North Iceland’s Hidden Gems: A 7-Day Summer Road Trip from Akureyri to Myvatn.

North Iceland in summer is a different world from the Golden Circle postcards most travelers carry in their heads. The roads here are quieter, the landscapes more raw, and the light – that legendary Arctic summer light that never quite disappears – gives everything a cinematic glow from Akureyri’s colorful harbor town all the way east to the volcanic shores of Mývatn. This seven-day road trip threads through whale-watching fjords, remote fishing villages perched at the edge of mountains, Europe’s most powerful waterfall, and a lake that looks like it was dropped here from another planet. It’s designed to be driven at a pace that lets you actually feel each place rather than just photograph it.

Day 1: Arriving in Akureyri – Iceland’s Capital of the North

Most travelers fly into Akureyri Airport on a domestic flight from Reykjavík Keflavík, a journey of about 45 minutes. Akureyri sits at the head of Eyjafjörður, Iceland’s longest fjord, and even if you’ve only heard it described as a “small city,” arriving here reframes that description quickly. The population hovers around 20,000, which by Icelandic standards makes it a genuine metropolis.

Morning: Collect your rental car – this is non-negotiable for this itinerary. A compact 4WD is ideal since several roads ahead are unpaved. Reserve your vehicle in advance during summer; availability is tight from June through August.

Afternoon: Walk the main shopping street, Hafnarstræti, and climb up to Akureyrarkirkja, the striking Lutheran church designed by Guðjón Samúelsson. The view from its steps over the rooftops and fjord is worth the climb. The Akureyri Botanical Garden, just below the church, is one of the northernmost botanical gardens in the world and genuinely lovely in summer – entry is free.

Evening: Have dinner at one of Akureyri’s riverside restaurants. The fish soup here is reliably good across most establishments. Stay in the town center to walk back to your accommodation easily. Budget travelers will find guesthouses and hostels in the range of $60-$100 per night; mid-range hotels run $130-$200.

Day 2: Eyjafjörður and the Whale Watching Coast

Eyjafjörður is one of the best places in Iceland to join a whale watching tour, and Dalvík – about 35 kilometers north of Akureyri on Route 82 – is the quieter, less-crowded departure point compared to Húsavík. The drive takes roughly 30 minutes along the western shore of the fjord, with views across the water to small farms dotted on the opposite hillsides.

Morning: Catch an early whale watching departure from Dalvík. Humpback whales are common here throughout summer; blue whales are sighted occasionally. Tours typically run three to four hours and cost around $80-$100 per person. The operators here tend to run smaller boats with fewer passengers than the larger Húsavík operations, which suits travelers who prefer a quieter experience.

Afternoon: Drive back through Akureyri and take the short detour to Saurbær Church on the eastern shore – a tiny turf-roof structure that looks as though it grew out of the hillside. Continue south briefly to Grund, a farm estate with one of Iceland’s most photographed farmhouse churches. This isn’t on most itineraries, which is precisely why it’s worth the 20 minutes.

Evening: Return to Akureyri for the night. This is your last evening in town, so use it to stock up on snacks and picnic supplies at Nettó supermarket – prices outside Akureyri rise significantly at smaller fuel stations and tourist shops.

Day 3: Siglufjörður and the Remote Tröllaskagi Peninsula

Today is the most dramatically scenic driving day of the entire trip. Head north from Akureyri on Route 82, then cut northwest through the Tröllaskagi (Troll Peninsula) toward Siglufjörður. The road passes through two single-lane tunnels carved directly through mountain ridges – Héðinsfjarðargöng and Strákagöng – and emerges each time into a completely different fjord landscape. Total drive time to Siglufjörður is about 1.5 hours from Akureyri.

Morning: Arrive in Siglufjörður, a former herring boom town tucked into the northernmost fjord in Iceland. At its peak in the 1940s and 1950s, this tiny fjord housed over 10,000 seasonal workers. Today the population is around 1,200. The Herring Era Museum – a three-building complex on the old harbor – is one of Iceland’s most engaging regional museums and far more interesting than it sounds. Allow two hours. Entry costs around $18.

Afternoon: Drive south and east along Route 76, stopping at Hofsós, a village on the eastern side of the peninsula with an infinity pool overlooking the fjord that is genuinely one of the most beautiful swimming facilities in the country. Entry to the pool is around $10. From Hofsós, continue east toward Varmahlíð to join Route 1 (the Ring Road) eastbound.

Evening: Reach Varmahlíð or push further east toward Blönduós for the night. Accommodation here is limited – a small guesthouse or farm stay will typically run $80-$130. Book ahead. This is a deliberately low-key evening; the next two days are intense.

Day 4: Húsavík and the Midnight Sun Coast

From Blönduós, drive east on the Ring Road and then north on Route 85 toward Húsavík. The total journey takes about two hours and deposits you in what is widely considered Iceland’s whale watching capital. But Húsavík deserves time beyond the harbor.

Morning: Walk the harbor front and spend an hour at the Húsavík Whale Museum, which has impressive suspended whale skeletons and serious scientific exhibits about the marine mammals found in Skjálfandi Bay. Entry runs approximately $20. If you skipped whale watching in Dalvík, this is your second chance – tours here are polished and reliable, departing multiple times daily throughout summer.

Afternoon: Drive 30 minutes northeast to Tjörnes Peninsula, a quiet headland with fossil-rich cliffs along the coast where ancient marine shells are embedded in the rock face at eye level. There are no facilities, no entrance fees, and almost no other tourists. It’s exactly the kind of place that rewards travelers who look slightly off the main route.

Return to Húsavík and drive south briefly on Route 87 toward Mývatn, but before committing to the lake region, turn off toward Ásbyrgi for the night. Accommodation near Ásbyrgi is sparse – a campsite and a small guesthouse exist at the canyon entrance. Budget around $100-$140 for a room or $20-$30 for a campsite pitch.

Evening: With the midnight sun making real darkness impossible in summer, walk to the rim of Ásbyrgi for a first glimpse. The canyon looks completely unreal at 11pm in golden light – reserve judgment on it until morning.

Day 5: Ásbyrgi Canyon and the Jökulsárgljúfur Wilderness

Ásbyrgi is a horseshoe-shaped canyon roughly three kilometers long and one kilometer wide, with 100-meter cliff walls enclosing a flat, forested floor. Norse mythology attributed it to Odin’s eight-legged horse Sleipnir; geologists attribute it to catastrophic glacial flooding thousands of years ago. Both explanations feel appropriately dramatic.

Morning: Start early. Walk the canyon floor through the birch woodland to Botnstjörn, a small pond at the canyon’s closed end that reflects the cliff walls with mirror-like clarity on calm days. The walk takes about an hour at a gentle pace. Then climb up to the eastern rim for the elevated view – a different perspective entirely, looking down at the forest canopy below.

Afternoon: Drive south on Route F862 (a rough gravel road – your 4WD earns its money here) along the Jökulsárgljúfur canyon system, part of Vatnajökull National Park. Stop at Hljóðaklettar (Echo Rocks), a strange formation of basalt columns twisted into honeycomb and spiral patterns by ancient lava flows. The acoustics here are unusual – clapping your hands produces a reverberating echo that bounces between the columnar walls.

Continue to Vesturdalur, where a network of short hiking trails connects more basalt formations, a river bend, and a viewpoint over the canyon. It’s one of the most geologically concentrated places in Iceland and takes about two to three hours to do properly.

Evening: Drive back north briefly, then cut east and south toward Dettifoss. Plan to arrive at the falls for late evening, when the light is low and golden and most day-trippers have left. Camp at the Dettifoss parking area or return to Ásbyrgi for the night.

Day 6: Dettifoss and the Road to Mývatn

Dettifoss is Europe’s most powerful waterfall by volume, carrying meltwater from the Vatnajökull glacier through the canyon at a rate that you feel as much as you see. The ground vibrates. The spray reaches you 50 meters before the falls come into view. No photograph has ever done it justice.

Morning: Access Dettifoss from the eastern (Route 862) or western (Route F862) bank – the eastern side is paved and offers a direct cliff-edge view; the western side is rougher but puts you closer to the falls themselves. Allow an hour minimum, longer if you walk 2.5 kilometers upstream to Selfoss, a broader and shallower waterfall that most visitors skip because they’re still recovering from Dettifoss.

From Dettifoss, continue south on Route 862 to join Route 1, then head west briefly before turning south on Route 87 toward Mývatn. The drive takes about an hour.

Afternoon: Arrive at Lake Mývatn. Check into accommodation – options here range from guesthouses around $120-$160 per night to the upscale Hótel Laugar. For the best positioning, stay on the eastern or northern shore of the lake. Book months in advance; Mývatn accommodation fills quickly in summer.

Your first Mývatn stop should be Skútustaðagígar, the pseudocrater field on the southern shore. These formations look like volcanic craters but were created when lava flowed over wet ground, trapping steam that exploded upward. A 30-minute loop trail connects them at lake level.

Evening: Soak in the Mývatn Nature Baths, a geothermal pool on the northeast side of the lake. Unlike the Blue Lagoon, it isn’t overcrowded, and the silica-blue water is no less striking. Entry runs around $45 per person. The baths are open until 10pm, and visiting in the late evening, with the lake glowing in the low sun, is the right call.

Day 7: Mývatn’s Volcanic Wonderland – A Full Immersion Day

Mývatn deserves a full unhurried day. The lake and its immediate surroundings contain more diverse volcanic features in a compact area than almost anywhere else on earth. Today is about depth, not distance.

Morning: Begin at Dimmuborgir – a lava field of eroded towers, arches, and tunnels formed roughly 2,300 years ago when a lava lake drained and the surface crust collapsed and hardened into wild formations. Several marked trails of varying length wind through the structures; the “Church” formation, a cathedral-like natural arch, is the most impressive. Allow 1.5 hours.

Drive north to Hverfjall, a tephra crater rising 170 meters above the surrounding landscape. The 40-minute climb to the rim is rewarded with a view of the entire lake region – Mývatn below you, the lava fields stretching in every direction, and the caldera interior dropping away on the other side. The walk around the rim takes another 45 minutes and offers changing views throughout.

Afternoon: Head to Námaskarð geothermal area on Route 1 east of the lake. This sulfurous landscape of bubbling mud pots, steam vents, and ochre-colored ridges is one of the most visually striking places in North Iceland – and the smell confirms that you’re standing on something geologically active beneath your feet. Stay on the marked paths; the ground crust is thin in places.

A short drive further east on Route 1 leads to Krafla, a volcanic caldera with an accessible crater lake called Viti (meaning “Hell”). The crater is 320 meters wide and contains a turquoise-green lake that sits above the magma chamber responsible for Iceland’s last significant volcanic eruption in the 1980s. A 20-minute walk circles the rim.

Evening: Return to the lake shore for a final walk among the birdlife. Mývatn hosts one of the densest concentrations of nesting ducks in the world during summer – 15 species breed here regularly. The lake is also worth watching for the Arctic tern colonies that nest nearby and dive-bomb anything that gets too close. It’s a fittingly alive end to a week spent in one of Iceland’s most extraordinary corners.

Practical Notes: The drive back to Akureyri from Mývatn takes approximately 1.5 hours via Route 1 west. If your flight departs from Akureyri Airport, allow extra time – morning departures can mean a very early start from Mývatn. Alternatively, return the previous evening and spend a final night in Akureyri. Total driving distance for this itinerary is roughly 750-850 kilometers including detours. Fuel in North Iceland runs about 10-15% more expensive than in Reykjavík, so fill up in Akureyri or Húsavík when you can.

📷 Featured image by Leandra Rieger on Unsplash.