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Book the Best of
Iceland

Hand-picked tours, lagoons, and experiences curated by The Reykjavík Grapevine. No tourist traps, no nonsense. Actually experience Iceland, read more about Icebreaker or download the app.

Blue Lagoon, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Blue Lagoon

Norðurljósavegur 9, Grindavík

So important that the Icelandic state has dedicated billions of ISK to build protective walls around it and its neighbouring geothermal powerplant to save it from a series of volcanic eruptions, the Blue Lagoon trailblazed what high-end bathing facilities should look and feel like while preserving what made it so sought after to begin with, the blue tinted hot water flowing freely in lava. Runner up 2026 in “Best Lagoon”.

Book: Admission

Also available

Elding. Whale Watching, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Elding. Whale Watching

Ægisgarður 5c

Elding's boats leave the Old Harbour and sail 40 minutes into Faxaflói bay, where whales the size of buses do whale-shaped things. Humpbacks are the stars and sometimes roll belly-up like giant dogs, which is more emotionally involving than you'd expect. Minke whales, dolphins, and summer puffins fill the supporting cast. Winner of “Best Outdoor Experience” 2026.

Book here!
Lava Show, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Lava Show

Fiskislóð 73

Real molten lava, right there, poured into the room in front of you. The show is both entertaining and educational, with storytelling about Icelanders' complicated relationships with volcanoes — the geothermal power, the eruption evacuations, the black-humoured resignation. Winner of “Best Immersive Experience” 2026.

Book here!
Hvammsvík, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Hvammsvík

Kjósahreppur, Mosfellsbær

Hvammsvík is the anti-Blue Lagoon: intimate rather than industrial, in a fjord rather than a lava field, and 45 minutes from Reykjavík by car. Wooden pools stepped down into Hvalfjörður itself, so you finish in seawater. Views are the sell — the fjord, the mountains, the light. Aim for sunset if the weather holds. Winner of “Best Lagoon” 2026 (four years running).

Book: Admission ticket

Also available

Laugarás Lagoon, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Laugarás Lagoon

Skálholtsvegur 1, Laugarás

While the past few years have seen the rise of “The Lagoons”, nicely designed geothermal pools which can seem expensive, the upside is you get treated like royalty while sipping champagne. Laugarás Lagoon, an hour from Reykjavík, is the latest such addition. Runner up 2026 in “Best Newcomer”.

Book: Birki (standard entry)

Also available

FlyOver Iceland, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

FlyOver Iceland

Fiskislóð 43

This VR experience has been popular since opening in 2019, attracting locals as much as its primary customer base, visitors. Don’t have time to see the country, or is the weather inhibiting travel? Runner up 2026 in “Best Immersive Experience”.

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Perlan, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Perlan

Varmahlíð 1

Originally built on top of the city’s hot water tanks in the 1990s as a restaurant offering views across the city, Perlan has kept the views, and morphed into an interactive museum, covering Iceland's flora, fauna and geology in general, with a new volcano exhibition. Runner up 2026 in “Best Immersive Experience”.

Book here!
The Volcano Express, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

The Volcano Express

Austurbakki 2

With an eruption happening on the very same peninsula as Reykjavík sits on seemingly every other month for the past few years, Lava Express, located in Harpa concert hall, explains all of that from the comfort of an amusement ride seat. Runner up 2026 in “Best Newcomer”.

Book here!
Safari Quads, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Safari Quads

Lambhagavegur 19

Safari bikes are a Reykjavík-based provider of ATV and Buggy tours that have been around as long as this magazine, which is rare in Icelandic tourism. “If you find yourself in Reykjavík, but want to have an active, rugged experience that goes against the urban vibes and landscapes, this is perfect,” one panellist put it. Runner up 2026 in “Best Outdoors Experience”.

Book: 1.5 Hour Reykjavik Peak ATV

Also available

Fálkaklettur Via Ferrata, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Fálkaklettur Via Ferrata

Mógilsárvegur 1

A brand-new addition to Iceland’s most-hiked mountain, Esja. Via ferrata, “iron path” in Italian, refers to protected climbing routes, originating in the Alps but now found all over the world. The route offers a new approach to Esjan and a new view, and is overall a pleasant and thrilling experience, including a cable bridge. Winner of “Best Newcomer” 2026.

Book here!
The Phallological Museum, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

The Phallological Museum

Reykjastræti 4

Founded in 1997 by Sigurður Hjartason, this is a legitimate museum with a legitimate collection of the reproductive organs of every mammal known to inhabit Iceland — plus, since 2011, a human specimen donated after death. Small, weird, well-curated, and yes, worth the visit. Reykjastræti 4, twenty steps from Ingólfstorg. Winner of “Best Unconventional Experience” 2026.

Book here!
Wake Up Reykjavík. Food Walk, bookable through Icebreaker Best of

Wake Up Reykjavík. Food Walk

Klapparstígur 25

Reykjavík by mouth. The food-walk tour Reykjavík locals actually send tourists on. Real Icelandic food, a guide with opinions. Kid-friendly version by day, food-and-drink version by night. Wake Up Reykjavik has been running the food walk since 2014, which is prehistoric in tourism-years. Various stops around downtown Reykjavík.

Book here!
Go Rentals. Icelandic car rental for Iceland road trips 5% off with Icebreaker

Go Rentals

Keflavík Airport & Reykjavík

Reykjavík is where you sleep. Everything else is a drive. Go Rentals is our Icelandic car partner, book through this link for 5% off at checkout. Cars sized right for local roads, delivery/pickup at KEF and Reykjavík.

Book here!