Town guide
Stykkishólmur hotels: harbour town with Westfjords ferry
Stykkishólmur is the working fishing town on the north side of Snæfellsnes. It is the ferry terminal for the Westfjords, the setting for the Ben Stiller Walter Mitty film, and home to Iceland’s best-preserved 19th-century wooden houses.
Stykkishólmur (roughly Stik-kis-hoal-mur, meaning point island) sits 172 km north-west of Reykjavík on the northern shore of Snæfellsnes. Population 1,100. It is a two-night base if you are working the peninsula properly, or a one-night stop before the Baldur ferry to the Westfjords. The harbour puffin colony on Súgandisey island is the town’s summer draw.
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Three hotels worth booking
Fosshotel Stykkishólmur
The 88-room four-star above the town with the harbour view. Aurora-visible rooms on the top floor (5th) facing north-west, decent restaurant, elevator that saves the walk up the hill.
Price band: $240 to $320 shoulder season, $370 in peak July. Booking.com widget; islandshotel.is direct.
Hotel Egilsen
The nine-room boutique in the 1867 red wooden house on Aðalgata. Individually decorated rooms, breakfast served in the wooden dining room, better for two than for a family.
Price band: $200 to $290 shoulder season. Booking.com; direct via egilsen.is often equal.
Harbour Hostel Stykkishólmur
The harbour-view hostel with private double rooms as well as dorms. Communal kitchen, best value in the town for solo Westfjords travellers.
Price band: $85 for a dorm bed, $150 for a private double. Booking.com and Hostelworld only.
Three practical notes
1. The Baldur ferry needs pre-booking
Seatours (saeferdir.is) operates the Baldur ferry to Brjánslækur in the Westfjords. Two crossings daily in summer, one in winter, 2h 15 sailing. Car ferry sells out in July; book six weeks out.
2. The Vatnasafn Library of Water is worth an hour
Roni Horn’s Library of Water occupies the old library on the hill. 24 columns of glacier water from 24 Icelandic glaciers, some now vanished. Small entry fee, best on an overcast afternoon.
3. The puffin tour is only May to August
Seatours runs a 90-minute puffin-viewing boat around the harbour islands from mid-May to mid-August. Around $65 per adult. Weather cancellations are common; keep a spare afternoon in the plan.