Iceland · MUSEUMS
This is the shortlist to send a friend: 15 museums tours worth the day, each with its price, its traveller verdict and the one thing to know before you commit.
Perlan Museum in Reykjavik brings Iceland to life with an indoor ice cave, volcano show, 8K aurora planetarium, and skyline views.
“We had a lovely 5 hours here, staff were so helpful and nice. The exhibitions were interactive at interesting!! Every day is a school day!!”
Reykjavik hop-on hop-off bus plus Perlan museum entry. Get 24-hour city freedom, then ice cave walks, volcano shows, and 360 views.
“Amazing experience celebrating our spend hours in the museum The food in the restaurant was gorgeous and so fun when it rotated The ice cave was amazing and so were the northern lights My 4 year old was completely in awe And I found it fascinating and beautiful”
Life-size whale models in Reykjavik, interactive exhibits, and award-winning documentaries in the Fin Whale Theatre. Audio guide included.
“Amazing whale sculptures to look at! Very informative video narrated by Sir David Attenborough. Would highly recommend!!”
Skip the line at Reykjavík’s National Museum of Iceland, see Viking artifacts and a Thor relic, and follow Iceland’s story with a 10-language audio guide.
“Lovely museum! Great for the history buffs or for a rainy day. Might not be best for small children.”
Aurora Reykjavík in Reykjavik turns the northern lights into a 1-hour show with a 7-meter 4K film, 360 VR, and photo tips for $33.
“Good introduction to Northern Lights but it is a fairly small museum, good location in the centre of town”
Reykjavik's Phallological Museum ticket gets you the world largest collection of phalluses plus time at the Phallus Café and Bistro.
Sail whale watching from Reykjavík’s Old Harbor, then tour the Whales of Iceland exhibition with VR and audio, 3.5 hours, $123.
“Absolutely brilliant. Daniel was an amazing guide. Managed to see a humpback pretty early on however he wasn’t playing ball and was difficult to catch a good glimpse so we carried on and saw 2 more!!! One was very close to the boat and got amazing pictures and vids. Free travel sickness tables offered before leaving and on board. Refreshments sold on board. Also the guide takes pictures and uploads them which you can access for free. Would 10000% recommend and it is something I can now tick off my bucket list.”
Saga Museum in Reykjavik brings Icelandic sagas to life with an audio guide, Viking dress-up, and lifelike scenes in about an hour.
“Great origin/making of story of the museum. Fantastic staff especially the guy in the gift shop. Interesting exhibit with 30-minute guided audio tour. Outstanding figures with crazy realistic eyes. Worth it and not too busy in the middle of a beautiful October Monday.”
Skip-the-line mobile ticket to Iceland’s National Museum in Reykjavik, with an easy self-guided visit plus free access to Safnahus.
“Interesting place and facts to learn about iceland Friendly staff Worth a visit, good value for money”
Self-guided audio tour at Hellisheiði Geothermal Exhibition outside Reykjavík, with Carbfix room, interactive exhibits, and great audio.
“Self-guided audio tour. Interactive and bery informative. Can definitely recommend this tour. Both for adults and teens interesting. Children need add some guidance to understand the complexity.”
Lava Centre Iceland in the south mixes interactive volcano exhibits, live earthquake screens, eruption cinema, and an observation deck.
Walk through life-like Viking scenes in Reykjavik with a 35-minute audio tour, 20 exhibits, and a Viking outfit area for $33.
“Realistic scenes from the Icelandic past! I liked it very much! later in you can get dressed as a viking and have fun!”
Reykjavik’s Settlement and Egils Saga Exhibition is a 1-hour self-guided audio tour with admission, bringing Viking origins and saga scenes to life.
“There are two parts to the tour, with an upstairs and downstairs. There’s a very helpful person at the beginning to give you your headphones and an iPod mini that has the tour in many languages. The upper floor with a history of Iceland was interesting but a little difficult to follow. The tour below with the saga was much more dramatic and entertaining. This is a nice stop if you were visiting the country for the first time.”
Sail out from Reykjavik to look for whales in the Atlantic, then warm up at Whales of Iceland with life-size models and interactive learning.
“Great that we saw humpback whales and dophins and minke whales. Nice refreshments on board. Weather made it, we were lucky with the sunny day. Would recommend, just stay out on deck so you don't feel seasick!”
Golden Circle waterfalls and geysers, plus Perlan’s 100 m ice cave and northern lights planetarium, from Reykjavik for $124.
“Great day out (although tiring, unless you’re fit) Tour guide Sonny was awesome, so informative about not only the trip but about Iceland in general! Eugene the driver was very considerate and a generally nice guy. Long day but the sights and information were enough for us! The national park was great with some fabulous views (one couple opted to stay there and not get back on the bus!). Geysir was a fabulous spectacle although trying to get a great picture/ video when it went off was tricky. The waterfall was amazing, truly a sight to see with some fantastic views. Finished at the Perlan museum which was great, we…”
Every kind of day out, and the best of each.
