The Reykjavik City Card unlocks the capital of cool

One of the best ways to save money while exploring Reykjavik is to use the Reykjavik City Card. This handy card is a traveler’s key to unlocking Reykjavik’s culture, history, and activities. Dive into Iceland’s museums, enjoy the city’s geothermal pools, or take in the sights on a boat trip using the Reykjavik City Card. It offers an affordable, convenient way to experience it all. It is easy to get the Reykjavik City Card; you can purchase it online on the Visit Reykjavik website.

The many perks of the Reykjavik City Card

The City Card gives you free entry to some of Reykjavik’s top attractions. This includes the National Museum, the Reykjavik Art Museum, and the National Gallery of Iceland. But the benefits don’t stop there—it also includes free bus travel within the Reykjavik capital area, discounts on various tours, activities, shopping, and even a trip to the enchanting Videy Island.

To delve deeper into how this card can enhance your visit, I interviewed Margrét Wendt and Kristján Bjarki Jónasson, who oversee the Reykjavik City Card service at Visit Reykjavik. They have an insider’s perspective on how to use it best to make the most of your visit.

What inspired the creation of the Reykjavik City Card, and how has it evolved since its inception?

City Passes appeared in the late 1990s as a convenient way to offer travelers affordable admissions to multiple attractions within a city or region. The Reykjavík City Card was part of this wave. In 2000, when Reykjavík was the cultural capital of Europe, there was a discussion about implementing a pass that would include admissions to various museums in Reykjavík. Three years later, the Reykjavík City Pass was issued. Since then, the card’s name has been changed to Reykjavík City Card.

The Reykjavík City Card now includes admission to museums and eight public swimming pools in Reykjavík; it also includes all public transportation in the Reykjavík capital area. There are three versions of the card, each with a different validation period: 24, 48, and 72 hours. The card is purchased online, a voucher is issued, and the customer can pick it up in various places in central Reykjavík. The Reykjavík City Card is managed and issued by Visit Reykjavík, which, since 2023, has been a destination marketing and management office for the whole Reykjavík capital area.

Can you share some of the most popular attractions that the card unlocks?

The objective of the City Card was to increase museum attendance in Reykjavík. Indeed, museums remain the most popular attractions for most customers. The three large museums in the center of Reykjavík, the National Museum, the Hafnarhús branch of the Reykjavík Art Museum, and the National Gallery of Iceland, receive the most significant number of visitors. The Settlement Exhibition in Reykjavík’s center has also gained popularity. After all, visitors have become more curious about Iceland’s Viking Age. The City Card also provides access to the swimming pools, which are among the most popular meeting places for Icelandic locals.  A new and improved digital Reykjavík City Card will provide us with much-needed insights into cardholders’ interests and choices.

How does the City Card benefit the local community and businesses in Reykjavik?

Visit Reykjavík encourages visitors to venture outside the historical center of Reykjavík and explore the whole capital area. The aim is to make the travel industry in the region more sustainable. We know that the local community will view travelers more positively if they experience a broader range of destinations in the area. The critical component for doing this is helping visitors use public transport, and the Reykjavík City Card does that.

Therefore, we at Visit Reykjavík would like to rephrase the question and instead ask what the City Card can do to benefit the local community in the Reykjavík Capital Area. With the Reykjavík City Card, you can take a bus to Hafnarfjörður in the southern part of the city. There, you can visit its beautiful old town built into a lava field. It is a lovely area with an ocean view and many great cafés. This is a great way to experience the Reykjavik area in a new and exciting way. This is especially true if you have a 48-hour or a 72-hour card,

Are there any new features or partnerships planned for the City Card in the near future?

We are currently working on the next steps in developing the City Card. This will include digital solutions and the option to add more attractions. Feedback from our customers indicates that a digital card would enhance its usability. Customers will be able to validate their cards upon purchase, enabling immediate use for activities such as hopping on a bus or swimming. We aim to introduce these improvements in the Spring or Summer of 2025.

What feedback have you received from international visitors who have used the City Card?

Our reviews are overwhelmingly positive, and we are sometimes amazed by how positive they are. People often describe a perfect day. It goes like this: waking up, collecting the card, and going from one attraction to the next using public transport. They use the card to get discounts at other attractions or services. They are delighted with how much is included in the card, considering its price. We know how quickly you get back what you have paid for.

Unlock big value

The cost of a 24-hour card includes one bus transfer, one museum admission, and a visit to another attraction. A good plan is to visit up to three or four museums in the center of Reykjavík, plus a dip in a local swimming pool. This would cost you double the price of one 24-hour card. This does not include all the other benefits, such as discounts for tours, attractions, or services like BagBee.

How can visitors make the most out of the card?

Prioritize the attractions. People often travel around the country for a few days or weeks. However, many only have only one day in Reykjavik before they fly back home. Many use this last day in Iceland to visit the museums in Reykjavík’s center. The 24-hour card is then an obvious choice. It includes museum admission and discounts for other attractions, such as the Perlan Museum. Customer reviews and comments indicate that this museum round trip is enriching. It requires that people plan to get as much as possible out of the card’s validation time.

Try swimming pool hopping

The average visitor in the Reykjavík capital area spends 2 to 3 days in the region. In these cases, the 48-hour or 72-hour card enables them to take better advantage of the selection of museums and swimming pools. We urge these visitors to try a day of “swimming pool hopping.” Try out 3 to 5 pools in the two or three days they spend in Reykjavik. The swimming pools have many different bathing options, ranging from steam saunas, dry saunas, and cold baths to hot tubs, all heated with geothermal water. These pools are mini spas.

What are your favorite places and activities here in Reykjavik?

Each municipality in the Reykjavík capital area has excellent restaurants and coffee shops. We are tempted to explore their possibilities whenever possible and are curious about new places and delicious treats. One new and exciting place is the café and exhibition space Höfuðstöðin in the Ellidardalur district. It features a permanent exhibition of a large multi-sensory installation, Chromo Sapiens, initially conceived for the Biennale in Venice by the artist Shoplifter. Both the installation itself and the surroundings are perfect for families. There are various crafting courses and other activities on offer on most weekends.

We visit at least one exhibition in the Reykjavík capital area on weekends. The small but ambitious art museum Gerðarsafn in Kópavogur is often our choice. It is also always rewarding to see what exhibitions are on in the Kjarvalsstadir branch of the Reykjavík Art Museum. Note that it also has a good restaurant. Hallgrímskirkja Cathedral is within a 10 to 15-minute walking distance from Kjarvalsstaðir Museum. The cathedral is one of the significant landmarks of Reykjavík, and in its vicinity is the historical center of Reykjavík, with many stores, restaurants, and cafés.

What advice do you have for those visiting Reykjavik for the first time?

A simple but good piece of advice is to purchase the Reykjavík City Card, preferably the 48-hour card, and go swimming pool hopping. Combine this with visiting one museum each day. Every pool included in the Reykjavík City Card has its distinctive features. Some offer views, such as the Árbæjarlaug pool in the Árbær district. Others are architecturally interesting, such as the Sundhöllin pool in the Reykjavík City Center. Reykjavik’s newest pool, Dalslaug in the Úlfarsárdalur district, offers the opportunity to hike up to Úlfarsfell. This is one of the most popular hiking routes in Reykjavik.  You can see most of the region and out into the bay from the observation deck. After the hike, visiting the Dalslaug pool and soaking in the hot tubs are perfect.

A visit to two to four pools in the various districts of Reykjavík showcases the majestic nature that surrounds the city. The pools offer the blessings and healing power of geothermal water. In the pools, you discover a key component of the local culture: the “sundlaugamenning,” the swimming pool culture. For many Icelanders, a daily visit to the pool is a necessity.