Destination Guide

Cycling in Reykjavík & Snæfellsnes Peninsula

Reykjavík cycling hub and Snæfellsnes Peninsula: Kirkjufell mountain, Snæfellsjökull glacier-volcano, Golden Circle from the capital, and the best-supported cycling infrastructure in Iceland.

Last updated: 15 March 2026

Reykjavík is the most functional cycling base in Iceland by a substantial margin. The city of 130,000 operates an urban cycling network of approximately 320km of designated cycle paths, has a growing café culture centred on the Grandi harbour district and Laugavegur shopping street that provides the café infrastructure cyclists require, and hosts the two best-equipped bike shops in the country — Örninn Hjólabúð and WOW Cycling — within 3km of the city centre. More importantly for visiting cyclists, Reykjavík is the logical staging point for the three primary cycling objectives in western Iceland: the Snæfellsnes Peninsula circuit, the Golden Circle route through Þingvellir and Gullfoss, and the highland approach roads of the Borgarfjörður valley.

The Snæfellsnes Peninsula extends 90km west-northwest of Reykjavík into the North Atlantic, its tip capped by the Snæfellsjökull glacier-volcano (1,446m) that Jules Verne used as the entrance to his Journey to the Centre of the Earth. The peninsula is one of the most scenically complete cycling destinations in the North Atlantic: the southern shore road threads between the sea and a dramatic mountain wall, passing through the fishing villages of Búðir and Arnarstapi; the northern shore carries quieter roads with views across Faxaflói bay toward Reykjavík; and the ring road connecting both shores at the tip of the peninsula loops around the glacier in a circuit of approximately 240km from the base at Borgarnes. Kirkjufell — the 463m arrow-head mountain above Grundarfjörður on the northern shore, universally recognised from its Game of Thrones appearances — is the visual centrepiece of the peninsula ride, its distinctive pyramidal profile rising from the shore road at a point where the cycling pace drops involuntarily as every photographer stops for the shot.

The wind dynamics on Snæfellsnes deserve specific attention. The peninsula protrudes directly into the North Atlantic and acts as a wind accelerator in the gap between the Icelandic mainland and the Snæfellsjökull massif. Winds from the southwest — the most common summer direction — produce a significant headwind on the southern shore road heading west and an equally significant tailwind on the return. The conventional wisdom for peninsula circuit rides is to ride the southern shore heading west in the morning when winds are typically lighter, reaching the glacier tip before the midday wind build, and returning on the northern shore with the wind from behind. On days with true Icelandic south-southwest winds of 15–20 m/s (54–72km/h), this calculation becomes less about optimisation and more about survival — at these speeds, progress against the wind on a lightly loaded touring bike is approximately 8–10km/h, and the exposed southern shore road between Hellissandur and Arnarstapi carries no shelter for 30km. Check the Icelandic Met Office (vedur.is) before departing for the western peninsula.

The Golden Circle route — Reykjavík to Þingvellir National Park (45km, gentle rolling), Þingvellir to Geysir (60km, moderate climbing), Geysir to Gullfoss waterfall (10km flat), and return to Reykjavík via Selfoss (85km) — is the standard multi-day introduction to Icelandic cycling for visitors based in the capital. The circuit of approximately 200km is achievable in two days at touring pace or as a long single day for strong riders. Road quality is excellent throughout — the Golden Circle is one of Iceland's highest-priority tourist corridors and receives regular resurfacing — but the section from Þingvellir to Geysir carries significant tourist coach and rental car traffic from 09:00 to 17:00 in July and August. Early departure from Reykjavík (before 07:00) avoids the tourist vehicle concentration and reaches Þingvellir before the National Park visitor car parks fill. The Þingvellir section itself — the site of Iceland's original parliament, the Alþingi, established 930 AD — is one of the few places where the cycling pace slows not because of gradient but because the geology and history demand it: the rift valley of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is visible as a 40m cliff face that walkers traverse on the canyon floor paths below the road.

Terrain: Road, Touring, Climbing, coastal
Difficulty: Moderate — Challenging
Road Quality: Good
Cycling Culture: Developing
Pro Team Presence: No professional cycling presence. The Reykjavík Gran Fondo (July) is the area's main cycling event, attracting 500–800 participants on a circuit through the Þingvellir lava field and Hvalfjörður fjord roads. Reykjavík Bike Tours operates guided cycling tours of the city and the Snæfellsnes peninsula and is the best commercial option for visitors wanting route support.
Traffic: Low

Best Time to Cycle in Reykjavík & Snæfellsnes Peninsula

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Dec

Best Shoulder Avoid

The Reykjavík and Snæfellsnes area benefits from the mildest climate in Iceland, courtesy of the Gulf Stream influence on the southwest coast. June temperatures average 10–14°C during the day, with the midnight sun at its maximum providing continuous usable light that allows genuinely flexible start times — a 04:00 departure for the Snæfellsnes peninsula on a calm June morning encounters the road in its most atmospheric state, the light low and golden even at dawn, the tourist infrastructure not yet activated. The Kerlingardalsvegur mountain road and the Eiríksjökull approach gravel tracks open in late May or early June depending on snowmelt — check road.is for current F-road status. July brings the warmest temperatures (12–16°C) and the highest tourist traffic on the Golden Circle; the Snæfellsnes peninsula is less impacted than the Þingvellir-Geysir corridor and July riding there remains pleasant outside the 10:00–16:00 peak. August is arguably the finest month for Snæfellsnes cycling — the tourist volume is lower than July, the light begins to soften into the golden pre-autumn angle that makes the glacier and coastal scenery particularly photogenic, and the weather is marginally more stable than the midsummer storm-front frequency. September is viable with full wet-weather kit: temperatures drop to 7–10°C, the mountain pass roads see first autumn frost in the second week, and the Kerlingardalsvegur gravel route should be treated as closed from mid-September. The sheltered valleys on the northern Snæfellsnes shore and the Borgarnes lowland roads remain rideable in September in all but the worst weather. October onward: the Snæfellsjökull road closes to normal access and the peninsula south coast route carries real ice risk from mid-October.

Temperature: -12°C (winter) to 16°C (summer)

Insider Tips

The Hvalfjörður tunnel on Route 1 north of Reykjavík is not permitted for cyclists — the tunnel carries high-speed traffic in a confined environment and the ban is enforced. The alternative is the old Hvalfjörður coastal road (Route 47), which adds 55km to the Ring Road route but threads around the fjord on a low-traffic road past the site of the WWII Allied naval base at Hvítanes. This is not a consolation route: the Hvalfjörður fjord road is one of the finest cycling sections accessible from Reykjavík, passing the Glymur waterfall trailhead and delivering views into one of Iceland's deepest and most dramatic fjords. Build it in rather than resenting the tunnel detour.
The Kerlingardalsvegur mountain road on Snæfellsnes crosses the peninsula interior at 380m elevation on a gravel surface that is rideable on a gravel bike but challenging on a road bike with tyres below 32mm. The views from the pass toward the Snæfellsjökull glacier are among the finest on the entire peninsula and the road sees almost no tourist traffic. Check road.is before attempting it: the surface can carry loose aggregate after rain and the pass is closed from October to late May.
Reykjavík Bike Tours (Ægisgarður 7, Grandi harbour, open daily 09:00–18:00 in summer) rents well-maintained Trek and Specialized bikes including gravel models and provides the most current local route information in the city. The staff are experienced cyclists who ride the Snæfellsnes and Þingvellir routes regularly and can brief on current road conditions, wind forecasts, and the specific timing recommendations for the Golden Circle tourist corridor. They also offer bike repair and a limited parts stock — useful for riders whose travel bike has encountered Icelandic road debris.

How to Get to Reykjavík & Snæfellsnes Peninsula for Cycling

Nearest Airports

Keflavík International Airport(KEF)

Transfer: 45 minutes to Reykjavík by Flybus

Keflavík is the sole international gateway and the practical arrival point for all Snæfellsnes and Reykjavík area cycling. The Flybus from the airport to Reykjavík BSÍ terminal accepts bikes in the luggage hold (bike supplement approximately 3,000 ISK; confirm current rate). From BSÍ in central Reykjavík, the Snæfellsnes peninsula base at Borgarnes is 75km north on Route 1 and Route 54 — a half-day ride from the city or a 45-minute drive. For riders assembling bikes on arrival, Örninn Hjólabúð (Snorrabraut 60) offers box assembly with 24 hours' advance booking. The airport car hire operators offer the full international fleet at competitive rates in May and September; July car hire should be booked months in advance.

Getting around: Car Optional — The Reykjavík and Snæfellsnes area is the most car-optional cycling zone in Iceland. The Golden Circle route is a well-established self-supported cycling circuit from a Reykjavík base, with accommodation available at Þingvellir, Flúðir, and Selfoss at manageable intervals. The Snæfellsnes peninsula is longer (240km circuit from Borgarnes) but has regular accommodation in Grundarfjörður, Snæfellsnes village, and Arnarstapi, and the guesthouses on the peninsula are accustomed to cycling guests. A hire car provides the ability to base in Reykjavík and drive to different peninsula starting points, which is the most efficient way to sample the mountain pass climbs without full luggage carry; it also solves the weather flexibility problem on the peninsula's wind-exposed sections. Strætó bus services run from Reykjavík to Borgarnes (70 minutes) and continue to Grundarfjörður (approximately 3 hours total) on weekdays — bikes require advance notice and are subject to space availability.