Borgarnes

West

Borgarnes is a town located in Borgarfjörður in West Iceland with population about 1800 people. The Ring Road around Iceland goes through the town after the second largest bridge in Iceland, Borgarfjarðarbrú was built over the fjord. Borgarnes is a popular place to stop for a refreshment and for some Icelanders it is a tradition to stop in Borgarnes to eat or do the shopping for their vacation. There is a gas station and restaurants close to the main road when arriving in the town as well as grocery stores, pharmacy and a service center with other service.

Borgarnes officially became a town in the year 1913 and today the main industry in Borgarnes is service and trading. The town has good service for tourists including good accommodations, restaurants, café, swimming pool and a local museum. For families or anyone who wants to have a little fun make sure to visit Bjössaróló. This playground was constructed by Björn Guðmundsson and to built it he used only things that had been thrown away. After a little playtime it is ideal to visit a small park called Skallagrímsgarður for a nice picknick.

Directions

From Reykjavík it is about 1 hour drive (70 km) to Borgarnes. Take Ring Road nr. 1 towards Mosfellsbær and follow the road to Borgarnes. Make sure to take the Hvalfjörður tunnel for a shorter ride. For those who like to do a little detour it takes about 1 hour to drive the Hvalfjörður fjord. Located in Hvalfjörður is the second highest waterfall in Iceland, Glymur.