With a population of only 350,000 and a lot of unpopoulated areas, it’s quite remarkable that Iceland hosted over 2 million visitors in 2017. That’s a lot of stays at guesthouse’s, hotels, vacation rentals, farmstays, hostels and campgrounds.
Once I started planning my trip to Iceland one of the first things I looked at was where to stay. Everywhere I saw listed ‘Guesthouse’ as an option. I had never seen ‘guest house’ listed so much and my curiosity was peaked. Never one to shy away from trying new adventures when traveling, it got me wondering…
What is a Guesthouse?
From what I gathered, a guesthouse is a type pf lodging similar to a hotel that is inexpensive and more intimate with a friendly atmosphere. In fact, many guest houses are family run in private homes that have been converted for use exclusively by guests. Some things that are common among guest houses is that they have fewer rooms, offer personalized attention, are quiet, have homemade food and are inexpensive. Basically you are living as a guest in a house that has all the services of a hotel.
Guest houses also usually offer some added bonuses like a common room where guests can socialize in a cozy ambiance. Often the staff is friendlier who offer authentic advice into local life.
In Iceland, guest houses or a ‘home away from home’ are mostly located in their main city Reykjavik. When you venture farther out to remote areas you are more likely to find farm stays and smaller Bed and Breakfasts. However, most all have modern design and are clean, without frills and with no breakfast included. Many do not offer wifi, TV in rooms or private bathrooms either.
For those who have not been to Europe before, one thing that took some adjusting to was the concept of a shared bathroom.
Sunna Guesthouse
On a recent trip to Iceland we stayed at Sunna Guesthouse located centrally within the city of Reykjavik. The 51-room guesthouse is located across the street from Hallgrimskirkja, a city landmark, which also boasts an elevator that offers the best view of the city.
They offer single rooms, double rooms, studios and suites. Some rooms have a shared common bathroom and some with a private bathroom. Traveling with a friend who had never been to Europe before so was not accustomed to shared bathrooms, we decided to go with the deluxe Room with Private Bathroom (meaning we had our own bathroom similar to North American hotels).
Although many say that because they are smaller they are firmer on check-in and out times, we never had that problem. Since we arrived VERY early in the morning we were able to easily store our luggage in their baggage room and go out to visit the city.
Our check-in time was supposed to be 3 p.m., but Emil at the front desk was able to get our room ready early and we were able to get to our room earlier in the afternoon. Emil was also great in pointing out the coupon booklets which offer 10-20% off on most restaurants, tourist areas and tours – don’t miss out on them. Emil was also exceptionally helpful when we had a problem with our tour bus too.
The room was exceptionally clean, roomy and modern, which was a great surprise.
The breakfast is included with the room and I have to say we were pleasantly surprised. The breakfast offered boiled, eggs, cereal, fresh fruit, meat, cheese and fresh bread made daily, including Icelandic rye bread that makes you think of Christmas! Of course there is skye local yogurt, which you must try.
Looking for a Guesthouse?
Inspired by Iceland website offers almost 400 guesthouses for you to choose from:
Other housing options:
Besides guesthouses, Iceland’s accommodation options include hotels, vacation rentals, farmstays, hostels and campgrounds. One that I would like to try next time is the camper vans that were everywhere across the city, especially if with the kids who would LOVE that!
Also, they are in the process of building a very large Mariott Hotel, just a few steps from the large H&M and the Harpa.
