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.

History

Hafnarfjörður, "harbour fjord", is named in the medieval Landnámabók, and the earliest reports of voyages here date from the end of the 14th century; English merchants traded here in the 15th century until German merchants drove them out, the town joined the Hanseatic League, and in 1533 the first Lutheran church in Iceland was built here. In 1793 Bjarni Sívertsen settled in the town and built a large fishing and trading business, earning the name "the father of Hafnarfjörður"; after decked boats replaced rowing boats around 1870 the town grew fast, from 616 people in 1890 to 1,400 when it became the fifth town in Iceland with municipal status on 1 June 1908 (Wikipedia, Hafnarfjörður).

What's there

• 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.

Good to know

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.

Key facts