Free is a tricky word here: If you travel to Iceland, you either have a well-filled travel budget or you’re smart and save a few euros here and there. Reykjavík was “crowned” the most expensive city in the world this year: Nowhere else is the cost of living as high as in Iceland’s capital. Tourists notice this when searching for a hotel, it continues in the supermarket and often ends with jaws dropping in bars and pubs: Not because you drink so much, but because you start wondering whether there’s a stream somewhere on the way home to save you from dying of thirst.
Well, it’s not quite that bad, and you can secure your evening drink fairly easily by saving a few krónur during the day. That’s not really hard either, because there are loads of things you can do in Reykjavík completely free of charge.
Here we go…
Street art in Reykjavík: Admire the amazing artwork for free
Reykjavík is full of beautiful paintings, murals and graffiti in both classic and modern styles. Hidden in the streets around the city center are many famous pieces that many of you will already know from the internet. Some works were commissioned, while others are classic street art, often pointing out social issues with a more or less sharp tone. In recent years this has mostly revolved around the never-ending topic of tourism: You’ll find paintings on many construction sites, sometimes beautiful and appealing, but often pure vandalism. Then again, even that can be a form of expression in this sense.
Free walking tour through Reykjavík
With CityWalk you can join a completely free guided city tour every day at 10:00, 12:00 and 14:00. Starting at the parliament square Austurvöllur, the tour takes you through the city for a good two hours, with a special focus on Iceland’s rich history. Topics cover everything from Vikings, elves, restaurants and nightlife to economics and politics. Absolutely perfect for a first overview!
The tour is about 2 km long and at the end you pay whatever you want. If you really can’t pay anything at all, you can hand over a small souvenir from home instead.
Out into nature: Elliðaárdalur in the middle of Reykjavík
A bit outside the center, about 5 km from Hallgrimskirkja, lies the small park Elliðaárdalur. If walking isn’t your thing, you can also take the bus — there’s a stop right next to it. The little park is an oasis in the small city and you immediately feel like you’re in an enchanted forest. There’s a waterfall, the small river winds along both sides of the grounds, and you can even spot wild rabbits here.
It’s a great spot for photographers, because you can take beautiful photos here in peace and quiet. Especially in the evening hours, when it’s slightly overcast, you can capture truly great shots!
The Harpa concert hall
Located right by the sea and world-famous: The big glass house at Reykjavík’s harbour, the concert hall Harpa. It was built during the financial crisis and, like most large buildings, the original financial planning was quickly thrown overboard. The construction was finished — not without plenty of discussions and protests — and today most people are probably quite happy about it. The strange building attracts lots of people, which is why various small shops and cafés have settled here. In the Harpa you can take your time admiring the architecture from the outside and inside and browse the little boutiques.
A foot bath with a view
This little insider tip is a real experience, especially in winter: If you walk out of the old harbour and follow the coast towards the west, you not only get a wonderful view, but you also end up right at the Grótta lighthouse. What many people don’t know — and therefore simply walk past it — is that there’s a small hot spring here: The Kvika foot bath. Not much more than 1 m in diameter and about 40 cm deep, the little pool invites you to take off your shoes and dip your feet into the warm water. If you’re really lucky, you can watch the northern lights dance over the harbour basin from here. But even without the aurora, the view is simply fantastic!
The old harbour of Reykjavík
Whether this area is particularly beautiful is a matter of taste: I like industrial charm, and the old harbour has more than enough of it to offer. There are a few small shops, cafés and restaurants, as well as exhibitions and museums. Admittedly: Without money, things get a bit sparse here quickly. Ice cream, coffee and chocolate are available, but unfortunately not for free.
If you plan at least a small budget, you can find some really great places here: The ice cream parlour Valdis is famous throughout the country — its frozen goods are even exported to other cities. The Whales of Iceland exhibition, the Saga Museum and a northern lights museum are also located here.
If you want to keep it completely free, I’d rather see this place as a starting point for a walk to the foot bath mentioned above or along the sculpture walk…
Walk the sculpture path to the Sun Voyager in Reykjavík
The sculpture & shore walk along the coast is an absolute highlight of the city. It starts relatively far in the east on the small Laugarnes peninsula, then passes the Sun Voyager and the Harpa on its way to the old harbour, where it turns into the Göngustígur, which leads to the foot bath.
Along the way there are various structures and sculptures to admire. First and foremost: The Sun Voyager. Many people take it for a Viking ship, but the artist’s intention was something different. You can find out what it is on site 😉
You’ll also find a symbol of partnership here, and if you’re an active reader of this Iceland blog or a user of our Iceland app, it might look familiar to you.
I prefer walking this path in sunshine or well wrapped up in the snow. In the rain: Forget the umbrella — with the wind along the coast, it won’t do you any good.
Explore the city center and Hallgrimskirkja
Reykjavík’s city center is full of small shops, cafés, boutiques and restaurants. It’s a wonderful place to stroll around and do some window shopping. On the way to Hallgrimskirkja there’s plenty to see, and the church itself is an ideal spot for a little photo break. Depending on the season and time of day, it offers a wonderful backdrop for great pictures.
Along Laugavegur you’ll find all kinds of shopping opportunities and cafés to stop by and enjoy. But if you sneak into the side streets a bit, you can find something else besides great street art: A feeling for the city. If you look behind the facades, you’ll pass backyards, see where the people who serve you your coffee actually live, and get a sense of what it might be like to live here.
I’m a big fan of discovering a city this way, and as I said, it doesn’t cost a cent.
See Reykjavík from above
It doesn’t always have to be a helicopter tour — if you want to see the small city from above, you have several options: The cheapest is to climb up to the sun deck of the Perlan Museum. While the exhibitions inside naturally cost money, the view from the roof is completely free. From up here you get a great all-round view over the city and the surrounding areas.
Update: The viewing platform is unfortunately no longer free, a ticket costs about 4€
An alternative, though not entirely free either, is Hallgrimskirkja. Here you can take a lift up to the viewing platform. From the bell tower you get what is probably the best panoramic view over the city, with the usually very strong coastal wind blowing around your ears.
Watch the northern lights over Reykjavík
Absolutely free and still probably the best show you could wish for: Northern lights in Iceland.
If you’re lucky and the aurora borealis is really, really strong, you can often see it right over the rooftops of Reykjavík. My favourite spot is somewhere along the coast, for example at the Grótta lighthouse or at the nearby Kvika foot bath.
By the way, in the Iceland app you can get notified when others spot northern lights and report them. You can also check the forecast to see how things are looking for the coming days.
Seeing northern lights in the city is actually quite rare, because the city lights usually drown out the celestial display. So it can be worth driving a little way out of the city, for example to Þingvellir National Park.
Conclusion: Enjoying Reykjavík for free
Even though Iceland is an expensive travel destination, you can still have a great time here on a small budget. There are plenty of affordable options to check out, and great things you can experience even without money.
That said, I’ve also caught myself looking at money far too often because of the high prices, and that really doesn’t do a trip to Iceland any good. Besides, many people here live off tourism, and maintaining the sights in Iceland costs money too, after all.
So: Save, but don’t save yourself unhappy! 😉
Have fun in Iceland!
No Comments Yet