Akureyri, Iceland

 July 29, 2023

Akureyri is known as the capital of the north in Iceland and has a population of about 19,000 people. It is located at the southern end of the Eyja Fjord, which is 60km long and one of the longest fjords in Iceland. 

We thought we might enjoy watching the sailing in… but when I woke up at 3:30 in the morning (as I do sometimes) and looked out on the balcony, I decided it might be a better idea to watch it as we sailed out this afternoon!

This port was the only port that we actually booked a tour in. We had an excellent tour booked with FabTravel that went to a waterfall, mud pools, rock formations and even the cave where Jon Snow and Ygritte got together in Game of Thrones.

Neither of us slept well the night before because we had an early pick up at 7:40 AM and we were worried we were going to miss it. So we woke up early started getting ready and then I checked my email and saw that they had cancelled it late last night because of “unforeseen circumstances”. Unbelievably the tour company had the nerve to send me an email the next day and ask me to do a google review for them! Are you serious?!

Travel Tip: Don't book a tour in Akureyri from FabTravel.

It was a bit annoying, but not devastating. The only real problem it created was that it was our last stop in Iceland and we had taken out Icelandic Krona to pay for it as they were only taking cash. So we had about 360 CAD worth of Icelandic Krona to spend. They wouldn’t exchange it on the ship, and I’m hard pressed to believe we would find many places to exchange it into another currency on a Saturday morning in Akureyri, Iceland.

So we decided we'd have to spend it all in Akureyri… challenge accepted 😀

First we got off the boat and had a look at the tours being offered at the port. Just like the cruise line shore excursions, these were very expensive. VERY expensive. This is why we typically organize independent excursions in the places we want to take a tour.

After determining we weren’t really interested in what was being offered for the price it was being offered at we decided to walk into the town.

Keep in mind it is about 7:00 in the morning on a Saturday… as you can imagine we were included in a very tiny group of people who were out and about. This was nice as it was quiet and not heaving with people… the downside is that the stores weren’t open yet.

Here we are entering the main shopping street of Akureyri. Yep... just us and that very unsettling mural on the building behind me! When we were in Akureyri I couldn't find any local who could tell me who she was, but upon some internet research I have discovered it is a picture of an Icelandic actress named Sia when she was a young child. The actress died in 2010. This is all I can find so I am unsure if this information is accurate!

But guess what was open? Kristjan’s Bakari… yep the bakery! Steve and I decided to stop and have a warm drink and a tasty treat - a cinnamon bun dipped in chocolate. Yes it was as delicious as it sounded!

After this pitstop we walked around and window shopped to figure out where we would spend our money when the stores opened at 10:00!

There is basically one short street of shops so it didn’t take long. Next we started walking up the hill. There was an interesting looking church at the top and some signs for the botanical garden so we thought we’d take a look.

As you walk up you see some restaurants, bars, galleries and museums. The museums and galleries did not appeal to us… and weren’t open yet anyway… so we kept walking. We enjoyed looking at the houses and the different ways they were constructed.

Check out this awesome garbage can cover! This was actually my favourite piece of public art in Akureyri!

We also saw many rainbow themed things. Iceland is known as a country of recognition and acceptance and has been a popular destination for gay weddings recently. I'm guessing the rainbows are to make it clear they are supportive. Besides the kindness behind this I really enjoyed how colourful it was... it was much needed in a place that averages about 15 days of rain or precipitation each month, year round.

When we reached the top of the hill we found the church. It overlooks the water.

As we kept walking we came across the botanical garden. We had seen many tours promoting this as a stop in one of their tours. For some reason I expected it to be inside a large conservatory or greenhouse… maybe because we are in Northern Iceland? It is, however, a completely outdoor park, which you can walk in for free. If you can navigate yourself up the hill, which I did with no trouble, you do not need a tour to come here. Right when we arrived they opened the gates (9:00 AM in the summer) and we walked in.

The gardens were quite pretty and included flowers, trees and foliage that you might not expect to see in Northern Iceland. 

A colourful gazebo in the botanical garden:

They also had a beautiful restaurant in the middle that looked like it was selling wine. Steve asked if I wanted wine… but since it was 9:00 in the morning I declined 😉

We also saw a photo exhibit that was featuring the woman’s photography group from Akureyri. They call themselves "ALFkonur". This particular set of photos was featuring photos taken in the winter. I enjoyed seeing how different it looked in the winter. Think snow. A LOT OF SNOW! We did take a picture of one we thought was particularly stunning so you can see how they were showcased. I wish I could tell you who took the photo… just know it wasn’t us!

After visiting the gardens we walked back down to the town to do our shopping. Let’s just say it isn’t that hard to spend $360 in Iceland! Challenge completed! 

After this we walked back to the ship. As we were approaching the ship we came across a local “Strong Woman Competition”. As you can imagine Steve was VERY excited. It was quite fascinating to watch the women complete different challenges. Listening to cheering and encouragement in the Icelandic language was also interesting. We’ve included a short video in case you want to hear what Icelandic cheering sounds like.

Next we headed back to the ship, had a late lunch and relaxed for the rest of the day. Steve picked us up some mudslides at the bar and look what the sweet waiter did to them!

I did enjoy watching the sailaway through the fjord from our balcony. The scenery was lovely! 

We even saw what I have named the "Magic Waterfall". It looks like geothermally heated water is making a waterfall into the ocean, so when it hits the ocean it steams. A hot water waterfall!

Tomorrow we have a sea day as we sail from Iceland to Norway! VERY EXCITING!!!!