ÁSA & ÁRNI'S WEDDING
Brúðkaup Ásu og Árna
24.05.2026
REYKJAVÍK, ÍSLAND
We look forward to welcoming you to Reykjavík! The wedding ceremony will take place at Dómkirkjan, followed by dinner and celebrations at Gamla bíó. To save you from the travel blog black hole, we’ve put together a list of our favourite places to eat, drink, sleep, and procrastinate.
VENUES
Dómkirkjan
Our first "date" was at this church. We'd decided to meet there for midnight mass on Christmas Eve but set a strict "no contact" rule in the days leading up to it. We just had to show up and hope we hadn't been stood up - which is more or less the plan for the wedding day, too.
Gamla bíó
Mammút's home turf, Gamla bíó, is undoubtably the best venue in town. It was built as a cinema in the 20s, making it among the oldest venues in town, served as home of the Icelandic Opera untill 2011 and that's when the Icelandic indie scene got its hands on it. Apparently, they now host weddings, presumably to keep the lights on for the bands.
SLEEP
These are some of our favourite, or most convenient, hotels in town.
Baldursbrá
Ása's brother in law runs this little guesthouse. He has graciously reserved a few rooms for wedding guests and is offering them on a huge discount. Definitely the cheapest option in town. Bear in mind that this is simple. Shared bathroom type of deal. Nudge Arni if you want to book and he'll sort!
Hotel Borg
An elegant art deco hotel with a spa. When the Brits occupied Iceland in the Second World War they ran headfirst into strict beer ban. Their solution was to occupy Hotel Borg, and voila - Hotel Borg became central to the city's nightlife and remained the only legal bar in town until 1950.
EAT
Whilst Reykjavik is increasingly becoming a multi cultural city, that's not particularly well presented in the culinary scene yet. Stick to simple fish, lamb or veg that grows underground and you'll have a great time. Having said that, all of these places will cater to all dietary requirements.
Skál
Spectacular modern Scandi and trendy to the teeth. One of the few places that managed to graduate from a food hall hell. It’s a lot more civilised now it's not in a bus stop.
Skreið
Skreið means a gutted, decapitated and wind dried fish. It's an essential part of the local culinary culture and well worth a try, although you won't find any at Skreið. The restaurant specialises in Basque inspired pinchos with a little scandi (meaning pricey) twist and is hands down amazing.
Matbar
Another European fusion place. Matbar serves up Italian inspired small plates in a beautiful spot that most of us older than 30 remember as a sleazy Irish bar.
Hosíló
Hosíló rotates its menu every week in accordance to market availability. Or so it claims. We've never heard of an Icelandic food market and seeing as nothing grows here we find the claim a little dubious. Nonetheless, consistently great food!
Jómfrúin
This is an institution. A Danish smørrebrød place which is the favourite among the country's distinguished elders. White tablecloths and aging waiting staff harmonise perfectly with the mid-century menu. Sure, you might find better smørrebrød but not realer.
Kastrup
Kastrup may serve better smørrebrød than Jómfrúin but it's nowhere near as real. Their claim to fame is proudly serving the most expensive burger in town. The perfect spot if you need to expense a meeting.
DRINK
Navigating Reykjavik's bar scene seems a little tricky. We can't count how often we've had to save visiting friends from seedy Irish bars or tourist traps. So, here's a few safe options.
12 Tónar
The spiritual home for Reykjavík's indie kids. Our favourite record store by day and our favourite bar in the evening. Don't ask for cocktails and expect wine out of airplane miniatures.
Röntgen
The older, more refined sister to 12 Tónar. Natural wines and mixology in dimly lit nooks and crannies, yet strangely enough, it’s pretty much the exact same crowd as its more disheveled sibling.
Vínstúkan 10 Sopar
Everybody's favourite wine bar and they serve seriously decent food as well! 90s Hip Hop and Scandinavian hipsterism personified.
Bíó Paradís
The only independent but also a perfectly legit place to stop for a drink. You can have popcorn with your beer while pretending to be the kind of person who watches foreign films. Everybody wins.
Stúkan
For those of you that need to catch a game while in town, this is your best bet. An honest attempt to make a "fancy" sports bar, but they'd clearly not considered the contradiction.
Lemmy
As ridiculous as it sounds, Lemmy, a novelty dive bar named after you know who, is actually kinda fun. A small arcade, a ridiculous brewery, a fish tank and all sorts of ludicrous behaviour.
PROCRASTINATE
Swim
Sund might be the most important word in the Icelandic language. It essentially means "swim" but it's so much more than that. Due to abundance of geothermal energy, Icelandic pools are in a league of their own and nobody should leave the country without a visit to one.
Sundhöll Reykjavíkur
Sundhöllin s more of a community centre than a pool and it does some heavy lifting for the national psyche. It’s the designated spot for political debates, business meetings, catch-ups, first dates, and tiring out the children. We’re there at least a couple of times a week and you can guess for which of those reasons.
Vesturbæjarlaug
The second closest to town and for that reason a fractionally more "local" feeling option than Sundhöllin. Frequented by the cultural elites.
Sky Lagoon
Sky Lagoon is the closest geothermal spa to town. It's essentially just a fancier, more expensive version of the local swimming pools with the exception that they'll serve you a drink in the water and you're allowed to take pictures.
Nauthólsvík
Ylströndin translates to "The Warm Beach", but that's almost entirely a lie. This is where locals go for a dip in the freezing North Atlantic. The best known remedy for last nights ails, but to be clear: not warm and barely a beach.
Shop
As you're probably aware, Iceland isn't exactly famous for its affordability. So we would generally advice people to just ignore the shops, but here are a few suggestions if you're absolutely intent on spending.
Fischersund
A fragrance company started by Jonsi from Sigur Ros. Fischersund is an oasis. A must see and experience.
Kormákur og Skjöldur
Mainstays in the menswear department. Great stop if you forgot a suit and want to embrace the nordic barber look or if you want to stock up on internationally renowned brands for double the price you'd pay anywhere else.
Rammagerðin
As you'll quickly realise there is an outrageous abundance of tourist shops around selling puffin trinkets. Rammagerðin is the only one worth stopping at. It sells lots of interesting local design and is a total godsend when looking for a gift for someone you don't know very well.
Kiosk
We are fans of Icelandic design and Kiosk might be the best place for it. Super simple showroom in the old harbour area. Expertly curated and eclectic.
See
To be honest, the wedding is taking place a couple of weeks before the biannual Reykjavik Arts Festival kicks off, so you expect a lull in the cultural department. However, if you want to ogle some stuff, here's a few options.
Listasafn Einars Jónssonar
Our closest thing to a castle. An ominous looking building built by an eccentric sculptor called Einar Jónsson. It now houses his collection both inside the castle and in its gardens. Definitely worth the stroll.
Listasafn Íslands
There's not much to add here. The National Gallery of Iceland kinda says it all right?
Listasafn Reykjavíkur
Again, pretty self explanatory. It houses a permanent exhibition of the country's most famous pop artist if you're into that sort of thing.
Hallgrímskirkja
This is an essential photo if you want to prove to your social network that you were in Iceland. However, it's also a lot more. The journey to the top is worth the effort, mostly because it's the cheapest tourist activity available. The organ is a something to behold as well.
Bíó Paradís
We’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth noting that Bíó Paradís is not just a place to drink beer and pretend to be cultured. You can actually see some films here. Our kids refer to it as "the weird cinema". Kinda nails it if you ask us.