Iceland Luxury Cruises

Sprawling Reykjavík, the nation's nerve centre and government seat, is home to half the island's population. On a bay overlooked by proud Mt. Esja (pronounced eh-shyuh), with its ever-changing hues, Reykjavík presents a colourful sight, its concrete houses painted in light colours and topped by vibrant red, blue, and green roofs. In contrast to the almost treeless countryside, Reykjavík has many tall, native birches, rowans, and willows, as well as imported aspen, pines, and spruces.

Seyðisfjörður, a beautiful 19th-century Norwegian village on the east coast of Iceland, is regarded by many as one of Iceland's most picturesque towns, not only due to its impressive environment but also because nowhere in Iceland has a community of old wooden buildings been preserved so well as here. Poet Matthías Johannessen called Seyðisfjörður a 'pearl enclosed in a shell'.

Akureyri, called the Capital of the North, is the second largest urban area in Iceland and a lively one at that. Hemmed by the 60-km (37-mile) long Eyjafjörður, Akureyri is sheltered from the ocean winds and embraced by mountains on three sides. Late 19th-century wooden houses impart a sense of history, and the twin spires of a modern Lutheran church rising on a green hill near the waterfront, provide a focal point. To the south of Akureyri is the pyramid-shape rhyolite mountain Súlur.

Situated in the southeastern part of Iceland, the little town of Djupivogur is one of the easiest spots in Iceland to reach from northern Europe. Evidence of this is apparent in the presence of a trading post built here as early as the 16th century. In the modern era, fishing is still important, but tourism is increasing more and more. Nearby Bulandsnes has a renowned bird sanctuary, and Papey Island just slightly to the east is home to large colonies of Atlantic Puffins.