Reykjahlid: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
Reykjahlíð sits on the edge of the Krafla volcanic system, where the plates of America and Europe pull apart and the ground is still moving. In a few kilometres east of the village you pass boiling mud, a crater lake and lava that came out within living memory. The loop is about 40 km on paved road, a full morning, and ends in the warm water of the Nature Baths. Bring a windproof layer: the high ground is cold even in July, and the sulphur smell stays in your clothes.
A short history of Reykjahlid
Reykjahlíð is a small village on the north-east shore of Lake Mývatn, in one of the most volcanically active areas of Iceland. From 1724 to 1729 the Krafla volcanoes erupted in a series known as the "Mývatn Fires", and in 1729 the lava flowed as far as the village, destroyed farms and stopped just short of the church, which has since been rebuilt on the same spot. From 1975 to 1984 the area erupted again, in nine small eruptions. From the 1960s until 2004 a plant near the village mined the skeletons of tiny algae from the lake bed. In 2004 the Mývatn Nature Baths opened, fed with hot water from nearby boreholes.
The ten best sights in Reykjahlid
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1Reykjahlíð Church
The lava of 1729 split around the old church on this rise; look at the lava edge by the churchyard
2Sigurgeir's Bird MuseumAlmost every Icelandic breeding bird under one roof, on the west shore of the lake
3Krafla Power StationGeothermal plant with a visitor centre on the road to Víti
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4Mývatn Nature Baths
Milky-blue geothermal lagoon above the lake, quieter and cheaper than the Blue Lagoon; book in summer
5HverirBoiling mud pots and roaring steam vents; stay on the roped paths, the crust is thin
6DimmuborgirA maze of lava towers and arches with marked trails of 15 minutes to two hours
7HverfjallA huge black ash crater; a steep path up, then a walk round the rim
8GrjótagjáA lava cave with a hot-water pool inside; look, but bathing is no longer allowed
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9Stóragjá
A warm-water fissure right in the village, behind the shop; bathing is not advised
10SkútustaðagígarPseudocraters by the south shore with a 30-minute loop path; best birdwatching on the lake
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in Reykjahlid →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Reykjahlid:
Free walking tours in Reykjahlid
Krafla and the hot ground
Reykjahlíð sits on the edge of the Krafla volcanic system, where the plates of America and Europe pull apart and the ground is still moving. In a few kilometres east of the village you pass boiling mud, a crater lake and lava that came out within living memory. The loop is about 40 km on paved road, a full morning, and ends in the warm water of the Nature Baths. Bring a windproof layer: the high ground is cold even in July, and the sulphur smell stays in your clothes.
- Námafjall · The name means 'mine mountain'. Sulphur was dug from its slopes for centuries and shipped abroad for gunpowder, and the yellow crust on the ground is the same mineral.
- Hverir · There are no plants here because the soil is hot and acidic. The mud pots boil from steam and gas rising through the clay, and the stone mounds hiss because they are fumaroles, vents of volcanic steam.
- Krafla Power Station · Work on the station began in the mid-1970s, and soon afterwards Krafla started erupting, on and off, for nine years. The plant was finished in the middle of the eruptions and still runs on the heat of the same volcano.
- Víti · Víti means 'hell'. The crater was blown open in 1724 at the start of the Mývatn Fires, a five-year run of eruptions, and has since filled with a lake of milky turquoise water.
- Leirhnjúkur · The Krafla Fires of 1975 to 1984 brought nine eruptions here, and the black lava along the trail is from that time. In places it still steams, and the marked path keeps you off ground that is hot underfoot.
- Mývatn Nature Baths · The lagoon opened in 2004 and is fed by water from the boreholes of Bjarnarflag below. The water is rich in silica and minerals, which gives it its milky blue colour.
Round the lake
Mývatn means 'midge lake', and the clouds of midges that give it the name are also what makes it so rich: they feed the trout and the huge numbers of ducks that nest here. A road of about 37 km circles the shore, past a lava maze, an ash crater and a field of pseudocraters. Give it a whole day with the walks. In June and July bring a head net against the midges; they do not bite, but they fly into your eyes and mouth.
- Reykjahlíð Church · In 1729 a lava flow from the Mývatn Fires reached the village and destroyed farms, but it parted around the old church on its low rise and left it standing. The present church on the same spot dates from the 1960s.
- Hverfjall · The crater was formed about 2,500 years ago in a single violent eruption of ash and steam. It is about a kilometre across, and the path round the rim is roughly 3 km.
- Dimmuborgir · The 'dark castles' formed when a lava lake drained away and left behind the pillars that had hardened around rising steam. Folk tales make it the home of the Yule Lads, the thirteen trolls who visit Icelandic children before Christmas.
- Kálfaströnd · On this quiet point the same kind of lava towers as at Dimmuborgir stand right in the water. It is a short walk from the farm road and far less visited.
- Skútustaðagígar · These are pseudocraters: no lava came up through them. They formed when lava ran over wet marshland and the trapped water exploded into steam, blowing the crust into cones.
- Sigurgeir's Bird Museum · Mývatn has more breeding species of duck than anywhere else in Europe. The museum grew from the private collection of a local farmer, Sigurgeir Stefánsson, and has telescopes on the lake from its windows.
Water in the lava
Everywhere around Mývatn water runs under the lava, warmed by the volcano, and comes out in cracks, caves and great waterfalls. This route links the hidden pools of the village with the two big falls of the north, Goðafoss to the west and Dettifoss to the north-east. It is a long day, about 160 km in all, so do it in two halves if you stay two nights. The Dettifoss road is paved, but the spray there is cold and the paths are slippery.
- Goðafoss · In the year 1000 the lawspeaker Þorgeir decided at the Althing that Iceland would become Christian. The story says that on his way home he threw the statues of the old gods into this fall, which gave it its name.
- Mývatn · Most of the water reaches the lake not by rivers but through springs in the lava on its east side. It flows out as the Laxá, one of Iceland's best-known rivers for trout and salmon.
- Stóragjá · A ladder leads down into this crack in the middle of the village, where clear warm water lies at the bottom. People bathed here for generations, but the water has cooled and bacteria grow in it, so today it is for looking.
- Grjótagjá · After the Krafla eruptions began in 1975 the water in this cave grew too hot to bathe in. It is better known now as the cave where Jon Snow and Ygritte meet in Game of Thrones.
- Lofthellir · This lava tube holds ice all year, with frozen columns and formations that never melt because cold air sinks into the cave and stays there. It can be visited only on a guided tour with helmets and spikes.
- Dettifoss · The fall is about 45 m high and 100 m wide, and carries grey glacier water from Vatnajökull. Ridley Scott filmed the opening scene of Prometheus here.
Getting to Reykjahlid and getting around
- Mývatn Airstrip · A gravel strip just north of the village, used by small sightseeing planes over Krafla and Askja
- Húsavík Airport · The nearest airport with domestic flights to Reykjavík, about 45 minutes away; check the season's timetable
Cheap eats in Reykjahlid
Around Mývatn the food is the lake and the hot ground: trout and char smoked in the old local way, and a dark, sweet rye bread baked by burying the pot in the hot earth. There is only one grocery, so buy picnic food in Reykjahlíð before driving out. Iceland is expensive, and soup with bread, a hot dog or the shop are the cheap lunches.
- Vogafjós · Geyser bread with smoked trout, about 2,500-3,500 krónur
- Krambúðin · Bread, skyr and smoked fish for a picnic, about 1,500-3,000 krónur
- Gamli Bærinn · Soup of the day and burgers in the old farmhouse tavern, about 2,500-4,500 krónur
- Fish & Chips Reykjahlíð · Fried fish to go in the village, about 2,500-3,500 krónur
- Kaffi Borgir · Soup or cake on a terrace over Dimmuborgir, about 1,500-3,000 krónur
- Kaffi Sel · Coffee and waffles by the pseudocraters, about 1,000-2,500 krónur
- Nature Baths bistro · A light meal after the hot water, about 2,000-3,500 krónur
Museums in Reykjahlid
- Sigurgeir's Bird Museum · The birds of Iceland, with lake views; an hour
- Krafla Power Station · Visitor centre on geothermal power, on the way to Víti
- Reykjahlíð Church · The church the lava spared; the lava edge is by the wall
- Húsavík Whale Museum · Whale skeletons by the harbour, about 50 minutes north
- Húsavík Church · Wooden church above the harbour, the landmark of the town
Nature and day trips near Reykjahlid
- Hverfjall · Steep 20-minute climb to the rim; windy on top
- Dimmuborgir · Marked loops from 15 minutes to two hours
- Skútustaðagígar · Pseudocraters and ducks on a 30-minute loop
- Vindbelgjarfjall · An hour up for the view of the whole lake
- Dettifoss · 45 minutes north-east; cold spray, slippery rock
- Víti · Turquoise crater lake at Krafla; rim walk about an hour
Things to do in Reykjahlid with kids
- Mývatn Nature Baths · Warm water children love; check the minimum age at the desk
- Hverir · Bubbling mud amazes children; keep them on the path and wipe shoes after
- Grjótagjá · Crawl in to see the blue pool by torchlight; mind the low rock
- Lofthellir · Ice cave on a guided tour only; for older children
- GeoSea · Sea baths in Húsavík, about 50 minutes north
Where to eat in Reykjahlid
- Vogafjós · Farm restaurant with its own lamb and dairy; book in summer
- Daddi's Pizza · Pizza at the campsite south of the village; the cheapest dinner around
- Mylla Hotel · Hotel restaurant in the middle of the village
- Sel · Hotel restaurant at Skútustaðir on the south shore
- Gamli Bærinn · Tavern in the old farmhouse; lamb soup and a beer
Frequently asked questions about Reykjahlid
What is there to see in Reykjahlid?
The top sights in Reykjahlid are Reykjahlíð Church, Sigurgeir's Bird Museum and Krafla Power Station. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in Reykjahlid?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of Reykjahlid without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in Reykjahlid?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Reykjahlid, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Krafla and the hot ground.
How do you get to Reykjahlid and get around?
The main ways are Mývatn Airstrip and Húsavík Airport. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in Reykjahlid, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in Reykjahlid that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in Reykjahlid for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.