Reykjavik Maritime Museum
Reykjavik Maritime Museum
4
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Reykjavík Maritime Museum - How the ocean formed a nation A harbour museum exploring Iceland's dramatic relationship with the sea. The survival of a nation depended on generations of brave fishermen heading into the unknown. Over the centuries, methods of catching and working with fish transformed into a science that helped create a modern nation. Exhibitions and artefacts bring our ocean history to life, from battling the waves to the 'Cod Wars' and beyond. Plus the chance to climb aboard the Óðinn, a 900-ton coastguard ship, with its own stories to tell. Guided tours of the Coast Guard Vessel Óðinn:1 PM, 2 PM & 3 PM. Reykjavík Maritime Museum is part of Reykjavík City Museum: One museum in five unique places. Welcome!
Duration: 1-2 hours
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  • Ian K
    Linlithgow, United Kingdom248 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    More interesting than I expected
    With Iceland being a nation known for it's fishing its hardly surprising that there is a museum dedicated to the relationship between it's people and the sea. There is a strong focus on Iceland's fishing industry and it's history and of course on marine life itself. Lot's of models of fishing boats, exhibits of equipment used in navigation and fishing and of fish products. It was more interesting than I thought it would be but frankly if you are pushed for time in Reykjavik don't worry if you miss it as there are more enjoyable museums in and around the city to visit. Rather than pay directly for entry I would suggest that you use the Reykjavik City Card as it grants free entry.
    Visited October 2023
    Travelled solo
    Written 5 October 2023
  • LynnP.
    Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom38 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Excellent museum. Well worth a visit
    Very interesting museum explaining the history of Icelands fisheries. Good exhibits and well worth doing. Not a huge museum but lots of interesting historical pieces supported by interactive and digital touches
    Visited October 2023
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 22 October 2023
  • Robert S
    Seattle, Washington27 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Small but entertaining and unique Maritime Museum!
    If you like ships, or the sea, or fishing, or history—this is a MUST SEE museum. The level of detail (in English and Icelandic placards, as well as very well done videos) was impressive, as was the collection…historic equipment well preserved concerning the maritime history of Iceland. It mostly involves fishing, and its the best museum concerning the commercial fishing industry I’ve ever seen. It took us about 2-2.5 hours to get through….we didn’t look at everything but we did listen/watch about 25% of the excellent videos and looked at each display. There’s a nice looking retired coast guard cutter that has guided tours but, unfortunately, we had to leave to head to the airport. Fantastic museum!!
    Visited January 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 23 January 2024
  • Tattooed-oik
    London, United Kingdom182 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Some fishy business!
    I really enjoyed this. Lots of films, displays, interactive business and games. Good history in short bursts. Nicely laid out and a very reasonable price. Good fun for all ages
    Visited January 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 3 February 2024
  • AK8397
    Ontario, Canada1,018 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Are you Fishing for an Interesting Museum?
    This maritime museum provides a history of the fishing industry in Iceland. It is packed with memorabilia, old equipment, photos and other exhibits. It is pretty specialized, and may not be for everyone, but it is worth listening to the audio presentations on headsets that tell interesting, educational and humorous anecdotes from days gone by. There is also a coast guard boat to visit.
    Visited June 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 27 June 2024
  • 6_Speed_Automatic
    Covington, Louisiana300 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Focus is on the late 19th and 20th century fishing industry of Iceland
    Focus is on the late 19th and 20th century fishing industry which was key to Iceland's survival and culture . Examples of equipment, navigation instruments, boats, nets, gear, and clothing on display. Also, there is a ship on display behind the museum with set time slots during the day. The receptionist made no mention of this which was a bit disappointing for we missed the tour. Takes approximately 2 to 3 hours. Within walking distance of Reykjavik Marina hotel.
    Visited September 2024
    Travelled with friends
    Written 26 September 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles763 reviews
Excellent
285
Very good
310
Average
141
Poor
21
Terrible
6

georger572018
Glasgow, UK231 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
The Maritime Museum located at the old harbour is well worth a visit. Everything you want or need to know about the history of Iceland's fishing industry can be found here. You need at least 2 hours to view the many exhibits, many of which are interactive.
Written 28 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

BillfromKent
Orpington, UK77 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Couples
Fishing is a way of life for the Icelandic people. A visit to this museum helps you understand what it means to them and why they are so successful.

The highlight for us was the additional 1hr tour of the Coastguard Vessel Odin. This really explained the history of the cod wars and gives a good insight into how and why they won.

The shop also had some interesting merchandise, but nothing I’d cheap in Iceland!
Written 22 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alice L
Arlington, MA51 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2021 • Friends
My 6-year old and I spent 2 hours here but we could’ve easily spent another hour. We last visited this museum a few years ago, prior to the “Fish and Folk” exhibit installation. It is excellent. Comprehensive, with lots of interactive features (we took no issue with the audio equipment - it’s been shown that one cannot get transmit COVID on surfaces…the simple solution to reassure oneself is to leave on your mask and wash your hands with soap and water afterwards). It’s a shame to skip those, as storytelling is so central to Icelandic culture. The portion with the fishing accidents is poignant - my kid was in awe of the presentation. We wished we had arrived earlier in the day. Hope to be back again!
Written 6 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Trevor F
Camberley, UK38 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
Visited during our leisure day and it is worthwhile as it does give an insight into Iceland culture, as fishing was, and is, a major part of Iceland's heritage.
Spent about 90-minutes viewing exhibits etc.
Worth a visit
Written 19 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jonnyjubb
Rayleigh, UK241 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2022 • Family
Always on the lookout for something to do when trying to burn time. Thought this would be ideal to spend an hour plus and slightly cheaper than some of the other museums. Sadly though it took us just twenty mins… Not very big and unless you have a real interest in fishing this is just not likely to interest you (even then, I feel this could have been displayed better (more eye-catching/modern styled exhibits)). Free coffee at the end is ok if you don’t want sugar…
Written 15 February 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

amber
8 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020
This was an interactive museum with the opportunity to hear real fishermen's stories. It gave a fascinating insight to the incredibly harsh lives fishermen had, and was full of interesting exhibits as to how equipment, safety and lifestyle of fishing has changed. The tour of the near by coastguard ship involved in the cod wars was really interesting too.
Written 20 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

daspork
Glen Head, NY48 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
Stopped in for a few hours on a recent week’s vacation in Reykjavik. The big marine diesel engine in the window caught my eye and lured me in. The museum is a multi-level history of Iceland’s maritime activity (mostly fishing). Though we didn’t eat there, there’s a café as well for food if you’re interested. All sorts of exhibits from fishing (hooks, nets, methodology etc.), types of fish found in Icelandic waters, diving, all manner of maritime equipment was on display as well from old radar sets to navigation equipment through the years. Very well laid out and informative. We spent a few hours but could have spent more. Only regret is we didn’t get a chance to tour the Coast Guard cutter. I’m sure that would have been especially interesting. It’s easily accessible if you have a stroller, good for kids and visitors of all ages.
Written 22 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Maggie_NHam
Nottingham, UK294 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021
Hmm, well I was disappointed. The audio visuals are in need of an update. There are small tablet sized screens dotted throughout the museum with some quite interesting short films. But there's only one listening device attached to each screen, and there's no means to plug in your own ear phones, so hardly Covid fit! There are no chairs or benches nearby to enjoy the short films. With a bit of fiddling, I managed to get up some English subtitles on some of the screens. It was difficult to hear the listening device as I certainly didn't want to clamp it to my ear. The rooms are boxy so if there are a couple of families whose parents are very LOUD when talking and shouting to the other set of parents, it makes it difficult to hear and spoils the visit somewhat. The kids weren't too bad. There are various interactive things for them to do.

At the museum entrance, there's a big screen showing the previous use of the building in fish processing that looked very interesting, but nairy a chair or bench to sit upon. Overall, a disappointing visit.
Written 17 August 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ParkyYorkUK
York UK20 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2021
Nice and reasonably compact museum, and for someone who reads most of the
accompanying English or Icelandic text, you can easily spend a couple of hours
here.
At the time of my visit the ground/lower ground level exhibition was shipwreck based,with the upper floor having a good history of the fishing industry over the years, and a nice array of accompanying exhibits.

Very enjoyable....

At the time of my visit, The Ooinn Coast Guard Vessel was unavailable for visit, due to the Covid restrictions.

However, For those who enjoy Fish and Chips, The trailer near the Shipyard side, entrance to the Museum serves excellent produce... ( In my opinion )
Written 22 May 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ian K
Linlithgow, UK248 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Solo
With Iceland being a nation known for it's fishing its hardly surprising that there is a museum dedicated to the relationship between it's people and the sea. There is a strong focus on Iceland's fishing industry and it's history and of course on marine life itself. Lot's of models of fishing boats, exhibits of equipment used in navigation and fishing and of fish products. It was more interesting than I thought it would be but frankly if you are pushed for time in Reykjavik don't worry if you miss it as there are more enjoyable museums in and around the city to visit. Rather than pay directly for entry I would suggest that you use the Reykjavik City Card as it grants free entry.
Written 5 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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