In late May I will be spending two days in Reykjavik, Iceland. I wish I had more time but this was the best I could manage on this trip.
Any “must see” things I should do? Or, really, any ideas at all? I’m willing to rent a car if needed to see something outside of the city if that seems worth it.
Restaurant recommendations are great too.
Thanks in advance!
Definitely rent a car and see the sights especially the geysers and waterfalls. Reykjavik is a nice city but it’s hard to fill more than a day there. There’s a great seafood place out by the wharfs but I don’t recall the name*. There is a punk rock museum that is literally a hole in the ground, and of course, the Penis Museum.
*It’s called Kopar.
I don’t remember that there’s a lot to do in Reykjavik, besides walking around and eating expensive food, tbh. Although, the Kvika footbath near the Grotta lighthouse is cute. I’d rent a car and do a quick tour of the Golden Circle. It’s an easy drive and there are amazing sights to see within 45 min (even less) of the town.
Kerid Crater is about an hour away, on the way to Fridheimar, which is a cool place - it’s a huge greenhouse where they grow tomatoes. They make all manner of tomato items, from cocktails to desserts, that they serve in their cafe. It’s a neat stop.
The Secret Lagoon is a geothermal pool (like Blue Lagoon but natural) with an actual tiny geyser next to it.
Nauthólsvík Geothermal Beach is quite near Reykjavik.
If you’d rather do a decent hike, Reykjadalur is a hot stream that runs down from a mountain. Hike ~1 hour up the mountain past hotpots and steamy cracks in the earth to the stream where you can change and bathe in progressively hotter pools.
Geysir Hot Springs is ~100 min drive from Reykjavik - super amazing watching the Strokkur geyser erupt. Geysir is pretty much dormant now.
Honestly, just driving along Rt 1 you can see so much…sheep, random waterfalls, etc. I’m sure you can’t tell that we absolutely loved our trip there… 
There was a fairly recent thread:
And older threads:
Yep, Golden Circle for sure. I’m heading back in late June for 10 days to drive the ring road and I have the GC planned for our last full day.
Fyi, the Blue Lagoon has been opening and closing with every new eruption. The locals in the Iceland group on Reddit think it’s nuts and politically motivated to keep the BL open in spite of the obvious risks.
Seconding previous suggestions. There are some amazing sights all within a short drive from Reykjavik. If you get a chance to see the eruption (from a safe place), do it.
Thingvellr is also worth a bus trip. It was the site of the world’s first parliament, and thus holds a position in Iceland’s historical imagination akin to Independence Hall in ours. It’s also geologically stunning, being a rift valley between the European and North American continental plates; you can literally walk beside the edge of America.
The Penis Museum is actually less interesting than it sounds, being mostly a collection of different animals’ penes preserved in formaldehyde. The collector who assembled it wanted a penis from every creature that lived on the island. Including the naked plains ape; the last room has two samples donated, we’re assured, by willing volunteers (eek). The most fascinating aspect of the museum is its testament to the pervasiveness of modern Icelanders belief in trolls; one of the exhibits is straightforwardly presented as a troll’s phallus. It’s the only one that actually looks like a penis, IMO, since it also includes testicles and pubic hair.
Day 1 - Do the Golden Circle. Well worth it. It will take a full day. At the very least see Þinvellir National Park, Gulfoss falls, and Geysir, which are all stops on the circle.
Day 2 - After breakfast, take a morning hike across the Reykjadalur Valley and take a dip in the Hot Spring Thermal River. It is about a one hour hike each way, also well worth it. There are changing stations at the river and nothing else, it’s completely natural. It’s about an hour’s drive from Reykjavik. After dinner, Spend the evening with the locals in the public pools, hot and cold tubs, and saunas at Laugardalslaug.
The best thing about the penis museum is the gift shop, which is in the front of the museum and free to enter! Good for some amusing souvenirs 
True. We had a short 3 day visit. Iceland is beautiful.
Also a snack bar and grill. To my abiding shame, I didn’t check out the menu. Hot dogs, I assume.
The waffles they serve in the cafe at the Penis Museum are the best I’ve ever had.
There are one day bus tours that cover Tingvellir and geysers.
One warning though…I’ve been there three times. The weather can be really, really unpredictable, and tours have a way of getting cancelled at very close to the last minute, depending on where you’re going. In spite of your best laid plans, you could find yourself wandering around the city looking for something to do.
We did just that, and ended up eating at a place called Hlollabatar, which we thought was going to be a crappy fast-food place based on what it looked like, but turned out have some of the best sandwiches. We’re going back in September and will definitely be going back there for another sandwich.
I’m following this with interest because I’m planning on taking IcelandAir to Glasgow in August and decided to take advantage of the layover option on the way there. My sister and niece had gone to Iceland last year, and she recommended the three day layover and the Golden Circle tour.She also mentioned the Loki Cafe near “the huge church” (which she said you couldn’t help but see).
I don’t drive, so any sightseeing will have to be by bus or public transit. I also need to check out decent but inexpensive hotels.
That would be Hallgrimskirkja and yes it’s a great way to orient yourself around the city
I did a two-night stopover in Reyjavik this past September. As I really only had one full day, and I was at the tail end of a two-week trip (and was battling horrible bronchitis), I didn’t do anything outside of the city. If I had to pick one don’t miss attraction within the city, it’s the Perlan Museum. It’s a gorgeous, huge natural history museum that’ll fill a couple of hours. It’s a beautiful building inside and out, with a viewing platform at the top level from which you can see the entire city as well. It’s not a long walk from the city centre, and the buses can get you there easily.
If you go to the Loki Cafe, be sure to try the rye bread ice cream. It’s much better than it sounds.
Second the Perlan Museum, especially the glacier exhibit, which is basically a small iceberg, which has been tunneled out to allow you to see and feel the interior of a glacier. You need a warm coat, because the exhibit is below freezing.
The bus we took there dropped us on a road from which the museum was not visible. There was a tiny dirt path winding up the hill from the bus stop, with no sign. We asked someone if that was the way to the museum, and sure enough it was. But it did not look at all like the kind of path you’d take to a museum.
My sister mentioned “meal-fermented shark” and “Black Death shot” as things I should try at Loki’s.
Fermented shark smells like bad fish jerky soaked in week old urine. Would not recommend.
Personally, I think the whole thing was created as a joke on the foreigners by the Icelanders.