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The least populated area of Iceland and one of the least visited, the Eastfjords are often overlooked by visitors, but to do so would be a mistake. The region feels like one of the most authentic in the country with little fishing villages clinging to the sides of steep fjords, landscapes imbued with living folklore and traditional life continuing largely as it has done for centuries. With broad river valleys, snow-capped peaks and inky fjords at every turn and hiking routes where you’re unlikely to meet another soul, it’s the place to find the real Iceland and its local characters.

Things to see and do in the Eastfjords

Egilsstaðir

The main commercial and transport hub in east Iceland, Egilsstaðir is a rather workaday town but has good services and facilities and a pleasant location on the banks of the Lagarfljót River. The town’s East Iceland Heritage Museum offers a good introduction to the region and different ways that rural Icelanders survived in this harsh environment for centuries. It has displays on traditional Icelandic turf homes and on culture, society and everyday life in the region. Additionally, the museum examines the role of wild reindeer in the culture of east Iceland, which is the only part of the country where they live.

Borgarfjörður Eystri

Northeast of Egilsstaðir, the tiny village of Borgarfjörður Eystri is framed by striped rhyolite mountains and is said to be the home of the Queen of the Elves who lives in a big rock that looms over the town. With easy access to the Dyrfjöll mountains and few visitors, it’s a great base for hikers and the many nearby trails lead to impressive, untouched scenery.

The nearby islet of Hafnarhólmi has some of the country’s best puffin viewing and you can see huge numbers of birds on this promontory first thing in the morning and at dusk between mid-April and early August.

Seyðisfjörður

Driving east from Egilsstaðir over a scenic highland pass, you’ll drop down over a series of hairpin bends past gushing waterfalls to the head of a 17 km (11 mile) long fjord where you’ll find the town of Seyðisfjörður. Brightly painted wooden houses line the port in this little town, which is hailed as east Iceland’s cultural hub. Its remote location and scenic setting having attracted writers and artists over the years and although tiny, it has a thriving arts scene, an annual summer arts festival and is home to the renowned ‘rainbow road’ that leads to its pretty Lutheran church. There is also a ferry to Copenhagen (via the Faroe Islands) which departs from the docks.

Lögurinn

One of Iceland’s largest lakes, Lögurinn, sits just west of Egilsstaðir and is steeped in Icelandic saga history. The area’s woodlands and waterfalls are quite a contrast to most other parts of the country, making it easy to see how the landscape inspired saga tales. The most popular saga describes a monster, Lagarfljótsormurinn, living in the depths of the lake.

You can drive right around the lake to Hengifoss, one of Iceland’s tallest waterfalls, which plummets over a sheer cliff, and to Hallormsstaður, its largest forest. A network of hiking trails laces the region and offers great walking with views of Vatnajökull’s northern slopes and Iceland’s tallest freestanding mountain, Snæfell.

Best time to visit the Eastfjords

The summer months of June to September are the best time to visit the Eastfjords: the landscape is at its most welcoming and the weather is the best in the country with less rainfall and warmer, clearer days than other parts of Iceland. In winter, many hotels and attractions close and the roads can frequently become impassable making access difficult.