Iceland
East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
The quiet end of the Ring Road: deep fjords, small fishing villages and Iceland's only wild reindeer, with a fraction of the south coast's traffic.
Iceland's far east is a coast of steep, narrow fjords with a fishing village at the head of each, backed inland by the lake-and-forest valley of Lagarfljot around Egilsstadir, the region's hub. The two big natural draws are Hengifoss, a tall waterfall over red-striped cliffs, and the basalt-column canyon of Studlagil. Seydisfjordur, with its timber houses and arts scene, is the village most people remember, and the whole region sees a fraction of the south coast's crowds.
Suggested stay
3–5 days
Language
Icelandic
Currency
ISK
Timezone
UTC
Why you'll love East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
The fjord villages Seydisfjordur, Borgarfjordur eystri and Djupivogur each sit at the end of their own water, with old timber houses and working harbours
Hengifoss and Studlagil a tall waterfall over bands of red clay, and a river canyon walled in basalt columns
Wildlife puffins nesting within arm's length at Hafnarholmi, and the only wild reindeer herds in Iceland
Room to breathe long hiking trails, empty passes and villages where you may be the only visitors
Best time to visit
Jun-Aug
Cold climate · 9-11° days
65.262° N, 14.403° W
UTC · Atlantic/Reykjavik
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Weather & when to go to East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
Month by month: typical highs and lows, rainfall and rain days.
✓ Best Jun-Aug
Hiking prime Jul-Aug
Activity seasons none fair good prime
Cards tinted by calculated verdict · big number = typical daily high, small = low · hover for conditions
When to avoid East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
November to May is cold, wet, stormy and short on daylight, and snow can close the passes into the fjords, including the road over Fjardarheidi to Seydisfjordur. Many guesthouses and seasonal sights shut for winter. Clear winter nights can bring the northern lights, but most visitors come in the long days of summer.
Top things to do in East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
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Hengifoss - hike up to the red-striped waterfall
hiking scenic 👍 PopularOne of Iceland's tallest waterfalls drops over basalt cliffs banded with layers of red clay, above the western shore of Lagarfljot. The steady uphill trail takes about an hour and passes Litlanesfoss, a smaller fall framed by tall basalt columns.
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Studlagil Canyon - walk down to the basalt columns
scenic nature wildlife ⭐ Highly recommendedThe Jokla river in Jokuldalur runs through a gorge lined with long hexagonal basalt columns, exposed after the river was dammed upstream. Walk in from the east bank for the view down into the canyon. The water is clearest earlier in summer, before the reservoir overflows and turns it silty.
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Seydisfjordur - the rainbow street and the blue church
culture arts scenic 👍 PopularA painted rainbow path leads up to the pale blue church at the heart of this village of colourful Norwegian-style timber houses. It has a lively arts scene for its size, and a short walk above town reaches Tvisongur, a sound sculpture of concrete domes that echo harmonies.
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Hafnarholmi - puffins at Borgarfjordur eystri
nature wildlife ⭐ Highly recommendedViewing platforms and steps on this harbour islet put you within a few metres of nesting Atlantic puffins, with fulmars and kittiwakes alongside. The birds are present from spring until about mid-August.
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Storurd - hike to the giant boulders under Dyrfjoll
hiking adventure 👍 PopularA full-day hike to a hidden valley beneath the notched Dyrfjoll peaks, where huge flat-topped boulders sit among turquoise pools and grass. It is one of the best-known walks in the east, reached from the pass road to Borgarfjordur eystri.
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Viknaslodir - hike the trails of the inlets
hiking adventureA marked network of trails links the abandoned coves and farms between Borgarfjordur eystri and Seydisfjordur, with mountain huts for multi-day routes. Expect river crossings, empty bays and colourful rhyolite slopes.
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Hallormsstadaskogur - Iceland's largest forest
nature wildlife scenicBirch woods and planted conifers on the eastern shore of Lagarfljot, with walking trails, an arboretum and lakeside campsites. The lake is home to Lagarfljotsormurinn, a serpent from local legend.
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Skriduklaustur - the writer's house and monastery ruins
history culture artsThe grand house of novelist Gunnar Gunnarsson, now a cultural centre, stands beside the excavated foundations of a late medieval monastery in the Fljotsdalur valley, a short drive from Hengifoss.
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Eggin i Gledivik - the granite eggs at Djupivogur
culture artsA line of polished granite eggs along the harbour at Djupivogur, one for each bird species that nests in the area, by artist Sigurdur Gudmundsson. The village itself is a slow, pretty stop with a strong birding reputation.
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Petra's Stone Collection - Stodvarfjordur
culture artsA lifetime's collection of rocks and minerals gathered from the eastern mountains fills a house and garden in this small fjord village, a surprising stop on the coast road.
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Faskrudsfjordur - the French fishermen's village
historyFrench crews fished these waters for generations, and the village still marks it with bilingual street signs and a restored French hospital building that tells their story.
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Vok Baths - floating pools on Urridavatn
wellnessGeothermal pools that float on a lake just outside Egilsstadir, the east's answer to the big lagoon baths. A good way to end a day of driving, and a warm place to watch for the aurora in the dark months.
Best areas to stay in East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
$ Budget $$ Mid-range $$$ Premium
Seydisfjordur
Couples $$Arty fjord village of timber houses
Explore hotels in Seydisfjordur →
Egilsstadir
Road-trippers $$Practical inland hub by the lake
Explore hotels in Egilsstadir →
Borgarfjordur eystri
Hikers and birders $$Remote puffin village under rhyolite peaks
Explore hotels in Borgarfjordur eystri →
Djupivogur
Ring Road travellers $$Quiet harbour village on the south edge
Explore hotels in Djupivogur →
Live nightly prices from Booking.com, Agoda and others, centred on East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
Getting to & around East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
Getting there
Fly from Reykjavik to Egilsstadir in about an hour, drive the Ring Road, or arrive by car ferry from Denmark at Seydisfjordur
Flight
Egilsstadir Airport (EGS)
The domestic airport sits on the edge of Egilsstadir, a few minutes from town. Flights come from Reykjavik City Airport in about an hour, so international arrivals land at Keflavik and cross Reykjavik to connect. Hire cars can be collected at the terminal.
Ferry
Seydisfjordur
Smyril Line's car ferry from Hirtshals in Denmark, calling at the Faroe Islands, docks in Seydisfjordur, the only regular passenger ferry link to mainland Europe
Drive
Egilsstadir
The Ring Road (Route 1) passes through Egilsstadir; allow a long day or two from Reykjavik, or about three hours from Akureyri in the north
Coach
Egilsstadir
Long-distance buses link Egilsstadir with Akureyri, but services are limited and seasonal, so check timetables well ahead
Getting around
Hire car
Close to essential; the sights are spread across fjords and passes, and in winter you should check road and weather conditions before every drive
TBC
Local bus
Limited services link Egilsstadir with Seydisfjordur and some of the fjord towns, mainly on weekdays
TBC
Walking
Each village is small enough to walk end to end, with trails starting at the edge of town
Free
Day trips from East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
Studlagil Canyon
Half dayBasalt column canyon
The Jokla river's gorge in Jokuldalur, lined with long hexagonal basalt columns. Go earlier in summer for the clearest blue-green water, and stick to the marked paths on the steep banks.
Getting there
car | walk
About 1 hr each way by car from Egilsstadir, then a walk down into the gorge
Hengifoss and Lagarfljot
Half dayWaterfall and forest loop
Drive the loop around the long lake of Lagarfljot: hike to Hengifoss, stop at Skriduklaustur, then return along the eastern shore through Hallormsstadaskogur, Iceland's largest forest.
Getting there
car | walk
About 35 min by car from Egilsstadir to the trailhead
Borgarfjordur eystri
Full dayPuffins and mountain hikes
Cross the pass to the remote village under its rhyolite peaks, watch puffins at close range on Hafnarholmi and, with an early start, hike in to the giant boulders of Storurd.
Getting there
car
About 1 hr 15 min by car from Egilsstadir over a mountain pass
Seydisfjordur
Half dayFjord village
Wind down from the high pass past a string of waterfalls, including Gufufoss, to the rainbow street, the blue church and the timber houses at the head of the fjord.
Getting there
car | bus
About 30 min by car or local bus from Egilsstadir over Fjardarheidi
The southern fjords to Djupivogur
Full dayCoastal fjord drive
Follow the coast south through Faskrudsfjordur's French heritage and Petra's stone collection at Stodvarfjordur to the granite eggs at Djupivogur, fjord after fjord of mountains dropping into the sea.
Getting there
car
Several hours of coast road by car, with stops along the way
A little history of East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
The east was settled in the Viking-age settlement of Iceland, with farms spreading up the sheltered Fljotsdalur valley and around the fjord heads. Its most notable medieval site is Skriduklaustur, a monastery that lasted only a few decades before the Reformation closed it. For centuries this was a remote farming and fishing coast, and French fishing crews working the waters left their mark on villages like Faskrudsfjordur.
The herring boom of the late 19th century brought Norwegian traders and their timber houses to Seydisfjordur, which also became Iceland's link to the outside world when the first telegraph cable landed there in 1906. Egilsstadir, now the regional hub, only grew into a town after the Second World War. In the 2000s a large hydropower scheme in the highlands and an aluminium smelter at Reydarfjordur reshaped the local economy, and in 2020 a series of landslides struck Seydisfjordur, destroying several buildings in the old town.
Settlers establish farms in the eastern fjords and the Fljotsdalur valley
An Augustinian monastery is founded at Skriduklaustur; it closes with the Reformation
The first submarine telegraph cable connecting Iceland to Europe comes ashore at Seydisfjordur
The oil tanker El Grillo is sunk by German aircraft in Seydisfjordur, where the wreck still lies
Egilsstadir is founded as the service centre for the eastern region
Avalanches strike Neskaupstadur, killing 12 people
The Karahnjukar hydropower scheme and the Reydarfjordur aluminium smelter begin operating
Landslides hit Seydisfjordur in December, destroying buildings and forcing the town's evacuation
Know before you go
Payment
Cards everywhere
English
Everywhere
Wifi
Reliable
Power
Type C / F
230 V, 50 Hz
Dialing
+354
The months our climate read flags to avoid: the wettest, lowest-rated weather of the year.
FAQs about East Fjords (Egilsstadir)
▸ When is the best time to visit the East Fjords?
June to August has the mildest weather, long days, open mountain roads and the full run of hiking trails, guesthouses and sights. From November to May it is cold, stormy and dark, passes can close in snow, and many places shut for the season.
▸ Do I need a car in the East Fjords?
Realistically yes. Buses are sparse, and the sights are scattered across separate fjords, passes and valleys. A standard car covers the Ring Road and the paved fjord roads in summer; gravel stretches and the highland roads towards Snaefell need more care or a 4x4.
▸ Can you see the northern lights in the East Fjords?
Yes. All of Iceland sits under the auroral oval, and clear, dark nights from around September to March can bring displays, with little light pollution outside the towns. Cloud is the real obstacle, and winter storms and road closures make the east harder to reach than the southwest in the dark months.
▸ Where can I see puffins in the East Fjords?
Hafnarholmi, the harbour islet at Borgarfjordur eystri, is one of the best and easiest places in Iceland to see puffins up close, from viewing platforms right beside the burrows. They are there from spring until about mid-August.
▸ Are there really reindeer in Iceland?
Yes, and only in the east. Reindeer were brought from Norway in the 18th century and wild herds now range the eastern highlands and lowlands. In winter and spring they often come down near the roads and fjords; in summer they move up into the hills.
More in Iceland
Akureyri
Iceland's northern capital, a fjord-head town with whales in the water and Myvatn an hour away.
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