If you don’t have much time, you don’t even have to leave the city. Not only does Reykjavík offer a variety of great museums, restaurants, cafés, and shops, it also has spectacular views of the mountains surrounding the city, right from the city center. If you’re staying in the city and want to get the most out of your time, invest in the City Card. It’s available for 24, 48, or 72 hours and gives you access to all the city’s museums for free, as well as a discount on the admittance fee to exhibitions around town. It also gives you access to the thermal pools of Reykjavík, the Reykjavík Family Park and Zoo in Laugardalur, and allows you to use the Icelandic Bus (Strætó) within the Capital Region.
Once you have the city pass all the doors are open. You could take the shuttle down-town and from there into a bus. You could drive a circle around the city for example route 6 and it would take about an hour to go all the way to Grafarvogur. From there you can get a great view over the city and especially over Skarfabakki (where your vessel is likely taking port). During the summer time, there is a small island outside of Reykjavík called Viðey. Viðey was inhabited from soon after the settlement of Iceland around 900 AD. In 1225 a monastery was founded on the island by Þorvaldur Gissurarson, with the assistance of scholar/chieftain Snorri Sturluson. The first monastery in the southern quarter, it soon grew wealthy. At its zenith it was the second richest monastery in Iceland, owning up to 116 estates. In 1539 the monastery came to a dramatic end when it was raided by Danish soldiers when the Reformation was imposed on the Icelandic church. For the next two centuries, Viðey belonged to the royal estate of Bessastaðir. A home for paupers was located on the island. So it might be worth your while.
You can find out more and buy the city pass here.
And again if you look at our blog about swimming pools you can get to them with your city pass and try out our hot tubs and warm pool. The possibilities are endless.
If you decide to go this way you should look at more of our blogs.
Here are few you should take a look at:
