Things to Do in Reykjavík, Iceland: Walking Guide

Reykjavík is Iceland’s capital and a compact city filled with striking architecture, cultural institutions, historic buildings, and reminders of the country’s Viking and modern history. The city is easy to explore on foot, and its landmarks range from the towering Hallgrímskirkja to museums dedicated to Icelandic settlement, art, whales, and unusual natural history. Neywo has a free audio guide for Reykjavík with 66 narrated places.

What to see and things to do in Reykjavík

Hallgrímskirkja

Hallgrímskirkja is Reykjavík’s defining landmark. Its curved spire rises 74.5 metres above Skólavörðuholt, making it the largest church in Iceland and the second tallest building in the country. The Protestant Lutheran church was built between 1945 and 1986.

Architect Guðjón Samúelsson designed the sweeping façade and side wings to echo the basalt columns found in Iceland’s volcanic landscapes. The church’s position is unusual too: rather than facing east like traditional churches, it is aligned with the sun. At solar noon, the tower’s shadow falls along Skólavörðustígur, the street leading to the entrance.

The Einar Jónsson Museum and the Statue of Leif Erikson

Near Hallgrímskirkja, the Einar Jónsson Museum occupies Hnitbjörg, the former home and studio of Iceland’s first major sculptor. Einar Jónsson and his wife, Anna Jørgensen Jónsson, gave the building and the artist’s work to the Icelandic state. Inside, his sculptures and paintings are preserved and displayed as a record of his career.

Outside Hallgrímskirkja stands the statue of Leif Erikson, a reminder of Iceland’s Norse heritage and the country’s settlement history.

Aðalstræti 10 and the Settlement Exhibition

Aðalstræti 10 is the oldest surviving house in downtown Reykjavík. Dating from 1762, the modest one-and-a-half-storey timber building was originally part of the enterprises of Skúli Magnússon. Its frame is filled with rubble stone, its walls are covered with tar-painted boards, and much of the timber came from Norway and Denmark.

Nearby, the Settlement Exhibition presents Reykjavík’s earliest history and the settlement period. Together, these places offer a way to connect the city’s surviving historic architecture with the story of its beginnings.

Reykjavík Cathedral and Austurvöllur

Reykjavík Cathedral, or Dómkirkjan, stands beside Austurvöllur square in the old city centre. It is the seat of the Bishop of Iceland and the mother church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland.

The cathedral has a close relationship with Alþingi, Iceland’s parliament, which stands next door. Since Alþingi was re-established in 1845, parliamentary sessions have begun with a service at the cathedral before members move to the legislative chamber. The present building largely dates from 1847.

Fríkirkjan and Tjörnin

The white-and-green Fríkirkjan í Reykjavík stands beside Tjörnin lake. Its congregation was founded in 1899, and the church was consecrated in 1903. Extensions and rebuilding shaped the building into the form seen today.

Tjörnin provides a quiet open space in the centre of Reykjavík, close to the cathedral and other cultural institutions. The area is a natural part of a walk through the city’s historic centre.

The National Museum of Iceland

The National Museum of Iceland, or Þjóðminjasafn Íslands, follows the country’s story from the Viking Age settlement to the present day. Founded on February 24, 1863, it was created partly in response to concern that Icelandic artefacts were being dispersed abroad.

One of its important objects is the Þórslíkneski, a Thor’s hammer amulet connected with the Norse beliefs that influenced early Iceland. The permanent exhibition provides a chronological account of how Icelandic society formed and changed.

The Icelandic Phallological Museum

The Icelandic Phallological Museum is one of Reykjavík’s most unusual museums. Its collection contains more than 300 specimens representing over 100 mammal species, including examples from whales, seals, and land mammals.

The museum also includes an element of Icelandic folklore: empty cases represent the supposed penises of elves, trolls, and hidden people, invisible beings from traditional stories. The collection began with Sigurður Hjartarson’s childhood interest in a cattle whip made from a bull’s penis and later developed into the museum.

Culture House and the National Theatre of Iceland

Culture House, or Safnahúsið, occupies a building on Hverfisgata constructed between 1906 and 1908. It was originally designed for the National Library and National Archives, and also housed the Natural History Museum and Antiquities Collection. Today, it is part of the National Museum of Iceland and presents the “Points of View” exhibition, drawing objects from major national museums and cultural institutions.

Nearby, the National Theatre of Iceland opened on April 20, 1950. The building was designed by Guðjón Samúelsson, who also designed Hallgrímskirkja.

Hafnarhús and Reykjavík’s art scene

Hafnarhús is one of the three locations of the Reykjavík Art Museum, Iceland’s largest visual art institution. The museum was formally founded in 1973, building on gifts made to the city by Ragnar í Smára, Jóhannes Sveinsson Kjarval, Ásmundur Sveinsson, and Erró.

Across its three sites, the museum presents permanent collections and temporary exhibitions by Icelandic and international artists. Hafnarhús adds contemporary visual art to a city centre already rich in historical and cultural landmarks.

Höfði

Höfði is a modest white house with a major place in twentieth-century history. In October 1986, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met there for the Reykjavík Summit. Although the talks did not produce an agreement, they helped lay groundwork for later arms control treaties.

In August 1991, Höfði also hosted a meeting between the foreign ministers of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania and Iceland’s leaders. Iceland became the first country to formally recognize the independence of the Baltic states.

Perlan

Perlan sits on Öskjuhlíð hill beneath a glass dome supported by six former district-heating tanks. Designed by Ingimundur Sveinsson, the building opened to the public on June 21, 1991, transforming the former hot-water reservoirs into a museum and visitor attraction.

Its exhibitions present Iceland’s glaciers, volcanoes, seabird cliffs, and other natural features. Highlights include a 100-metre ice cave made from around 400 tons of ice, snow, and ash, the Áróra Northern Lights show in the planetarium, and the artificial geyser Strókur. A 360-degree observation deck provides views over Reykjavík and the surrounding landscape.

Whales of Iceland and the Saga Museum

In the Grandi harbour district, Whales of Iceland focuses on cetacean species recorded in Icelandic waters, from blue whales to dolphins and porpoises. The museum opened in 2015 and is dedicated entirely to these marine mammals.

The Saga Museum, housed in a historic harbour building, brings Iceland’s medieval history to life through scenes from 16 of the country’s best-known sagas. Silicone figures in period clothing and objects made with traditional techniques recreate episodes from the stories.

Árbæjarsafn

Árbæjarsafn is Reykjavík’s open-air museum and the largest of its kind in Iceland. Built around the site of the former Árbær farm, it contains more than 20 relocated buildings showing how people lived, worked, and played from the settlement era to modern times.

The museum developed as Reykjavík expanded and historic buildings were threatened with disappearance. Its paths lead past turf-roofed cottages, workshops, and other buildings that illustrate everyday life in the city’s past.

Explore Reykjavík with Neywo

Download Neywo and explore Reykjavík with a self-guided audio tour at your own pace. The app offers five walking tours, one bus route, and one bike route, with routes ranging from 1.5 to 4.23 kilometres and from 8 to 109 minutes. Together, they include narrated stops at places such as Hallgrímskirkja, the National Museum of Iceland, Höfði, Perlan, Harpa, and the harbour museums.

Neywo tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. The narration is available in 11 languages, and the Reykjavík guide includes 66 narrated places.