Reykjavik City Private Tour

About this experience

This Private City Tour takes you around Reykjavik and the capital area of Iceland. We will visit Reykjavík's most popular places.

What's included

Itinerary

1. Tour stop

   Laugardalshöll is a multi-purpose sport and exhibition venue found in the Laugardalur area of Reykjavík capital. The arena consists of two main venues, a sports hall and an indoor arena for track and field athletics competitions. Laugardalshöll arena is also where Bobby Fisher and Boris Spassky played a chess match in 1972.

2. Tour stop

   Found along Reykjavik’s spectacular waterfront is a charming whitewashed house known as Hofdi House. In 1986, a major world-historical event took place when the presidents of Russia and the US, Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan, met to end the Cold War. At Hofdi House, they effectively attempted to take the initial moves towards global disarmament.

3. Tour stop

   Harpa is one of Reykjavík’s most remarkable landmarks and a heart of cultural and social life in the very heart of the city. Harpa is a tourist destination and an award-winning work of art that millions of people have visited since opening in 2011. Harpa is home to the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Icelandic Opera, and Reykjavík Big Band, which hold regular concerts throughout the year. Múlinn Jazz club also resides in Harpa and the Classical Sundays Series, both offering shows regularly. Various music festivities have been held in Harpa since the house began in 2011, and world-famous music bands, soloists, dance groups, and theatre companies have performed here. In addition, Harpa yearly offers Upptaktinn, the children’s music awards, and the musical mouse.

4. Tour stop

   Hallgrímskirkja is a Lutheran church, found on top of the Skólavörðuhæð hill in the center of Reykjavík. At 74.5 meters (245 feet) tall, it is the tallest church in Iceland, and its tower gives a spectacular panoramic scene over the city. The church was designed by one of Iceland's most celebrated architects, Guðjón Samúelsson, who is said to have sought inspiration for his expressionistic design from elements of the Icelandic landscape. The church took 41 years to develop, with building starting in 1945 and finishing in 1986. Outside the church stands one of the most important statues of one of Iceland's most legendary Viking, Leifur Eiríksson, by American sculptor Alexander Stirling Calder; Eiríksson was a Norse adventurer from Iceland who discovered the continent of North America in the year 1000, more than half a century before Christopher Columbus. The tower can be reached via a lift.

5. Tour stop

   Perlan ('The Pearl') is a museum and rotating glass roof that stands on top of Öskjuhlíð Hill in Reykjavík; circled by the Öskjuhlíð park, it is one of Reykjavik's most unique landmarks. The site was built on six water tanks that stored 24 million liters of Reykjavík's hot water. Architect Ingimundur Sveinsson originally designed the construction in 1991; the hot water storage tanks that had stood on top of Öskjuhlíð since the mid-20th-century were modernized when the hemispherical glass dome was added on top. The project was primarily curated by the respected politician Davíð Oddsson during his time as mayor of Reykjavík. At night, the water tanks are ignited by floodlights that illuminate the building for all of the city to see. On top of the dome signals the airplanes flying to and from the nearby Reykjavík Domestic Airport.

6. Tour stop

   Bessastaðir is the legal residence of the President of Iceland. It is also an important historic place that has played a leading role in the country's history. The property of Bessastaðir has a history that goes from the Age of Settlement. A significant number of visitors come to Bessastaðir each year, either by invitation or as tourists. Bessastaðir was first established in 1000. It became one of Snorri Sturluson's farms in the 13th century. After Snorri's assassination in September 1241, Bessastaðir was claimed by the King of Norway.

Know before you go

• Specialized infant seats are available
• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels