The Ultimate Guide to Celebrating Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík

While most people would probably rather escape the cold weather and run off to the Caribbean for the holidays, I decided to go somewhere even colder. For as long as I can remember, Iceland has been at the top of my bucket list destinations. I just never actually thought I would go during one of the most important holidays and busiest time in Iceland. That was back in 2016 and to this day, I still think celebrating Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík is something everyone should experience, but it requires some advanced planning to make the best of your trip, starting with these 3 lessons learned.

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Where to Eat

Christmas is an important and very busy time in Iceland. I’ll be honest, I didn’t know this prior to going. Once I arrived and realized that most (if not all) restaurants required dinner reservations and would exclusively serve prix fixe Christmas dinners, I quickly googled restaurants that still had openings nearby. By the end of my first night, I had reservations for all of our dinners in Reykjavík for the rest of the trip. Lesson #1 is to plan ahead and make reservations if you’re dining out. Some of my favorites were:

1. Tapas style Icelandic cuisine at SmakkBarinn (now called Jazzy’s. Probably the only place where I dined and didn’t need reservations.) Lots of interesting items on the menu and with the smaller portion tapas style you can try lots of them.
2. Great beer selection near the harbor at Bryggjan Brugghus. After eating at a few restaurants, you will quickly realize that Iceland is not cheap. But what surprised me the most is the price of beer. Even the locally brewed, draft beers cost roughly $8 USD for 8 oz. or $10 USD for a 13 oz. glass. I believe this is due in part to the expensive alcohol taxes in the country.
3. Good seafood selection at MAR.
4. And if you’re looking for a fine dining experience, I’d recommend Grillmarkadurinn.

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Where to Stay

I learned lesson #2 well before leaving the US; book your accommodations well in advance.

If you’re lucky enough to find accommodations in downtown Reykjavík, it definitely won’t be cheap. If you know me, you know I love using the Marriott points I earned from my business trips for my leisure trips. But because it is an especially busy time in Reykjavík, points were not accepted at the Marriott properties during that time.

After days of searching, I finally booked a reasonably priced Airbnb near Laugardalslaug. Four nights in the cozy studio apartment cost us a little less than $500 USD. Not bad at all considering the increased tourism during Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík.

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Things to do Between Christmas and New Year

While you can visit most of Iceland’s tourist attractions by joining tour groups/buses, I would recommend renting a car to give you the most flexibility, but make absolutely sure that your rental car has studded winter tires. Driving in Iceland’s winter conditions is extremely dangerous. I saw way too many cars skid off of the road during Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík. Lesson #3 is to prepare for the unpredictable road conditions. In this post, I will only focus on the things to do in or near Reykjavík. During my trip in 2016, I actually drove through the entire country’s “Ring Road” or Route 1, but that requires a post of its own.

Here are some things to do in or near Reykjavík:

1. Drive the Golden Circle. The Golden Circle is a very popular day trip route that most tourists visit during their visit to Reykjavík. There are plenty of things to see on this route, but I definitely recommend making the following stops:
   • Thingvellir (Þingvellir) National Park. The landscape here is out of this world and would probably top my list of places that look completely different in Spring/Summer but still just as majestic. You can even go scuba diving between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates in the Silfra fissure.
   • Marvel over the Great Geysir and the Stokkur Geyser. The Great Geysir is the “original geyser” and back in its heyday, it’s said to hurl boiling water up to ~200 feet up in the air. It’s now considered to be inactive, but its neighbor Stokkur Geyser is very much active. Stokkur Geyser erupts every 5-10 minutes averaging 30-60 feet, but occasionally it’s said to reach over 100 feet.
   • Gullfoss Waterfall. From afar it looks like a river since the water drops straight into a crevice, but as you get closer and hear the rumbling of its power, it’s hard to mistake it for anything else but a mighty force of nature.
   • Although the Hellisheiði Power Station isn’t technically in the Golden Circle, I think it’s worth making the stop on the way to or from the Golden Circle. Iceland is a pioneer in the geothermal renewable energy space and you can take a tour to learn about how sustainable energy is generated and distributed from this very location.
2. Visit a natural hot spring. Iceland is full of natural wonders. You’ll know when you are close to one because of the unmistakable pungent smell of sulfur. No, that’s not rotten eggs but the smell of the geothermal activity brewing underground. And the result is a plethora of naturally hot (almost boiling hot) springs you can soak in while taking a break from the frigid temperatures. There are two close to Reykjavík that I can recommend:
   • I’m sure you’ve heard of the famous Blue Lagoon. Most people even make this their first stop as it is so close to the Keflavík International Airport. But the Blue Lagoon is so famous that entrance is timed and if you don’t book your tour in advance, you will likely end up visiting the lagoon after sunset. It’s still enjoyable at any time of the day, but you won’t get to marvel in the rich blue color that makes it so famous.
   • Instead, I actually preferred the Secret Lagoon. The water is much much hotter and there are far less crowds. No, the water isn’t powder blue but the snowcapped landscape backdrop topped with the serenity of having fewer people around is the hot spring experience I prefer.
3. Experience the Aurora Borealis, commonly known as the Northern Lights. This last one isn’t guaranteed but if you’re fortunate enough to see it, you will be blown away by this rare experience. It took me three attempts before finally successfully seeing and photographing the Aurora Borealis. On this third attempt, I decided to join a tour group that took us an hour north of Reykjavík to Borgarnes.

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Ringing in the New Year in Reykjavík

As if seeing the Northern Lights once wasn’t enough, she made a second appearance this time above the gigantic bonfire in Reykjavík on New Year’s Eve.

Reykjavík has a unique way of ringing in the new year by lighting up neighborhood bonfires around 8pm. I went to the one near Ægissíða street. This particular bonfire was around 12-15 ft. high made of what looked like old wooden furnitures. Locals and tourists gathered around keeping warm by the fire, drinking and dancing into the night.

As it got closer to midnight, fireworks started going off all over the city. Anyone can light up their own fireworks and what’s cool about it is that it’s not synchronized. There’s so much fireworks erupting from all parts of the city starting at around 10pm until the wee hours of the morning. I watched the fireworks show from Perlan which has a panoramic view of the city from all directions. It’s one of the most beautiful fireworks show I’ve ever seen.

Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík is such a unique experience. One that I wouldn’t mind going back to over and over again.

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Christmas and New Year in Reykjavík