Hafnarfjordur

Hafnarfjordur grew as a trading and fishing port south of Reykjavik and sits directly on the Burfellshraun lava, so the flow runs between the houses - gardens end at cliffs of black rock and streets bend round outcrops. The town has a reputation, worn lightly and marketed steadily, for its hidden people: local tradition maps particular rocks as dwellings, and planning has occasionally been adjusted around them. Hellisgerdi park is a lava garden in the middle of it. There is a Viking-themed village and a festival in June, a good harbour and old timber warehouses, and the town museum occupies several preserved houses.

What you actually see

• A town on a lava flow - rock outcrops between streets and gardens.
• Hellisgerdi park - a garden laid out in the lava.
• Hidden-people tradition - rocks mapped as dwellings, sometimes planned around.
• A Viking festival in June - the town's best known event.

When to go

June for the festival; year round for the town. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The elf material is folklore turned into tourism, and treating it as either literal or a con misses how locals actually hold it. The Viking village is a themed attraction rather than a museum. The centre is small and quickly covered.

Nearby

Reykjavik is fifteen minutes north; Krysuvik and Reykjanes are south.