Introduction to Seydisfjordur in Northeast Iceland

Known for its old wood buildings, the cute, artsy town of SEYDISFJORDUR is surrounded by mountains. The river Fjardara runs through it, it has several waterfalls, and puffin colonies are nearby. A 17-mile road over the forbidding Fjardarheidi mountain pass connects the town to the ring road and Egilsstaðir. Though Seydisfjordur has a small population of approximately 700 inhabitants, it has a vibrant cultural scene, is home to concerts and East Iceland’s only two movie theaters, and hosts art festivals throughout the summer. World-renowned artist Dieter Roth once had a home and art studio here.

Seydisfjordur in northeast Iceland

Heima

Austurvegur 15.

The name of this art gallery/studio space/living quarters is Icelandic for “home.” Owned for a year now by a small group of friends—a local girl and some Danes—and supported financially by the town, this 99-year-old store has been converted and renovated into a space shared by a collective of emerging and established artists from all around the world. One says, “Being in town is magical and makes you want to do something.”

Heima artists' collective in Seydisfjordur in northeast Iceland

LungA School

This high school has an art-based curriculum. Participants live together, cook together, and learn together. Workshops are led by established artists.
The LungA art festival takes place in July.

Hotel Aldan

This is a privately-owned little empire has hotels in a converted bank and in a post office and restaurants here and there. Local day trips can be arranged.
Reception is in one of Iceland’s oldest stores, which was built in 1920 and is now also a bar-cafe-restaurant. The scene in which Ben Stiller jumps into a car and flees from the ash cloud of a volcanic eruption in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” was filmed in front. L-D daily in summer.

reception cafe at Hotel Aldan in Seydisfjordur in northeast Iceland

●Hotel Aldan

is “The Old Bank”—which was actually originally an acclaimed hotel, before it spent a century as the town bank. Interesting antiques are part of the decor, and some rooms have bathtubs.

●Hotel Snaefell

is “The Post Office”—a 3-story wood house built in 1908.

room at Hotel Aldan in Seydisfjordur in northeast Iceland

●Skaftfell Bistro

Austurvegur 42. Daily noon-10pm.

Operating on the ground floor, this charming little cafe gets quite crowded. It offers homey food, aromatic coffee, delicious cakes and sweets, and also ale, wine, and other beverages—not to mention superb lamb chops and both reindeer burgers and reindeer pizza.
Skaftfell Center for Visual Art Upstairs, this spacious gallery encourages and displays contemporary art.