Akureyri
Akureyri is Iceland's second-largest town and the undisputed capital of North Iceland, with a population of around 20,000 people sitting at the innermost point of Eyjafjörður, Iceland's longest fjord, about 100 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle. Despite its modest size, it functions as a fully equipped city with a university, hospital, airport with domestic and international connections, a botanical garden that is one of the northernmost in the world, a ski resort on the mountain directly above the town, a geothermal spa, and a thriving restaurant and café scene. The town is perhaps best known internationally for its heart-shaped traffic lights, changed from the usual round shape during an economic downturn in 2008 as a gesture of optimism and never changed back. It serves as the natural base for exploring the Diamond Circle route, which connects Mývatn, Goðafoss, Dettifoss, Ásbyrgi, and Húsavík.
Iceland's Capital of the North, Where Heart-Shaped Traffic Lights, the World's Northernmost Botanical Garden, and the Diamond Circle All Meet
Akureyri was first settled around 890 AD by Helgi the Lean, one of Iceland's earliest Norse settlers, and the town sits at the end of Eyjafjörður, the longest fjord in Iceland at around 60 kilometres. It received its town charter in 1786 and grew significantly through the 19th and 20th centuries on the back of fishing, trade, and agriculture. Today it is the economic, cultural, and administrative hub of North Iceland, home to the University of Akureyri, the regional hospital, a national theatre, and the Hof Cultural Centre which hosts concerts, conferences, and exhibitions throughout the year. The Akureyri Art Museum and Folk Museum are both within easy walking distance of the compact town centre. The Akureyrarkirkja church, designed by Guðjón Samúelsson and completed in 1940, dominates the town from a hilltop above the main street and is reached by 102 steps from the pedestrian shopping street below.
The heart-shaped traffic lights of Akureyri have become one of the town's most photographed features. Introduced in 2008 during the Icelandic financial crisis as a community gesture of warmth and resilience, the heart shape replaced the standard circular red light throughout the town centre. The decision was so well received that it was never reversed. The Botanical Garden, established in 1912, sits just south of the town centre and is one of the northernmost botanical gardens in the world, successfully cultivating thousands of plant species from Iceland and around the world in a microclimate created by the sheltered fjord position. The ski resort at Hlíðarfjall, 10 kilometres from the town centre, is Iceland's largest and most developed, operating from December to May with slopes of up to 1,100 metres elevation.
Akureyri is the primary base for the Diamond Circle, the North Iceland scenic route connecting Goðafoss waterfall 50 kilometres east, Lake Mývatn 100 kilometres east, Dettifoss 140 kilometres east, Ásbyrgi Canyon 160 kilometres east, and Húsavík 75 kilometres northeast. The town is served by Akureyri Airport with domestic flights from Reykjavík taking 45 minutes, and international connections to select European cities in summer. From Reykjavík by car the drive takes five hours via the Ring Road. The GeoSea geothermal sea baths, the Forest Lagoon near Vaðlaskógur forest, and whale watching tours on Eyjafjörður all operate from or near the town. Akureyri is the Whale Watching Capital of North Iceland in its own right, with reliable humpback whale sightings in the fjord from May to October.
