If
you have a little more time, want to get away from civilization or are heading into the interior, towards Askja, instead of the city, it is worth staying overnight at the Laugarfell Hostel almost at the end of the tarmac of road 910.
Egilsstadir (Egilsstaðir) is a good base for exploring East Iceland. A beautiful canyon, fjords, waterfalls, plenty of hiking trails and an unusual, and very new, swimming pool make it really worth spending some time here.
Base for exploring East Iceland
Egilsstaðir is the largest city in eastern Iceland and the capital of the region. By European standards, however, it is tiny. In 2018, its population was only 2464. Located on the banks of the Lagarfljót River in the wide Fljótsdalshérað valley, it is the main center of services, transportation and administration in eastern Iceland. It is also a popular tourist base for people visiting this part of the island. Here you will find a well-equipped supermarket, souvenir stores, hotels, an information center, restaurants and a health center.
The town also has an interesting Heritage Museum with replicas of houses in which Icelanders lived centuries ago, and a small airport, used primarily for domestic flights. In the summer, residents and tourists can swim in the Eyvindará River. Keep in mind, however, that despite the relatively high temperatures (summers in Egilsstaðir are warmer than in Reykjavik), the water in the river is still cool.
Egilsstaðir is home to an annual electronic music festival, Hringrás, the Orsteiti city festival and a jazz festival. If you’re a fan of such rhythms, consider visiting Iceland right then.
If
you have a little more time, want to get away from civilization or are heading into the interior, towards Askja, instead of the city, it is worth staying overnight at the Laugarfell Hostel almost at the end of the tarmac of road 910.
What to see near Egilsstaðir
Eastern Iceland is a beautiful and often underrated region. The best-known places are certainly the waterfall Hengifoss (and neighboring Litlanesfoss), the beautiful fjords (including Reyðarfjörður and Mjóifjörður in particular) and Lake Lagarfjlót, where, according to legends, a local monster lives (how else 😉 ).
Near Egilsstadir, on the eastern shore of Lake Lagarfjlót, there is also a place quite unexpected on this “lunar” island: the truest Hallormsstaðaskógur forest. The forest is home to more than eighty different species of trees from all over the world. It is also one of the few forests with such an impressive growth rate. Back in 1910, it was a small grove of trees. Full of hiking and biking trails and unique bird species, it is also a destination for wildlife enthusiasts.
Mjóifjörður Fjord, which lies east of the city and south of the much more famous, industrialized and populated Seyðisfjörður, is also beautiful. As you drive into Mjóifjörður, you can see the beautiful nine-cascade Klifbrekkufossar waterfall. This is one of the higher waterfalls in Iceland (its total height is about 90 meters). Combined with its characteristic stepped structure and beautiful surroundings, it creates a breathtaking landscape. You can observe the waterfalls from the 953 road or from the viewpoint below. In winter, however, the road leading here is quite often closed.
Vök Baths – a geothermal bath in the middle of the lake
Vok Pools (Vök Baths) is a geothermal bath located on the edge of Lake Urriðavatn, about 5 km north of Egilsstadir. It is the largest spa in eastern Iceland and one of the newest – it opened on July 1, 2019. Although the waters in the pools are geothermally heated, they are not filled with minerals such as sulfur and silica. So the spa doesn’t have the distinctive smell that hovers over many other Icelandic pools.
However, the pools are unique, primarily because, although it’s hard to describe, they have been placed directly in the lake… It’s a truly remarkable solution and certainly worth seeing.
Vok Pools – bird’s eye view
- The facility is open from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. from May 1 to August 31 and from 12:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m. for the rest of the year.
- The cost of a ticket is 5,000 ISK (about £150) for adults, 2,900 ISK (about £90) for students and senior citizens, and 1,800 ISK (about £55) for children aged six to sixteen. Children under the age of six enter for free. Your ticket includes a tisane tea at the infusion bar.
- If you pay 900 ISK more (about $30) you can enjoy a drink while in the pool, and for another 3,500 ISK more (about $100) you can enjoy dishes from the restaurant.
- In addition to the pools, the bathing area also has a sauna, a bar (in one of the pools) and a restaurant called Soups Bistro, as well as a Tea Bar, where tisane tea is made from Icelandic herbs and spring water.
- The property is also equipped with indoor changing rooms with private showers and a reception area where you can rent swimsuits and towels.
Hiking trails near Egilsstadir
The local hiking society has designated and described as many as 28 hiking routes to the most beautiful places around the city. The designated trails range in difficulty from easy to difficult and in length from 20 minutes to as much as 6 hours. So there is something for everyone. I attach the link to the brochure with maps of the trails below.
trails around Egilsstadir
source: https://ferdaf.is/
H
iking trails in Iceland are often not marked out as well and clearly as, for example, in the Polish mountains. Pole signs are sometimes very sparse, and the paths themselves are often unclear to say the least, obliterated by landslides and streams. Take a map and compass with you.
As I mentioned earlier, the most famous attraction of the area is the Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss waterfalls
Among the most interesting hidden gems of the area I would include the following trails:
- Fardagafoss (#4 on the map)
An easy and short (1.5 hr) trail that can be started from Egilsstadir itself or from the parking lot on Route 99; there is a cave behind the waterfall that you can enter and look at the waterfall from behind; - Strusfoss (#14)
a rather easy trail, at about 2 hr walk, to the crowning waterfall of the valley; - Hafrahvammagljufur Canyon (#25)
an easy trail, for about 0.5 h of walking, but requires reaching the parking lot via the F910 mountain road or a slightly longer walk from the dam on paved road 910; - Hvannargil Canyon (#26)
a longer (4 h) but easy trail inside the interior; a small access road to the starting point begins about 4.5 km south of the junction of roads F905 and F901, between the lakes on the Hvanna River;
Download the entire brochure (12.1 MB)
It is still necessary to mention here a place not marked on the above map and in the brochure – Studlagil (Stuðlagil) canyon. This is a beautiful, albeit small, canyon, requiring an exit from Route 1 to Route 923 and about a 4-hour hike. I described the beauty of the canyon and the details of how to get there in the article Studlagil Canyon – one of Iceland’s hidden treasures
How to get to Egilsstaðir
Egilsstadir lies directly on Highway 1, on the shores of Lake Lagarfjlót in East Iceland. It’s about 190 km north of Hofn and 250 km east of Akureyri.
