Herjólfsdalur

Heimaey


Sheltered by an extinct volcano, green and grassy Herjólfsdalur was the home of Vestmannaeyjar's first settler, Herjólfur Barðursson. Excavations have revealed the remains of a Norse house where a replica now stands. The island’s campsite is also here.

On the cliffs west of the golf course, there’s a little monument to the 200 people who converted to Mormonism and departed for Utah in the 19th century.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Heimaey attractions

1. Stóraklif & Heimaklettur

0.49 MILES

The top of the craggy precipice Stóraklif is a treacherous 30-minute climb from behind the N1 petrol station at the harbour. The trail starts on the…

2. Sæheimar

0.76 MILES

The Aquarium & Natural History Museum has an interesting collection of stuffed birds and animals, videos on puffins and catfish, and fish tanks of…

3. Landskirkja

1 MILES

The lava from Heimaey's historic explosion stopped just short of the Landskirkja in the middle of town. The church’s carved wooden doors feature scenes…

4. Public Park

1 MILES

A nice square to come and eat a picnic or relax in on sunny days. It has a children's play area, including a very fun permanent bouncy trampoline.

5. Sagnheimar Byggðasafn

1.01 MILES

Housed in the city library, this interactive folk museum tells the story of Heimaey from the era of marauding pirates up to the 1973 eruption and beyond…

6. Skansinn

1.14 MILES

This lovely green area by the sea has several unique historical sights. The oldest structure on the island, Skansinn was a 15th-century fort built to…

7. Stafkirkjan

1.18 MILES

The bitumen-coated Stafkirkjan is a reconstruction of a medieval wooden stave church (the exact design of the Holtdalen stave church in Trondheim, Norway)…

8. Landlyst

1.19 MILES

Shockingly, three out of four of Heimaey’s babies once died of tetanus, due to water deficiency and contaminated soil. In the 1840s an island woman,…

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