Stykkishólmur is a town of about 1,300 people on the north coast of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, in West Iceland. It grew around a natural harbour that has held a trading post since the mid-16th century, and it still lives on fishing and tourism. Wooden houses from the 19th century stand in the centre, among them the Norwegian house of 1828, now the local museum. The car ferry Baldur crosses Breiðafjörður from here to the Westfjords, calling at the island of Flatey.
Stykkishólmur
- Currency
- Icelandic króna (ISK)
- Language
- Icelandic; nearly all speak English
- Power plug
- Europlug and Schuko sockets, 230 V
- Visa
- Schengen; outside the EU
- Time zone
- UTC±00:00 (Atlantic/Reykjavik)
- Tap water
- Safe; hot water smells of sulphur
- Tipping
- Not customary
- Emergency
- 112
Things to do
All tours in Stykkishólmur on GetYourGuide
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When to go
Shoulder
Apr – May
April opens the driest stretch of the year on this coast, and the days are already long. The town is quiet before the summer season starts.
High season
Jun – Aug
Summers here are cool rather than warm, and this is when the town is busiest. The Danskir dagar festival takes over the second or third weekend of August.
Shoulder
Sep – Oct
Autumn brings the start of the wettest season. Visitor numbers fall away once the summer traffic across the peninsula stops.
Low season
Nov – Mar
The wettest and darkest months, with daylight short at this latitude. Winters are milder than in continental cities much further south, because the sea moderates the temperature.
How long to stay
A day covers the town itself. The harbour, the museum in the Norwegian house and the restored former library sit within a few streets of each other, and the centre is walkable end to end. Stay a night if you want the ferry out to Flatey or a trip to Helgafell, the mountain just outside town. Two nights make sense if Stykkishólmur is the base for driving the wider Snæfellsnes peninsula.
Getting around
The town is small and covered on foot. Getting there is the harder part, because Stykkishólmur is not on the ring road. From Reykjavík or the south, take Route 54 out of Borgarnes and then cross the peninsula on Route 56; the drive takes about two hours in all. From North Iceland the approach is Route 59 over Laxárdalsheiði, with Akureyri roughly four hours away. Scheduled buses run at least once a day from the BSÍ terminal in Reykjavík. The car ferry Baldur, operated by Sæferðir (Seatours), links the town with Brjánslækur on the south coast of the Westfjords and stops at Flatey on the way.
What to see
Destinations in Stykkishólmur
Frequently asked questions
What is the Norwegian house?
A large timber house built in 1828 by Árni Thorlacius as his home and business premises. It has been renovated and holds the local museum.Can you reach Flatey from Stykkishólmur?
Yes. The car ferry Baldur calls at Flatey on the crossing of Breiðafjörður between Stykkishólmur and Brjánslækur in the Westfjords.What is Danskir dagar?
The town festival, held every year since 1994 on the second or third weekend in August. It marks the historic links between Stykkishólmur and Denmark.Has Stykkishólmur been used as a film location?
It stood in for Nuuk, Greenland, in the 2013 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.What is Helgafell?
A mountain near the town and the burial place of Guðrún Ósvífursdóttir, a heroine of the Icelandic sagas.