Westfjords hotels: Ísafjörður and the remote fjords
The Westfjords are the peninsula in Iceland’s north-west, connected to the ring road by a single 60 km spur. Ísafjörður is the regional capital and the only town with a proper hotel selection. Everywhere else is guesthouses, farm stays, and single-building lodges on fjords that see fewer than 5,000 visitors a year. Not for a first Iceland trip. Essential for a third.
Three we recommend
Hótel Ísafjörður Horn
The main Ísafjörður hotel, on the harbour with a view of the horseshoe of peaks that ring the town. Rooms are unfussy and comfortable, and the restaurant does a good arctic char.
Price band: $200 to $290 per night (ISK 28,000 to 40,000)
Heydalur Country Hotel
A working horse farm at the head of Mjóifjörður, 90 minutes south-east of Ísafjörður. Geothermal outdoor pool, kayaks on the fjord, and the closest thing the region has to a full-service country hotel.
Price band: $240 to $330 per night (ISK 33,000 to 46,000)
Hótel Djúpavík
A former herring factory on Strandir, the wildest coast in Iceland. The building is a museum piece, the fjord is silent, and the drive out is three hours of gravel from the ring road. Book for the isolation, not the amenities.
Price band: $180 to $250 per night (ISK 25,000 to 34,000)
Practical tips
- Roads 60 and 61 through the Westfjords are largely paved now, but the last stretches to Rauðisandur and Látrabjarg remain gravel; budget an extra 45 minutes per 50 km on those sections.
- The Baldur ferry from Stykkishólmur to Brjánslækur is the shortcut in from Snæfellsnes and saves five hours of driving, but it runs a reduced winter schedule.
- Hotels north of Ísafjörður close between mid-October and mid-May; check dates before booking a September to April stay.