National Museum of Iceland
National Museum of Iceland
4.5
Speciality & Gift ShopsArt MuseumsHistory Museums
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
What makes a nation? The Museum's permanent exhibition, Making of a Nation - Heritage and History in Iceland, is intended to provide insight into the history of the Icelandic nation from Viking era to modern times. The exhibition is conceived as a journey through time: it begins with the ship in which medieval settlers crossed the ocean to their new home, it ends in a modern airport, the Icelanders' gateway to the world.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Admission tickets
from £14.31
All you need to step foot in the door.
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  • K8SAS
    Baltimore, Maryland208 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Okay Museum
    An okay museum. A lot smaller than we expected. The exhibits were interesting, but lacked a lot of wow factor that I’ve seen at other museums. I think I may be biased coming from the DC area.
    Visited April 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 11 April 2023
  • Sue H
    Peregian Beach, Australia88 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Very interesting
    Yet another venue I gained entry to with my Reykjavik City Card. This museum is well laid out and follows from earliest time to now. Great info and artefacts. Staff are friendly and on hand to answer any questions. Great place for visit.
    Visited May 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 4 May 2023
  • EC13091
    Ellicott City, Maryland1,248 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great way to start your tour of Iceland
    We didn’t need advanced tickets and simply walked in and used our Revel in Reykjavik City Card for free admission. The museum is an excellent collection that tells the story of Iceland from the Settlement to today. We found it interesting and worth about 90 minutes time. While different periods are on different floors, the display can be hard to follow as the chronological listing seems to skip around. Even the staff didn’t know where stop 1 was, and numbers seem to Peter out. But go anyway, particularly if you have free admission.
    Visited May 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 16 May 2023
  • K G
    13 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great place
    We stopped here for the afternoon and really enjoyed the curation of historical artifacts. This is a great place for putting all the various tidbits learned along the way into context. 2 hours are probably enough time to see the two floors of the museum.
    Visited May 2023
    Written 22 May 2023
  • Jules060617
    Lausanne, Switzerland1,339 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Not to be missed by any visitors to Iceland
    This is a world-class museum, not to be missed by any visitors to Iceland who have the slightest interest in history. The first covers the period from the early Viking settlers, through the replacement of the ancient Norse gods by Christianism, until the arrival of the Lutheran Reformation and Danish rule in the 16th century. The exhibits are very well displayed, with excellent commentaries (you need to understand Icelandic or English to really benefit). I spent almost two hours on this floor and less than half on the third floor, which brings the journey up until today.
    Visited June 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 8 June 2023
  • AVL
    Massachusetts61 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A thousand years of history under one roof
    I love history museum, and this was right what I was looking for. it's well organized in terms of the visitor progressing from the original settlement to modern Iceland, but it was a little difficult to orient myself in terms of when to go right vs. left on the floor to make sure I see everything. Very much an open floor plan rather than distinct rooms.
    Visited June 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 1 July 2023
  • Maggie M
    Mulwala, Australia179 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Well conceived museum
    Excellent museum giving a great overview of Iceland’s history since settlement. Lots of wonderful artefacts found during excavations, as well as more recent items, all well curated. Well laid out in chronological order. A special exhibition showing the probate inventories of several people from the 18th and 19th centuries - the probate lists are a wonderful tool to find out how people lived then. I really liked that. Good museum shop and a small cafe, as well as free lockers available. Other reviewers have mentioned the difficulty finding the entrance. It does depend on which direction you approach from. We walked almost right around the building to find the way in.
    Visited July 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 24 July 2023
  • sharrongeg
    Henderson, Nevada3,291 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent Museum
    We really enjoyed our visit here. We stayed almost 2 hours and particularly enjoyed the special exhibit of household items and original clothing from an old Icelandic home. Appreciated the free lockers for coats and backpacks.
    Visited July 2023
    Written 26 July 2023
  • Bill C
    Vancouver, Canada4,282 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    History of Iceland from the Vikings to Modern Times
    I used my Reykjavik City Card for free entry. This museum provided a good history of Iceland with displays from the times of the Vikings to today. Displays had signs in English. There is a free audio guide that you can download onto your phone. Make sure you bring your earbuds. There is a café and a gift shop inside the museum.
    Visited August 2022
    Travelled solo
    Written 30 July 2023
  • Dogberry1258
    Guernsey, United Kingdom417 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fantastic museum - not a shopping experience as it’s listed on trip advisor! Far too good for that alone!
    This is a fabulous museum with helpful and well informed staff. The museum is organised as a trip through the ages with terrific exhibits and some really good interactive displays. It’s also great value with free audio commentaries on your phone if you choose. Not as commercial as some others but all the better for it.
    Visited September 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 30 September 2023
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4.5
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gailc000
Melbourne, Australia336 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Couples
Great museum - the exhibits gave a detailed journey through Iceland’s history. The exhibits were interactive and informative
Quite an extensive display !
Written 14 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

DrCDB
Chile533 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
This museum was quite a nice surprise! It has an audio guide that you can access using your phone so it is a good idea to bring your earphone with you. We enjoyed the museum and how well the history of Iceland was explained. Recommendable.
Written 10 March 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

jayfi303
Cambridge, UK12 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Family
We chose to visit here rather than some of the other museums in Reykjavik mainly based on cost. We are so pleased we did. This museum is well presented and gives a comprehensive history of the country with lots of information to read and exhibits to look at. There were plenty interactive displays and several aimed at younger visitors.
The staff were all friendly and welcoming. We had a drink and cake at the cafe, which was reasonably priced.
In terms of price, children under 17 are free, and students less than half adult price.
We really enjoyed our visit and would definitely recommend to anyone visiting Reykjavik.
Written 22 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sammy
Rome, Italy5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
I didn’t know what to expect from this museum and it doesn’t look much from the outside, but I was pleasantly surprised! Lots of interesting information about how Icelanders used to live and settlers. The temporary photo exhibition was great. The artifacts from the past were interesting and the replica bath house.
Written 21 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FrauleinGeegs
Grafton, MA6 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
You could easily spend an entire day here! The collection narrates the history of Iceland with compelling artifacts, and I appreciated the addition of "A Rainbow Thread," a queer guide to the permanent exhibitions that asks visitors to think about what is left unsaid about queer life in traditional historical narratives and encourage critical thinking. I hope the museum strongly considers keeping this helpful pamphlet and offers the audio guide in the future, it was profound and important!
Written 7 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Raena F
10 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Family
Such a wonderful museum. So much history and so much to look at. Highly recommend. What a great price for so much history.
Written 12 January 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Liz D
7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Couples
Fascinating museum documenting the history of Iceland's colonisation and life in Iceland through the post medieval and modern periods. The exhibits are laid out in chronological order starting on the second floor and moving up to the third. We had a coffee/pastry/chess break between the second and third floors (there is a cafe on the ground floor with the gift shop).

There was a fair amount of Viking era archaeological artefacts and info, including a couple of burials, then a large amount of early Christian artefacts, fabrics and manuscripts. The top floor continued from around the 16th century into the modern era, with some fascinating magical/ritual objects and reconstructions of a house and a whaling boat. There is a free audio guide and a pdf which are highly recommended for additional information, but every exhibit is described in English as well as Icelandic.
Written 10 January 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

breakthecageUK
Bristol, UK8 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Couples
A nicely laid out museum about a 20 minute walk from the centre of Reykjavík. It costs about £20 per person to get in, and this seems to be a fairly standard rate for all the museums we visited. There are lockers downstairs to leave your daysack in (if like us you have one). The displays are great but do focus a lot on the Christian influences in Iceland. There is a small section as you enter the main display area which are more ‘Viking era’, and this includes the fantastic Eyrarland Statue which may represent Thor. I also really enjoyed seeing the rebuilt wooden house that was in use until the 1950s. There is a cafe downstairs and the shop had some interesting books and souvenirs. Worth a visit but don’t expect a lot of Viking era displays. Note - one of the reasons for visiting Iceland was having read the Sagas and Prose Edda et al. So I do have a bias.
Written 7 January 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Poppenlander
Seattle, Washington, United States247 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Couples
The permanent exhibit at the National Museum of Iceland covers the original settling of the country and the subsequent history. Unlike many countries on the planet, Iceland was not colonized by European settlers; there were no indigenous peoples here. Instead, folks of Norwegian and Anglo-Saxon descent traveled across the sea in the eighth or ninth century and decided to set up a home in this isolated land.

The museum has artifacts from the earliest centuries, including materials from the longboats, tools, housing materials, and more. The exhibit then walks you through the history of the country, century by century. Probably the most interesting part of the history deals with the coming of Christianity and how this religion grew and was syncretized with other so-called pagan faiths.

The modern era material is perhaps less compelling, although a few items on the countries involvement in WWII and the "cod wars" with the UK provide some amusement. By the time I got to this section, probably 90 minutes in to my tour, my brain had turned off.

History buffs will likely love this. I found it good, and well curated, but perhaps a little too detailed to be truly fascinating for the average person.
Written 25 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Archie K
London, UK216 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Friends
Informative history of Iceland. Good chronological walk through the history and culture of Iceland with some interesting pieces on display including tools and weapons from the first settlers. Particularly enjoyed description of iron ore extraction and conversion to ignots. Work th going but like so much in Iceland it’s quite expensive!
Written 7 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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NATIONAL MUSEUM OF ICELAND: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about National Museum of Iceland

National Museum of Iceland admission prices can vary. Entrance tickets currently cost £14.19, while a popular guided tour starts around £29.38 per person.

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