The Icelandic Turf House
The Icelandic Turf House
4.5
About
The Icelandic Turf House: the Jewel of Arctic Architecture. The house that kept Icelanders alive and nurtured their culture through the centuries. How they were built, how they were lived in, their origin and cultural context, contemporary significance, subtlety and beauty. Collection of original houses and in detail exhibitions.
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingWhat is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Top ways to experience nearby attractions
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Attractions
15 within 10 kms
Contribute
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
4.5
64 reviews
Excellent
38
Very good
13
Average
6
Poor
7
Terrible
0
Benet T
1 contribution
Oct 2023 • Couples
Highly recommend the restaurant Krisp! Cosy space and outstanding fresh food! We arrived very late in the evening and were made welcome although we think we inadvertently kept them from closing on time.
Written 26 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.
Melissa M
2 contributions
Jul 2016 • Family
The address link given in trip advisor is very wrong.
It's on 264 (Rangárvallavegur), off of 1, just south of Hella. There is a big map on the side of the road.
It's on 264 (Rangárvallavegur), off of 1, just south of Hella. There is a big map on the side of the road.
Written 8 July 2016
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.
Steve F
Bellevue, WA978 contributions
Apr 2017 • Family
We were so glad we took the time to visit here on our drive along Iceland's south coast. It's perhaps 15-20 minutes out of the way from the Ring Road but very worthwhile. We had heard it was closed during the off-season, so we expected to just take a quick walk around the grounds. Upon arriving, we noticed a work party in the nearby fields harvesting turf for maintenance of the buildings. As we walked about, a man approached us and introduced himself as the owner. He had grown up here on his grandfather's farm and had converted it to the museum it is today. Although he confirmed it was not yet open for the season, he invited us to look inside several of the buildings as he told us of his upbringing here without modern conveniences of electricity or running water. It was a fascinating visit.
Written 6 June 2017
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.
KayGoldie
34 contributions
Oct 2016 • Couples
We didn't realise it's only open on Sunday unless you call in advance to arrange a viewing. So whilst it was fascinating to see the outside of the turf house up close, the best we could get of the inside was pressing our noses up against the glass. So don't make the same mistake as us - check the website and call ahead.
Written 14 October 2016
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.
Michael M
Florida29 contributions
Jan 2019 • Couples
Hi, we had a great time visiting this museum. The owner/curator was one of the family members of this property. There were several homes to visit and also a workshop. You can learn about its construction. There owner was gracious and accommodating. It is difficult working and keeping up these homes with 261 days of rain last year. He gave us a cup of coffee at the end of tour. He has many photos of places and homes from around the world. He also treated me to a bag of stinging nettle leaves, (for tea) which I am using today. The cost is only $15 dollars or 1500 Kronas for a 1 1/2 hr tour. This is the best place to visit for your money.
Written 20 January 2019
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.
Linda S
Reading, PA23 contributions
Jul 2017 • Family
Islenski and his wife are fabulous people. They really care about their turf house and the remodeling they have done is absolutely terrific. They really care about their history and it gives you an overall view of how people lived in the past. It also makes you appreciate everything you have and how grateful you are to live in the USA.
Written 25 July 2017
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.
Chris R
4 contributions
May 2017 • Couples
Had a wonderful visit to the museum and we were toured around by one of the volunteers for an hour learning how Icelanders lived. They have s huge range of old photographs and tools from old Icelandic farms as well as a reconstructed tuff and stone farmhouse. Really worth a visit!
Written 17 May 2017
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.
Jellybaby67
Reading, UK722 contributions
Sept 2016 • Couples
We tried to find this and missed it so by the time we arrived, we were told we only had 15 minutes before it closed. Very frustrating considering we stood waiting to be served whilst she chatted for over 10 minutes! We were offered half price admission which was a nice gesture. However, it would have been expensive at full price. We really didn't get to see hardly anything inside so just focused on the turf houses which is what we really came to see. Very interesting and you could certainly spend a long time here as there are lots of artefacts and articles to look at. Allow 2-3 hours I think.
Written 13 October 2016
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.
Joanie_Balonie
Sedona, AZ513 contributions
Aug 2015 • Couples
We booked a day trip through Viator "The Best Golden Circle Gourmet Food Tasting Tour". We were pleased that we had a small group...with a small bus. All of the other travelers in our troupe were friendly and kind. (Sometimes, on these bus tours, you can get stuck with a cranky group of folks.)
Our last stop was at the Islenski Baerinn. Kristin greatly us warmly and then we hustled in the rain to the Turf House. We all were seated in the cozy main room of the house while Kristin told us the history of this homestead. It's an incredible place to see. It makes you wonder how people survived in this home hundreds of years ago.
Thank goodness the rain stopped, so Kristin showed us other areas such as the gardens and a sod-cutting area. Our tour ended in a nice and toasty Exhibit Hall where old photos of other turf houses are displayed. There is also a wall of unique sculptures Kristin's husband Hannes created. (Photo Attached)
Hannes prepared some samples of authentic Icelandic foods, we had dried fish with seaweed, chocolates, hot tea, dried beef with cheese, salmon on bread, sheep pate and skyr (a cream made with curdled milk...I think it tastes better than yogurt!) with berries. (see photo)
All of the folks in our group agreed this was the highlight of today's tour. You need to visit the Islenski Baerinn Turf House if you're in the area
Our last stop was at the Islenski Baerinn. Kristin greatly us warmly and then we hustled in the rain to the Turf House. We all were seated in the cozy main room of the house while Kristin told us the history of this homestead. It's an incredible place to see. It makes you wonder how people survived in this home hundreds of years ago.
Thank goodness the rain stopped, so Kristin showed us other areas such as the gardens and a sod-cutting area. Our tour ended in a nice and toasty Exhibit Hall where old photos of other turf houses are displayed. There is also a wall of unique sculptures Kristin's husband Hannes created. (Photo Attached)
Hannes prepared some samples of authentic Icelandic foods, we had dried fish with seaweed, chocolates, hot tea, dried beef with cheese, salmon on bread, sheep pate and skyr (a cream made with curdled milk...I think it tastes better than yogurt!) with berries. (see photo)
All of the folks in our group agreed this was the highlight of today's tour. You need to visit the Islenski Baerinn Turf House if you're in the area
Written 1 September 2015
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.
Cahurricane
Chesapeake, VA229 contributions
Aug 2015 • Friends
Well we made a valiant effort to find this Turf house, to no avail. We did however find other Turf homes on Route 1 as we traveled SouthEast from Reykjavík.
There we a great example of a Tuft home in Keldur, at the end of a gravel road right on the water near a quaint church. If you have time check it out.
Between the towns of Hella and Hvolsvöllur. Turn on Road 264 from Road 1; the turnoff is almost directly across the road from Hotel Ranga.
There we a great example of a Tuft home in Keldur, at the end of a gravel road right on the water near a quaint church. If you have time check it out.
Between the towns of Hella and Hvolsvöllur. Turn on Road 264 from Road 1; the turnoff is almost directly across the road from Hotel Ranga.
Written 11 August 2015
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.
Hello Kitty! Perhaps if you 'Google' and/or Google Maps: Islenski Baerinn, you'll find it. It's a really cool place!
Written 7 September 2015
Showing results 1-1 of 1
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing