Northern Europe · Europe

Iceland

Discover Iceland - a volcanic island where geysers erupt, glaciers calve into lagoons, the Northern Lights dance overhead, and the medieval sagas are still part of daily life.

Where Is Iceland?

Iceland is a country in Northern Europe. Its capital is Reykjavik.

Where Iceland isNorthern Europe · Capital Reykjavik

Plan a trip · 2 guides

Capital Reykjavik
Population 392K
Area 103,000 km²

Iceland is what happens when you put a volcanic hotspot directly on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and then let Vikings settle it. The result is a country where the ground literally steams, new islands occasionally pop up from the sea, and the landscape looks like it was designed for a science fiction film. Glaciers cover 11% of the surface, active volcanoes regularly shut down European airspace, and the geothermal energy is so abundant that Reykjavik heats almost every building with hot water piped from underground.

The population is roughly 390,000 - about the size of a small city - and yet Iceland punches absurdly above its weight. It has the world's oldest parliament (the Althingi, founded in 930 AD), the highest per-capita book publishing rate on Earth, and a literary tradition stretching back to the medieval sagas. Icelanders still read these sagas, still use patronymic surnames (there are no family names), and can largely understand Old Norse written 800 years ago. The country has no army, virtually no crime, and a deeply embedded culture of geothermal pools where social life happens in hot water. In summer the sun barely sets. In winter the Northern Lights take over.

At a glance

Language

Icelandic

Currency

Icelandic Krona (ISK)

Calling Code

+354

Drives On

Right

Internet

.is

Timezone

GMT (UTC+0)

Script

Latin

Government

Parliamentary Republic

Independence

1944

Travel guides

Plan a trip to Iceland

Gullfoss in winter, the river pouring over snow-covered black rock under a pale sky

Iceland · 5 days

5 Days in Reykjavík

A small capital with a lot of volcano under it. City, geysers, waterfalls and hot water, with the prices written down.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

Akureyri along the shore of Eyjafjörður, with snow-streaked mountains behind the town and lupines in the foreground

Iceland · 3 days

3 Days in Akureyri

Iceland's northern capital, with Mývatn and the whales a drive away. Three days, with winter honestly accounted for.

Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →

By population

Largest cities in Iceland

Reykjavik

World's northernmost capital, a colorful city of street art, geothermal pools, live music, and the iconic Hallgrimskirkja church

140,000

Kopavogur

Largest suburb of Reykjavik and second most populated place in Iceland

38,000

Akureyri

Capital of the North, a charming town near the Arctic Circle with its own microclimate and botanical garden

19,000

Husavik

Whale watching capital of Europe, a tiny harbor town on Skjalfandi Bay in northern Iceland

2,400

Vik

Southernmost village, gateway to Reynisfjara black sand beach and the Dyrholaey rock arch

750

People

Famous people from Iceland

Bjork
Music
Avant-garde singer, songwriter, and actress who became one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century
Leif Erikson
Other
Norse explorer believed to be the first European to reach North America, around 500 years before Columbus
Halldor Laxness
Literature
Won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955 for his vivid epic novels about Icelandic life
Vigdis Finnbogadottir
Politics
Became the world's first democratically elected female president in 1980, serving four terms
Sigur Ros
Music
Post-rock band whose ethereal sound became synonymous with Iceland's dramatic landscapes worldwide
Eidur Gudjohnsen
Sport
Iceland's most successful footballer, played for Barcelona and Chelsea in the Premier League and Champions League
Snorri Sturluson
Literature
13th-century historian who wrote the Prose Edda and Heimskringla, preserving Norse mythology for posterity

Food

Traditional cuisine of Iceland

Plokkfiskur: Mashed fish stew with potatoes and onions, a humble but beloved comfort dish and Icelandic household staple
Lamb Soup (Kjotsupa): Hearty soup made with Icelandic free-range lamb, root vegetables, and herbs - the ultimate winter warmer
Skyr: Thick cultured dairy product similar to yogurt that has been made in Iceland for over 1,000 years, now exported worldwide
Hakarl: Fermented shark - Iceland's most notorious dish, hung to cure for months and eaten as a dare or a tradition
Hardfiskur: Wind-dried fish jerky, a traditional high-protein snack eaten with butter since the Viking age
Hot Dog (Pylsur): Icelandic hot dogs made with a blend of lamb, pork, and beef, topped with raw and crispy onions, ketchup, and remoulade
Rye Bread (Rugbraud): Dense dark bread traditionally baked underground using geothermal heat, naturally sweet and earthy
Kleina: Twisted fried dough pastry flavored with cardamom, a beloved Icelandic snack served with coffee

Nature

Nature and landmarks in Iceland

VatnajokullNational Park: Europe's largest glacier covering 8,100 square kilometers, with ice caves, outlet glaciers, and the Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon
GullfossRiver: The Golden Falls - a massive two-tiered waterfall on the Hvita River, one of Iceland's most iconic natural sights
GeysirLandmark: The original geyser that gave all geysers their name, located in the Haukadalur geothermal area
Thingvellir National ParkNational Park: UNESCO World Heritage site where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates visibly drift apart, and the Althingi was founded in 930
ReynisfjaraCoast: Dramatic black sand beach with basalt columns and sea stacks, consistently rated among the world's most beautiful non-tropical beaches
LandmannalaugarMountain: Highland area of colorful rhyolite mountains, natural hot springs, and lava fields in the interior
DettifossRiver: Europe's most powerful waterfall by volume, a thundering curtain of water in northeast Iceland
SnaefellsjokullMountain: Glacier-capped volcano at the tip of the Snaefellsnes peninsula, the entrance to the center of the Earth in Jules Verne's novel

Sport

Sports in Iceland

Football: Reached the Euro 2016 quarterfinals and 2018 World Cup, the smallest nation ever to qualify for a World Cup
Handball: Won Olympic silver at Beijing 2008, an extraordinary achievement for a nation of 390,000
Glima: Iceland's traditional wrestling style dating back to the Viking age, still practiced as a cultural sport
Strongman: Produced multiple World's Strongest Man winners including Hafþor Bjornsson (The Mountain from Game of Thrones)
CrossFit: Annie Thorisdottir became the first woman to win the CrossFit Games twice, inspiring a national fitness culture

Facts

Did you know?

Iceland's Althingi, founded in 930 AD, is the oldest continuously running parliament in the world
There are no surnames in Iceland - people use patronymics (son of / daughter of), and the phone book is sorted by first name
Iceland publishes more books per capita than any other country, and one in ten Icelanders will publish a book in their lifetime
The country runs almost entirely on renewable energy - 100% of electricity comes from geothermal and hydroelectric power
Iceland was long one of the very few habitable places on Earth without mosquitoes, which were first recorded there in October 2025
Vigdis Finnbogadottir became the world's first democratically elected female head of state in 1980
Iceland has no standing army, navy, or air force and has been military-free since independence
The Icelandic language has barely changed in 800 years - modern Icelanders can still read the medieval sagas