Our top 3 attractions in Borgarfjörður, West Iceland

West Iceland is beautiful. What’s more, it’s a little less crowded than the South coast and Golden circle. Driving the whole area of Borgarfjörður is a perfect day tour from Reykjavík or a fun detour from the ring road. We had a tough time picking our favorite stops. There are simply so many interesting and quirky places to see.

West Iceland has many hidden gems. The first pick from the Blue staff is one of them:

Deildartunguhver geyser

Deildartunguhver geyser is the highest flowing hot spring in Europe. It’s so powerful, it could fill an Olympic-size swimming pool with almost 100 °c hot water in a couple of hours. It’s the main source of central heating in the whole area of Borgarfjörður and even down to Akranes. The land owners have started building geothermal baths in the area. That means that soon you´ll be able to relax in the geothermally heated water. While you’re there, don’t forget to stop at Kleppjárnsreykir self-serve store only 5 minutes away. There you can buy fresh strawberries and other goodies grown in greenhouses in the area.

Húsafell

We admit it. Putting Húsafell as one stop is cheating! Sure, there’s the main resort with an awesome hotel that has an even more awesome restaurant. It also has a swimming pool and magnificent scenery. But the area offers a whole lot more. First, you have the pretty Hraunfossar and Barnafoss waterfalls. In the Hallmundarhraun lava field you´ll find crazy caves. And finally, if you’re feeling adventurous, you should consider going on an ice cave tour in Langjökull glacier. It's not far from Húsafell. It’s a man-made cave and the tour is quite a unique experience.

The Settlement Center in Borgarnes

Many people have heard about the old Icelandic Sagas but don’t necessarily know much about them. At the Settlement Center in Borgarnes, two shows have been set up. They’re the fun type, where you get an MP3 player and headphones before going in. So, the center is definitely not a stuffy museum. At the first show, you’re led through different rooms and told about the settlement of Iceland. The second show tells you about one of the more famous persons from the saga’s: Egill Skallagrímsson. The shows are a hands-on experience. That means you get to press buttons and try different things so it’s great for kids, too. To top it off, the center has an excellent restaurant, café and a gift shop with some neat items.

So that’s it! Like we said, it’s tough to choose. There are plenty more options, and don’t even get us started on the epic Snæfellsnes peninsula. That’s a whole different world of adventure and it deserves its own blog post.