Egilsstadir (Egilsstaðir) is a good base for exploring East Iceland. A beautiful canyon, fjords, waterfalls, plenty of hiking trails and an unusual, fairly new geothermal pool make it well worth spending some time here.
A base for exploring East Iceland
Egilsstaðir is the largest town in East Iceland and the region’s capital. By European standards, however, it is tiny: in 2018, its population was only 2,464. Located on the banks of the Lagarfljót River in the wide Fljótsdalshérað valley, it is the main hub for services, transportation and administration in East Iceland. It is also a popular base for travelers exploring this part of the island. Here you will find a well-stocked supermarket, souvenir shops, hotels, a visitor information center, restaurants and a health clinic.
The town also has an interesting Heritage Museum with replicas of the houses Icelanders lived in centuries ago, and a small airport used mainly for domestic flights. In summer, locals and visitors can swim in the Eyvindará River. Keep in mind, though, that despite the relatively warm temperatures (summers in Egilsstaðir are warmer than in Reykjavik), the river water is still chilly.
Egilsstaðir hosts an annual electronic music festival, Hringrás, the Ormsteiti town festival and a jazz festival. If that’s your kind of music, consider timing your trip to Iceland to catch one of them.
What to see near Egilsstaðir
East Iceland is a beautiful and often underrated region. Its best-known sights are certainly Hengifoss waterfall (and neighboring Litlanesfoss), the beautiful fjords (especially Reyðarfjörður and Mjóifjörður) and Lake Lagarfljót, which, according to legend, is home to a local monster (how could it not be 😉 ).
Near Egilsstadir, on the eastern shore of Lake Lagarfljót, you’ll also find something quite unexpected on this “lunar” island: a real forest, Hallormsstaðaskógur. More than eighty tree species from all over the world grow here. It is also one of the few forests with such an impressive growth rate – as recently as 1910, it was just a small grove. Crisscrossed with hiking and biking trails and home to unique bird species, it also draws wildlife enthusiasts.
Mjóifjörður, a fjord east of town and south of the much better-known, more industrialized and more populous Seyðisfjörður, is also beautiful. As you drive into Mjóifjörður, you’ll see the beautiful nine-tiered Klifbrekkufossar waterfall. It’s one of the taller waterfalls in Iceland (its total height is about 90 m / 300 ft). Combined with its distinctive stepped structure and beautiful surroundings, it creates a breathtaking landscape. You can view the falls from Route 953 or from the viewpoint below. In winter, however, the road here is quite often closed.
Vök Baths – geothermal pools in a lake
Vök Baths (Vok Baths) is a geothermal spa on the edge of Lake Urriðavatn, about 5 km (3 mi) north of Egilsstadir. It is the largest spa in East Iceland and a relatively new one – it opened on July 1, 2019. Although the water in the pools is geothermally heated, it isn’t rich in minerals such as sulfur and silica, so the spa doesn’t have the distinctive smell that hangs over many other Icelandic pools.
What makes the pools unique, though – hard as it is to describe – is that they sit right in the lake… It’s a truly remarkable design and certainly worth seeing.
Vök Baths – aerial view
Practical information:
- The baths are open 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. from June 15 to September 15 and noon to 10:00 p.m. the rest of the year (September 16 to June 14). You can stay in the pools until 15 minutes before closing.
- Tickets cost 7,690 ISK (about $65) for adults, 5,290 ISK (about $45) for students and seniors (67+) and 3,590 ISK (about $30) for children aged 6 to 15. Children under six get in free. Your ticket includes tea made from local herbs at the tea bar (Vök Baths price list, September 2026).
- A package with a towel costs 8,690 ISK (about $70), and one with a towel and a drink costs 9,890 ISK (about $80).
- In addition to the warm pools, there’s a steam bath, a cold plunge pool, swimming in the lake itself, a bar (in one of the pools), a tea bar where tea is brewed from Icelandic herbs and spring water, and the Vök Bistro restaurant – open daily from noon to 9:00 p.m. from June 5 to September 30, and Friday to Sunday the rest of the year.
- The facility also has indoor changing rooms with private showers and a reception desk where you can rent a swimsuit or a towel (1,390 ISK, about $12 each) and a bathrobe (1,990 ISK, about $17).
Hiking trails near Egilsstadir
The local hiking association (Ferðafélag Fljótsdalshéraðs) has marked and described as many as 28 hiking routes to the most beautiful spots around town. The trails range from easy to difficult and from 20 minutes to as long as 6 hours, so there’s something for everyone. You’ll find a link to the brochure with trail maps below.
Hiking trails around Egilsstadir
source: Ferðafélag Fljótsdalshéraðs
As I mentioned earlier, the most famous sights in the area are the Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss waterfalls.
Among the area’s most interesting hidden gems, I would include the following trails:
- Fardagafoss (#4 on the map)
an easy, short trail (1.5 hours) that you can start in Egilsstadir itself or from the parking area on Route 93 up to the Fjarðarheiði pass; behind the waterfall there’s a cave you can walk into and see the falls from behind; - Strútsfoss (#14)
a fairly easy trail, about a 2-hour walk, to the waterfall at the head of the valley; - Hafrahvammagljufur Canyon (#25)
an easy trail, about a half-hour walk, but you need to drive to the parking area on mountain road F910 or walk a bit farther from the dam on paved Route 910; - Hvannargil Canyon (#26)
a longer (4 hours) but easy trail in the interior; a small access track to the trailhead starts about 4.5 km (2.8 mi) south of the junction of roads F905 and F901, between the small lakes on the Hvanna River.
Download the full brochure (PDF in Icelandic and English, 12.1 MB – a large file, best over Wi-Fi)
One more place deserves a mention, although it isn’t marked on the map above or in the brochure: Studlagil (Stuðlagil) canyon. It’s a beautiful, if small, canyon that requires turning off Route 1 onto Route 923 and a hike of about 4 hours. I describe the canyon’s beauty and how to get there in the article Studlagil Canyon – Iceland’s Hidden Treasure.
How to get to Egilsstaðir
Egilsstadir lies right on Route 1, on the shore of Lake Lagarfljót in East Iceland. It’s about 190 km (120 mi) north of Hofn and 250 km (155 mi) east of Akureyri.
