Grenjaðarstaður is a turf-house museum in the Aðaldalur valley, in Northeast Iceland. The old farm was the parsonage of the church that still stands next to it, and its turf and timber buildings are now run as a folk museum. The rooms are furnished with the gear of a farm household, and staff in the house explain what the objects were for. There is a handicrafts shop on the site. It is a stop for anyone who wants to see how Icelanders lived before concrete and corrugated iron.
Grenjaðarstaður Turf House
Local name: Grenjaðarstaður
The turf farm stands directly beside the church it served, and its rooms are still furnished as a household rather than emptied for display.
- Entrance
- Paid
- Accessibility
- The entrance is not wheelchair accessible.
- Transport
- Self-drive — Aðaldalur, about 30 km south of Húsavík
- Hours
- Daily 11:00–17:00 (summer)
- Address
- Aðaldalur, Staðarbraut, 641 Húsavík
What makes it special
A row of grass-roofed gables stands in the field, with the parish church alongside. Grenjaðarstaður is not an empty shell. The connected rooms are furnished as a working household, down to the tools and kitchen gear people used, and the effect is of a farm left in order rather than cleared for display.
Someone is on hand in the house to answer questions and to talk through the history of the building and the objects in it. Guide books in the rooms fill in the rest. The building itself repays attention: turf, stone and timber assembled with real ingenuity, given how little material there was to work with.
There is a handicrafts shop on the site, with knitted work among the goods. Children take to the place, because it is a run of low rooms you walk through rather than a hall of cases you stand in front of.
Good to know
- The inside is the visit. The rooms are furnished as a household, and someone in the house explains what each one was for.
- Come while it is open. Turn up after closing and you get the turf gables from outside, nothing more.
- Guide books. Printed guides in the rooms cover the house and the objects in it.
- Handicrafts on site. The shop sells knitted and hand-made work.
- Not a food stop. Tea and cakes have been served here, but do not plan a meal around it. A table outside at the back suits your own snack.
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Frequently asked questions
What is there to see inside the turf house?
Connected rooms furnished as a farm household, with the tools and gear people used day to day. Guide books in the house cover the rooms, and staff answer questions.Is Grenjaðarstaður worth a stop with children?
Yes. The house is a run of low connected rooms you walk through, and children take to exploring it. The museum is set up for family visits.Can you visit outside opening hours?
The rooms are open only when the museum is. Outside those hours you can still see the turf houses and the church from the outside, and there is a table at the back to sit at.Is there a shop on site?
Yes. A handicrafts shop at the museum sells knitted and hand-made goods.