can take a walk around the harbor and look at the many boats and ships. You can also get a great view of Engey Island, which is known for its puffins and other wildlife, on a clear day.

6. Blue Lagoon

If you are on Instagram, then you have definitely seen pictures and videos of Blue Lagoon. It is about an hour’s drive from Reykjavik but is 100% worth the trip. You can book a tour from where you are staying in the city, and they will drive you to the Lagoon and let you spend the day. It’s the perfect place to relax and unwind, surrounded by Iceland’s beauty. 

These thermal baths are outside, and the lagoon is 93,646 square feet. It’s also the only place on earth that has geothermal seawater. They have many restaurants and bars here so you can spend the entire day at this luxurious resort.

5. National Museum of Iceland

Even during the summer in Reykjavik, the high only reaches 57°F, so finding activities to do inside where it’s warm is crucial. The National Museum of Iceland is the perfect place to escape the cold and learn about Icelandic history. Their main exhibit is “Making of a Nation,” which talks about how Iceland became the place that it is today. 

There are also up to 5 temporary exhibits in the museum that will keep you entertained for hours. So if you want to learn more about Iceland and the history behind this little country in the middle of the Atlantic, then be sure to add this to your itinerary.

4. See the Northern Lights

Seeing the Northern Lights is something that’s on a lot of people’s bucket list. You need clear skies and darkness to see these naturally occurring green lights in the sky. You can see the northern lights from anywhere in Reykjavik, but the city’s lights will dull their color and make them less vivid.

If you are lucky enough to be here from September to March, which are the best months to see the lights, then you should book a tour and get out of the city to see how they were meant to be seen. There is also a place called Aurora Reykjavík – The Northern Lights Center where you can go and either book a tour or see them virtually in their theater.

3. Árbær Open Air Museum

One last museum for the list. The Árbær Open Air Museum is a place where you can see how the traditional Icelandic people lived and the houses they lived in. It portrays the small-town lives of people from the 19th and 20th centuries. The staff dress in the clothes from this time period as they participate in different exhibits throughout the museum.

During the summer months, farm animals wander the grounds of the museum. The museum currently has over 20 buildings and was first opened in 1968. You won’t want to miss this quaint little museum/town just on Reykjavik’s outskirts.

2. Sun Voyager

Sun Voyager is a sculpture of a boat that is right on the water near the harbor. It’s the most famous piece of art in all of Iceland and was done by the artist Jón Gunnar. He died in 1989, just a year before the statue was officially released to the public. It was completed on the 200th anniversary of Reykjavik in 1990.

If you have time to visit this magnificent statue, you definitely should. It’s part of the Icelandic people and shows their dedication to the sea and discovery.

1. Hallgrimskirkja

This cathedral is in the center of Reykjavik and has a tower that is 240 feet tall. It took 41 years to build this church, which was finished in 1986. It’s the largest church in Iceland and is the main symbol of this capital city. Getting into the church is free, but if you want to climb up the tower, you must pay a small fee. The view from the tower is amazing. You can see all the buildings in the city and, on a clear day, even the ocean.

The architectural style of this church is classified as expressionist neo-gothic, which means that it uses other styles, not just gothic. There’s a statue in front of the church of the explorer Leif Erikson that was a gift from the US to Iceland and has stood here even longer than the church has. Inside the church are two huge organs and a statue of Jesus that depicts him receiving the Holy Ghost after His baptism.

Have You Been?

Reykjavik is such an amazing city, and if you are lucky enough to visit it, even for just 24 hours, there are some things that you should keep in mind. First, you will not be able to see everything on this list. You need to choose the things that interest you the most, which would make the people you are traveling with happy.

I would also recommend doing at least one of the lagoons on this list while you are in Reykjavik. This will be an experience you will never forget. Besides that, you can enjoy this amazing city and everything there is to do on a 24-hour stopover in Reykjavik.

What’s your favorite thing to do in Reykjavik?