Unique Icelandic Museums to Visit

Iceland has more than 260 museums for a country of under 400,000 people, and a striking number of them are worth a foreign visitor’s time. But you didn’t plan a trip here to wander around inside museums, so let me use this post to explain that this isn’t a list of generic local-history stops; it’s a guide to the truly uniquely Icelandic ones: witchcraft, sea monsters, Arctic foxes, herring, a chess champion, and yes, one dedicated entirely to a certain part of the anatomy. You won’t want to visit all of them, even just the number of ones that I’ve detailed here, never mind all 260+, but you’ll want to figure out the ones that hit your interests. Here’s our guide to uniquely Icelandic museums…

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We’ll work through them in five groups: unique Iceland experiences that don’t fit anywhere else, history, animals, people, and culture. And I did really have to make up some of those groupings, as some of them should just, for me, go under a grouping of “weird”.  Anyways.  You’ll find addresses, prices, hours, and how to actually get to each one, so you can build a rainy-day list or even a whole trip around them.

Unique Iceland Experiences

A couple of stops that don’t fit neatly into my nice segments of history, animals, people, or culture, because they’re built entirely around a natural phenomenon instead. And this being Iceland, that makes a lot of sense.

Aurora Reykjavik – The Northern Lights Center

Aurora Reykjavik is Iceland’s only museum built entirely around the northern lights, using a 30-minute Icelandic-made film alongside interactive displays on the science and mythology behind the aurora. It’s a properly useful stop if your trip falls outside prime viewing season, since it delivers the spectacle regardless of cloud cover or solar activity.

You can check and buy tickets here before you go, and it pairs easily with a day exploring the Grandi harbor district.

• Address of Aurora Reykjavik: Fiskislóð 53, 101 Reykjavík.
• Entry to Aurora Reykjavik: US$32 per adult, US$29 student, US$16 child.  You can check prices and buy tickets here.
• Opening Hours of Aurora Reykjavik: daily, 10:00-19:00.
• How Long to Spend at Aurora Reykjavik: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of Aurora Reykjavik: aurorareykjavik.is
• How to Get to Aurora Reykjavik: in the Grandi harbor district, a short walk or drive from downtown Reykjavik.

Perlan

Perlan is less a single museum than an entire nature center under one glass dome.  This is like visiting Iceland in its entirety, minus the weather issues.  You’ll find a real man-made ice cave, a planetarium show putting the northern lights overhead regardless of weather, a volcano exhibit, and a whale exhibition with 23 life-size species suspended over your head.

Book Perlan’s Wonders of Iceland tickets here if you want the fullest single-stop introduction to Iceland’s natural world the capital has to offer.

• Address of Perlan: Öskjuhlíð, 105 Reykjavík.
• Entry to Perlan: tickets from US$58 per person. Skip the lines and buy your ticket for Perlan here.
• Opening Hours of Perlan: daily, 09:00-21:00, last admission 19:30.
• How Long to Spend at Perlan: 2 hours.
• Website of Perlan: perlan.is
• How to Get to Perlan: on Öskjuhlíð hill, a short drive or bus ride from downtown Reykjavik.

Unique History Related Museums of Iceland

In this section I’ve got seven stops covering everything from the country’s full national story to a single lucrative decade of herring.

The National Museum of Iceland

The National Museum covers the whole of Icelandic history under one roof, from Settlement-era artifacts through Viking-age silver hoards to the fight for independence, and it’s the single best stop for anyone who wants the full national story rather than a regional slice of it.

The permanent exhibition, Making of a Nation, runs chronologically, so you can walk straight through thirteen centuries in one visit. Get a ticket to the National Museum of Iceland here before you go.

• Address of the National Museum of Iceland: Suðurgata 41, 101 Reykjavík.
• Entry to the National Museum of Iceland: 3,300 ISK per adult, 1,600 ISK for students and seniors.  Skip the lines and buy your ticket for the National Museum here.
• Opening Hours of the National Museum of Iceland: daily, 10:00-17:00.
• How Long to Spend at the National Museum of Iceland: 1-1.5 hours.
• Website of the National Museum of Iceland: thjodminjasafn.is
• How to Get to the National Museum of Iceland: near the University of Iceland campus, a short walk from downtown Reykjavik.

The Saga Museum

The Saga Museum brings Iceland’s medieval sagas to life through lifelike silicone figures in full period dress, walking you through key scenes, Viking landings, blood feuds, and everyday settlement life, rather than just displaying artifacts behind glass. It’s one of the few places in the country where the sagas feel physically staged rather than just read about. Book Saga Museum tickets here if the stories matter more to you than the objects.

• Address of the Saga Museum: Grandagarður 2, 101 Reykjavík.
• Entry to the Saga Museum: 4,000 ISK per adult. Skip the lines and buy your ticket for the Saga Museum here.
• Opening Hours of the Saga Museum: daily, 10:00-17:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Saga Museum: 1-1.5 hours.
• Website of the Saga Museum: sagamuseum.is
• How to Get to the Saga Museum: in the Grandi harbor district, a short walk from downtown Reykjavik.

The Settlement Exhibition

The Settlement Exhibition sits directly on top of an actual Viking-age longhouse, excavated in place beneath downtown Reykjavik and left exactly where it was found, one of the very few settlement-era ruins you can view in situ anywhere in the city. Interactive displays reconstruct daily life around the longhouse, right down to what the surrounding landscape looked like in 871 AD.

• Address of the Settlement Exhibition: Aðalstræti 16, 101 Reykjavík.
• Entry to the Settlement Exhibition: 2,900 ISK per adult.
• Opening Hours of the Settlement Exhibition: daily, 10:00-17:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Settlement Exhibition: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Settlement Exhibition: borgarsogusafn.is
• How to Get to the Settlement Exhibition: right in downtown Reykjavik, on Aðalstræti.

My guide to Reykjavik covers what else to see in the city.

The Westfjords Heritage Museum

This museum in Ísafjörður focuses on the Westfjords’ maritime history, its fishermen, their boats, and the hardships they faced at sea. Over 15 traditional oak boats have been restored as part of the collection, alongside a surprisingly extensive accordion collection, several once owned by notable Icelandic musicians.

• Address of the Westfjords Heritage Museum: Neðstikaupstaður, Ísafjörður, in the oldest cluster of buildings in the country.
• Entry to the Westfjords Heritage Museum: 1,750 ISK adults, 1,300 ISK seniors and students.
• Opening Hours of the Westfjords Heritage Museum: daily 10:00-17:00, May 15-August 31; shorter hours September 1-15; winter by appointment.
• How Long to Spend at the Westfjords Heritage Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Westfjords Heritage Museum: nedsti.is
• How to Get to the Westfjords Heritage Museum: in Neðstikaupstaður, right by the old harbor in Ísafjörður.

The Herring Era Museum

The five separate buildings in Siglufjörður on the glorious Tröllaskagi Peninsula are my favorite museum in Iceland.  It’s a fascinating visit, and between them they cover the country’s herring boom through the 1940s and 50s, a recreated fishing dock, an original processing factory, and the actual living quarters of the “herring girls” who worked here, bunks and their dresses hanging above included.

One ticket also gets you into two smaller museums in town: Þjóðlagasetur, the Folk Music Center, and the Saga Fotografica photography museum, both included at no extra cost. Book Herring Era Museum tickets here if you’re planning a stop.

• Address of the Herring Era Museum: Siglufjörður town center.
• Entry to the Herring Era Museum: 2,400 ISK adults, 1,300 ISK seniors. Skip the lines and buy your ticket for the Herring Era Museum here
• Opening Hours of the Herring Era Museum: June-August 10:00-17:00; May and September 13:00-17:00; October-April by appointment.
• How Long to Spend at the Herring Era Museum: 1.5-2 hours, longer if you visit the two included museums too.
• Website of the Herring Era Museum: http://www.sild.is/en/ .
• How to Get to the Herring Era Museum: in Siglufjörður town center; do not park in the Fire Service lot.

The Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum

Glaumbær is a well-preserved cluster of turf houses showing how Icelanders actually lived for centuries: low doorways, dark interiors, and a real sense of how much the elements shaped daily life before modern building materials arrived.

It’s one of the best-preserved turf farms in the country, and a rare chance to walk through rooms rather than just view them from behind a rope.

• Address of Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: just off Route 75, near Varmahlíð.
• Entry to Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: 2,200 ISK.
• Opening Hours of Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: daily, 10:00-18:00.
• How Long to Spend at Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: glaumbaer.is
• How to Get to Glaumbær Turf Farm & Museum: just off Route 75, near Varmahlíð.

Hope and Peace Museum

Co-located with a campsite and 40’s-style café with amazing cakes, and housed at Hlaðir in Hvalfjarðarsveit, this museum covers Iceland’s role as a strategic World War Two Allied base, one of the least-known chapters of the country’s history for most people, alongside a broader look at the human cost of war and the case for peace that followed it.

A second, smaller wartime museum, the Icelandic Wartime Museum in Reyðarfjörður, East Iceland, covers the same period from the East Fjords’ side of the occupation, and is worth a stop if you’re already in that region.

• Address of the Hope and Peace Museum: Hlaðir, Hvalfjarðarsveit, 301 Akranes.
• Entry to the Hope and Peace Museum:   2,600 ISK per adult.
• Opening Hours of the Hope and Peace Museum: June 1-August 26, Wednesday-Friday 13:00-17:00, Saturday-Sunday 10:00-17:00, closed Monday and Tuesday.
• How Long to Spend at the Hope and Peace Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Hope and Peace Museum: warandpeace.is
• How to Get to the Hope and Peace Museum: in Hvalfjarðarsveit, off Route 47 north of Reykjavik.

Animal-Related Museums in Iceland

In this section, I’ve got seven stops for you built around the animals that shape Icelandic life, that have been wild, farmed, and continue to make their home in Iceland.  You’ll also find my guide to Icelandic wildlife useful, as this touches on where to see these animals in the wild.

Arctic Fox Center

This center is located in the village of Súðavík. It focuses on the conservation and research of Iceland’s only native land mammal, the Arctic fox.

You’ll be able to learn about the fox’s biology, behavior, and adaptation to the harsh Arctic environment, and it pairs naturally with a Hornstrandir visit if foxes are a priority for your trip.

• Address of the Arctic Fox Center: Eyrardalur, Súðavík.
• Entry to the Arctic Fox Center: 1,500 ISK per adult.
• Opening Hours of the Arctic Fox Center: June, July, and August, daily 09:00-18:00; shorter hours in the shoulder months of May, September, and October.  Buy tickets and a bus transfer from IÍsafjörður
• How Long to Spend at the Arctic Fox Center: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Arctic Fox Center: melrakki.is
• How to Get to the Arctic Fox Center: about 20 minutes’ drive from Ísafjörður, in the village of Súðavík itself.

The Icelandic Horse History Center

When we first set off on our travels in 2014, our second country was Mongolia.  And we had an amazing time tracking down the Przewalski Horses – the only true wild horses in the world.  We found them in the deepest Hustai National Park.  And so it was a no-brainer for this never-quite-grown-up horsey girl that we should come here.  The Icelandic Horse History Center is based at Hólar í Hjaltadal.  This was once an Icelandic bishopric and is now home to an agricultural university.  The center covers the Icelandic horse breed’s history in proper depth, its thousand-year isolation, the tölt gait, and its role in the country’s farming past. It’s worth pairing with a nearby horse farm if the breed is a priority for this leg of your trip.  And you’ll be as mesmerized as I was by the horse’s gaits, which you can see in this video.

If Icelandic Horses areon your itinerary, then you should read my guide to the Icelandic Horse.

• Address of the Icelandic Horse History Center: Hólar, Hjaltadalur valley, a short detour off Route 76.
• Entry to the Icelandic Horse History Center: 1,500 ISK adults, 1,300 ISK groups/students/seniors, free under 18, includes an excellent audio guide.
• Opening Hours of the Icelandic Horse History Center: June 1-August 31, 11:00-17:00, closed Mondays; closed September-May.
• How Long to Spend at the Icelandic Horse History Center: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Icelandic Horse History Center: https://www.sogusetur.is/ .
• How to Get to the Icelandic Horse History Center: at Hólar, a short detour off Route 76.

The Icelandic Seal Center

Based in Hvammstangi, this center focuses on Iceland’s seal populations and where to responsibly spot them nearby, covering both harbor and grey seals, the two species found around the coast. It’s a quick, worthwhile stop rather than a half-day outing if seals are anywhere near a priority for your trip. Prebook tickets here before you arrive.

I’ve covered the seal center and other top places to visit in North Iceland in my guide here.

• Address of the Icelandic Seal Center: in the town of Hvammstangi.
• Entry to the Icelandic Seal Center: US$16 per person. Skip the lines and buy your ticket for the Icelandic Seal Center here
• Opening Hours of the Icelandic Seal Center: check current seasonal hours on the official site.
• How Long to Spend at the Icelandic Seal Center: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Icelandic Seal Center: selasetur.is
• How to Get to the Icelandic Seal Center: in the town of Hvammstangi, North Iceland.

The East Iceland Heritage Museum

Based in Egilsstaðir, this permanent exhibition covers reindeer life and survival in the east, the only place in Iceland with a wild reindeer population, alongside the natural and human threats they face, hunting history, and how reindeer products get used in food and craft. Archive photographs and a 1940s film round out the collection.  Reindeer are a key feature of East Iceland, read my guide to the region to see what else you shouldn’t miss here.

• Address of the East Iceland Heritage Museum: Laufskógar 1, 700 Egilsstaðir.
• Entry to the East Iceland Heritage Museum: 1,500 ISK for adults, free under 17.
• Opening Hours of the East Iceland Heritage Museum: September 1-May 31, Tuesday-Friday 11:00-16:00; June 1-August 31, Monday-Friday 10:00-17:00, Saturday 11:00-17:00.
• How Long to Spend at the East Iceland Heritage Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the East Iceland Heritage Museum: https://www.minjasafn.is/
• How to Get to the East Iceland Heritage Museum: Laufskógar 1, in Egilsstaðir.

Húsavík Whale Museum

Right by the harbor in Húsavík, even if you’re not planning on a whale watching tour, this is a fascinating little museum that packs a huge amount in.  Grab your ticket here to find a full blue whale skeleton and go seriously deep on whale biology, the history of Icelandic whaling, and current conservation efforts.

If you can’t make it north, Whales of Iceland in Reykjavik covers similar ground with life-size models instead of skeletons. Read more in our whale watching guide before you book anything.

• Address of the Húsavík Whale Museum: by the harbor in Húsavík.
• Entry to the Húsavík Whale Museum: Adults 2,650 ISK.  You can get your ticket ahead of time here.
• Opening Hours of the Húsavík Whale Museum:  May to September 09:00 – 18:00, October to April 10:00 – 16:00
• How Long to Spend at the Húsavík Whale Museum: 60 + minutes.
• Website of the Húsavík Whale Museum: https://hvalasafn.is/en/
• How to Get to the Húsavík Whale Museum: on the harbor front in Húsavík, there’s free parking just outside.

The Icelandic Sheep Farming Museum

Sauðfjársetur á Ströndum, in the Westfjords, tells the story of Icelandic sheep farming through exhibits and hands-on activities, an industry that quite literally sustained the country through centuries of isolation. The setting alone is worth the detour, right on Steingrímsfjörður, with homemade cakes and coffee available on site.

• Address of the Sheep Farming Museum: Sævangur, Steingrímsfjörður, 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) south of Hólmavík on Route 68.
• Entry to the Sheep Farming Museum: check current pricing on the official site.
• Opening Hours of the Sheep Farming Museum: June 1-August 31, daily 10:00-18:00; by appointment in winter.
• How Long to Spend at the Sheep Farming Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Sheep Farming Museum: https://saudfjarsetur.is/about/
• How to Get to the Sheep Farming Museum: on Route 68, 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) south of Hólmavík.

The Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center

Opened in 2025 after three years of research, this center honors the Icelandic Sheepdog, one of the country’s most underrated cultural exports, through stories, images, and an exhibition unlike anything else in Iceland dedicated to the breed.

If you’re lucky, you’ll meet the center’s own dogs, Sómi, Hraundís, and Fönn, in person. Read more on the official site before you visit.

• Address of the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: Lýtingsstaðir, 561 Varmahlíð.
• Entry to the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: 1,000 ISK general admission, free under 12, or 1,500 ISK combined with the neighboring Old Stable turf building.
• Opening Hours of the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: May 1-September 30, daily 09:00-18:00; by appointment outside summer.
• How Long to Spend at the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: 30-45 minutes.
• Website of the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: fjarhundur.is
• How to Get to the Icelandic Sheepdog Heritage Center: at Lýtingsstaðir, near Varmahlíð.

People Related Icelandic Museums

I’ve picked three particularly interesting (and famous people) whose stories reach well beyond the country’s borders.  I’ll start with the oldest.

Eiríksstaðir

Eiríksstaðir recreates the 10th-century longhouse of Erik the Red, father of Leif Erikson, the first European to reach North America, and it’s the only museum in the country built specifically around a storytelling evening in a Viking-age home. And we learned that Viking (men at least) slept sitting up. Whether its because they didn’t make the beds long enough or they felt that they needed to be able to fight off intruders more easily, who knows, but hey, you know, the things you learn when traveling.

Costumed guides run half-hourly tours explaining daily life inside the reconstructed turf longhouse.  Tours run on demand and are amusing, interesting, and you can ask the tour guides anything you like.  The stories of Eirik are fascinating and will have you reaching for books on the history of Iceland!

It’s also worth taking a walk up the hillside so that you can see the longhouse that they build just for the purpose of burning it down to see how long people could survive inside a longhouse. And then you can continue further up and see the stone remains of Eirik’s original longhouse.

• Address of Eiríksstaðir: Haukadalur, 371 Búðardalur, West Iceland.
• Entry to Eiríksstaðir: 2,900 ISK adults, 2,500 ISK students and seniors, free under 12.
• Opening Hours of Eiríksstaðir: March 15-October 31, daily 10:00-17:00.
• How Long to Spend at Eiríksstaðir: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of Eiríksstaðir: eiriksstadir.is
• How to Get to Eiríksstaðir: in Haukadalur, West Iceland, a signposted detour off Route 60.

The Jón Sigurðsson Museum

Hrafnseyri, in the Westfjords, is the birthplace of Jón Sigurðsson, the figure most credited with leading Iceland’s push for independence from Denmark, and this museum tells his story alongside reconstructed turf buildings on the original farm site. It’s a truly important stop for understanding modern Icelandic identity, not just a local curiosity.

• Address of the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: Hrafnseyri, Arnarfjörður, Westfjords.
• Entry to the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: free.
• Opening Hours of the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: June 1-September 8, daily 11:00-18:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: 30-45 minutes.
• Website of the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: hrafnseyri.is
• How to Get to the Jón Sigurðsson Museum: at Hrafnseyri, off Route 60 in Arnarfjörður.

The Bobby Fischer Center

I know.  I know.  You’re reading that heading and wondering just how Icelandic Bobby Fischer was.  Well, yeah, he wasn’t.  But his history, story, and connection to Iceland is fascinating.  And Selfoss is where American chess legend Bobby Fischer spent his final years and is buried near the center. (his grave is well worth a visit for the quirkiness of it). 

Anyways, this small center covers his extraordinary 1972 World Chess Championship win in Reykjavik, one of the most famous chess matches in history, alongside his unusual life story and the local community that took him in.  If you want a sense of what happened, then Pawn Sacrifice with Tobey Maguire is a good watch.

• Address of The Bobby Fischer Center: Austurvegur 21, 800 Selfoss.
• Entry to The Bobby Fischer Center: 1,700 ISK.
• Opening Hours of The Bobby Fischer Center: May 24-October 12, daily 13:00-17:00; by appointment in winter.
• How Long to Spend at The Bobby Fischer Center: 30-45 minutes.
• Website of The Bobby Fischer Center: fischersetur.is
• How to Get to The Bobby Fischer Center: Austurvegur 21, in Selfoss town center.

Culturally Related Icelandic Museums

These next five stops cover the stranger, funnier, and occasionally more uncomfortable corners of Icelandic culture.  And obviously the museums that I couldn’t really categorize elsewhere.

The Iceland Punk Museum

Where else would you find a punk museum than a former underground public toilet, eh?  Well yes, it’s here on Bankastræti, in downtown Reykjavik. 

And the Icelandic Punk Museum walks you through the country’s punk history, from the pre-punk years through the genre’s 1980s heyday, complete with listening stations and memorabilia packed into an actually tiny space. The setting is half the joke and entirely the point.

• Address of the Punk Museum: Bankastræti, in a former underground public toilet, downtown Reykjavik.
• Entry to the Punk Museum: 2,000 ISK.
• Opening Hours of the Punk Museum: daily, 10:00-18:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Punk Museum: 30-45 minutes.
• How to Get to the Punk Museum: on Bankastræti, right in downtown Reykjavik.

The Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft

Hólmavík is the site for this museum, which covers Iceland’s witchcraft, folklore, and magic history through rune staves, manuscripts, and recreated artifacts tied to the country’s “dark arts” tradition. The on-site café, Kaffi Galdur, is a good place to unwind afterward with traditional Icelandic dishes made from local ingredients.  

• Address of the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: Höfðagata 8-10, 510 Hólmavík.
• Entry to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: 1,000 ISK adults, 850 ISK students, 700 ISK seniors and people with disabilities, free for children.
• Opening Hours of the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: summer (May 15-September 30), daily 09:00-18:00; winter (October 1-May 14), Monday-Friday 12:00-18:00, Saturday-Sunday 13:00-18:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: galdrasyning.is
• How to Get to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft: in Hólmavík, right on the main road through town.

The Icelandic Sea Monster Museum

In Bíldudalur, dimly lit rooms walk you through the sea monsters said to have terrorized farmers and fishermen along this coast for centuries. The museum overlooks Arnarfjörður, believed in folklore to be home to more sea monsters than anywhere else in Iceland. For more things to see in the West Fjords, check out my guide here.

• Address of the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: Strandgata 7, Bíldudalur.
• Entry to the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: 1,250 ISK for adults, free for children aged 0-10.
• Opening Hours of the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: May 15-September 15, daily 10:00-18:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: 45-60 minutes.
• Website of the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: skrimsli.is
• How to Get to the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum: in the village of Bíldudalur, on the harbor front.

The Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum

This small, family-run museum on Snaefellsnes’s northern coast is dedicated entirely to hákarl, Iceland’s fermented shark, how it’s made, why it’s made that way, and a chance to taste it yourself if you’re brave enough. There’s truly nothing else out here, just the museum, the family farm, and the historic curing sheds where the shark hangs for months before it’s ready. Read more in our Snaefellsnes guide before you plan your route.

The tasting is the main reason most people come here – find out more about tasting hákarl and other Icelandic specialties in my guide to Icelandic food here.

• Address of the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum: signposted just off Route 54, Snaefellsnes Peninsula’s north side.
• Entry to the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum: 2,200 ISK per person, including tasting.
• Opening Hours of the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum: check current seasonal hours before you go.
• How Long to Spend at the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum: 30-45 minutes, including the tasting.
• How to Get to the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum: signposted just off Route 54 on the peninsula’s north side.

Icelandic Phallological Museum

Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like: the world’s only museum dedicated entirely to the penis, with specimens from nearly every mammal species found in Iceland, whales included, alongside a lighthearted collection of phallic folk art and memorabilia. It’s one of the most talked-about stops in Reykjavik, more educational and less crude than the name suggests. You can prebook your tickets here.

• Address of the Icelandic Phallological Museum: Reykjastræti 4, 101 Reykjavík.
• Entry to the Icelandic Phallological Museum: 3,500 ISK per person.  Get your skip the line tickets here.
• Opening Hours of the Icelandic Phallological Museum: daily, 10:00-19:00.
• How Long to Spend at the Icelandic Phallological Museum: 30-45 minutes.
• Website of the Icelandic Phallological Museum: phallus.is
• How to Get to the Icelandic Phallological Museum: right in downtown Reykjavik, near Hafnartorg.

Map of Icelandic Museums

Here’s our map of every museum in this guide, spread right across the country; you can also see the map here.

FAQs on Icelandic Museums

Here are quick answers to the questions we hear most about Iceland’s museums.

What’s the weirdest museum in Iceland?

The Icelandic Phallological Museum is Iceland’s weirdest, without much competition, though the Icelandic Sea Monster Museum makes a strong case too.

Is the Saga Museum worth visiting?

Yes, if the stories behind Iceland’s history interest you more than artifacts alone. The lifelike figures make the sagas feel as though they’re happening and real rather than just displayed.

Are Iceland’s museums good for kids?

Many are, especially the more interactive ones like Perlan and Aurora Reykjavik. Smaller, artifact-heavy museums tend to suit older kids and adults better.

How much do museum tickets cost in Iceland?

Museums in Iceland are anywhere from free (the Jón Sigurðsson Museum) to around 3,500 ISK for the bigger Reykjavik museums. Most of the smaller regional museums sit in the 1,000-2,500 ISK range.

What museum is best for understanding Icelandic history?

The National Museum of Iceland, for the full national story in one place. For a specific chapter, the Settlement Exhibition or the Herring Era Museum both go deeper on a single era.

Is Perlan worth the entry fee?

Yes, given how much it packs in- a real ice cave, a planetarium show, and a whale exhibition all under one roof, it’s actually good value next to visiting each separately.  Check the price here and decide for yourself.

Are there museums specifically about Icelandic wildlife?

Yes, the Arctic Fox Center, the Icelandic Seal Center, the East Iceland Heritage Museum’s reindeer exhibition, and the Húsavík Whale Museum all focus on a single species each.

What’s a good museum for a rainy day in Reykjavik?

Perlan, the National Museum, or the Saga Museum all work well; all three are indoor, substantial, and close enough together to combine if the whole day turns wet.

Final Words on Icelandic Museums

Iceland has a huge number of museums for the number of people here, and to be fair, it didn’t take much to figure out which were the truly unique ones, hence this post.  Iceland’s museums punch well above their weight for a country this size, and the truly unique ones on this list are worth building time around rather than treating as an afterthought. Whether you’re chasing history, animals, a specific person’s story, or the stranger corners of Icelandic culture, there’s a proper museum for it, and often a much better rainy-day option than waiting out the weather in a hotel room.

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