How to Get to Lake Mývatn From Akureyri and Reykjavík
Lake Mývatn sits 100 km east of Akureyri on Route 1, which is about 75 minutes of paved, plowed road. From Reykjavík it is 480 km and six to seven hours, or a 45 minute flight to Akureyri and the drive from there. There is a public bus, and it solves half the problem: it puts you in Reykjahlíð and leaves you 30 km from most of the sights with nothing to close the gap. Here is every way in, what each takes and which one fits the trip you are actually on. The Lake Mývatn tours that include the driving are compared on the homepage.
Quick answer
The main way to Lake Mývatn is Route 1 east from Akureyri: 100 km, about 75 minutes, paved and open all year. From Reykjavík it is 480 km and six to seven hours of driving, or a 45 minute flight to Akureyri plus the drive. Strætó route 56 stops at Reykjahlíð with a couple of departures a day. Guided day trips from Akureyri run 6 to 7 hours and cost $132 to $211.
Key takeaways
- Akureyri to Reykjahlíð: 100 km, 75 minutes, Route 1, paved and plowed year round
- Reykjavík to Mývatn: 480 km, 6 to 7 hours by road, or fly to Akureyri in 45 minutes first
- Húsavík is 50 km north and Dettifoss about 50 km northeast, both on the Diamond Circle
- Strætó route 56 between Akureyri and Egilsstaðir stops at Reykjahlíð in about 80 minutes, a couple of runs a day
- The bus reaches the village, not the sights, which are spread over 30 km of road with no local transport
- Guided departures from Akureyri solve the last-mile problem for $132 to $211 per person
Every Route In
Compared
Distances are to Reykjahlíð, the village on the northeast shore where the fuel, food and beds are.
| From | Distance | Time | How | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akureyri | 100 km | 75 min | Route 1 east | Paved, plowed all year |
| Akureyri, by bus | 100 km | About 80 min | Strætó route 56 | A couple of departures a day |
| Húsavík | 50 km | 45 min | Roads 85 and 87 | Whale watching harbour |
| Egilsstaðir | 165 km | 2 h | Route 1 west | The eastern approach |
| Reykjavík | 480 km | 6 to 7 h | Route 1 north then east | A ring road leg, not a day trip |
| Reykjavík, flying | 45 min in the air | Half a day door to door | Flight to Akureyri plus the drive | Domestic terminal, not Keflavík |
| Dettifoss | 50 km | 50 min | Road 862 | Northeast, on the Diamond Circle |
Driving from Akureyri
Leave town on Route 1 heading east. The road climbs out of the fjord, crosses open heath and passes Goðafoss at the 45 km mark, where the car park sits right beside the road and costs nothing. From there it is another 50 km to Reykjahlíð.
The whole route is paved and stays plowed through winter, though wind closes sections at short notice between November and March. Check road.is on the morning you travel. Once you arrive, road 848 loops the lake and links most of the sights, all within 20 minutes of the village.
Driving from Reykjavík
Six to seven hours on Route 1, either clockwise through Borgarnes and Akureyri or anticlockwise along the south and east coasts. Nobody sensible does it as a day trip. It works as a leg of a ring road itinerary with a night in Akureyri or at the lake itself.
If the point is Mývatn rather than the drive, fly. Domestic flights from Reykjavík city airport reach Akureyri in about 45 minutes, and a rental collected at the airport there puts you at the lake an hour and a quarter later.
What each way in costs
Prices are per person for a day at the lake from Akureyri, since that is where nearly everyone starts. The fuel figure assumes a small car over the 200 km round trip, and a rental day sits on top of it whichever way the arithmetic falls.
| Way in | Cost per person | Reaches the sights | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheapest guided day | $132 | Yes, four stops | Solo travellers, no car |
| Most reviewed guided day | $181.05 | Yes, four stops with lunch | First visit, biggest sample |
| Seven-hour day with the lagoon | $210.66 | Yes, five stops plus water | Cruise passengers with time |
| Rental car, two sharing | Rental day plus about 20 L of fuel | Yes, all nine including Krafla | Two or more, full day |
| Strætó route 56 | Bus fare only | No, village only | Overnight stays with a bicycle |
| Flight plus rental from Reykjavík | Flight plus rental day | Yes | Anyone short on days |
The Bus, and Its Limits
What Strætó route 56 does
The 56 runs between Akureyri and Egilsstaðir and stops at Reykjahlíð. The journey takes about 80 minutes from Akureyri, and departures are limited to a couple a day, fewer in winter. It is a real service used by people who live here, not a tourist shuttle.
What it gives you is a seat to the village. What it does not give you is any way to reach Dimmuborgir, Hverfjall, Hverir or Grjótagjá, which sit 5 to 17 km away along road 848 with no local transport, no shuttle and no taxi rank.
Making the bus work
It works if you are staying two nights at Reykjahlíð and willing to walk or cycle. Bicycle hire in the village covers the lake loop, and the ride to Dimmuborgir takes about 40 minutes on quiet paved road.
It does not work for a day trip. Arrive at 17:57 on the afternoon service and everything is 10 km away with the light going. Anyone without a car and on a schedule should take a guided day trip from Akureyri instead, which costs less than most people expect and includes the last mile.
Arriving by cruise ship
Akureyri takes ships at two piers, Tangarbryggja and Oddeyrarbryggja, and both sit within a ten minute walk of the square where the tour buses wait. Meeting points cluster on Laufásgata and at the Gránufélagsgata car park, all in the same few blocks behind the terminal.
The one recurring problem on port days is people walking the wrong way at the start, which several reviewers have written about after the fact. Screenshot the meeting point before you lose signal on the gangway. Ships call between May and September, and on days with two in port the morning departures fill first. Four operators run shore excursions timed against sailing, two of them with a written return guarantee, which is the one thing a taxi cannot offer you on a road this long.
Which Way In
If You are staying in Akureyri with no car
A guided day trip. It costs $132 to $211 and includes the last mile
If You have a rental and two or more people
Drive Route 1 and loop the lake on road 848
If You arrive by cruise ship
A port excursion timed against sailing, meeting a short walk from the pier
If You are coming from Reykjavík for Mývatn alone
Fly to Akureyri in 45 minutes, then drive or take a tour
If You are driving the ring road
Stop for two nights at Reykjahlíð rather than passing through
If You have no car and two spare days
Bus 56 to Reykjahlíð, sleep there, hire a bicycle for the lake loop
Where the Lake Sits in a Bigger Trip
The Diamond Circle
The northern route links Goðafoss, Lake Mývatn, Dettifoss, the Ásbyrgi canyon and the whale watching harbour at Húsavík. Húsavík is 50 km north of the lake and Dettifoss about 50 km northeast on road 862.
Driven as one day it gives you twenty minutes at each stop and a lot of windscreen. Split over two days with a night at Reykjahlíð, it is one of the better routes in Iceland. The guided Lake Mývatn day trips take the western half deliberately: Goðafoss and the lake, with the north coast left for another day.
Fuel, food and the last services
Reykjahlíð has the fuel station, a supermarket and cafés. Between Akureyri and the lake there is Goðafoss and very little else, so fill the tank in town if you are under half. Cards work everywhere, including at unattended pumps, where you will want a card with a PIN rather than a signature.
Arriving by air
Akureyri airport sits three kilometres south of the town centre, on the fjord, and takes several flights a day from Reykjavík city airport. The hop takes about 45 minutes and lands you 100 km from the lake with the car rental desks in the terminal.
International arrivals land at Keflavík, 50 km from Reykjavík and 480 km from the lake, so anyone flying in from abroad either drives the ring road over several days or connects to a domestic flight. Akureyri also takes a handful of direct seasonal international services, which changes the maths for anyone planning around the north.
Driving in winter
Route 1 is a priority plowing route and stays open through the cold months, but open is not the same as easy. The pass east of the lake ices over, wind picks up loose snow and drops visibility inside a minute, and daylight runs from 3.2 hours in mid December to 8.1 by mid February.
The habit worth copying from people who live here is checking road.is in the morning rather than the night before, since conditions change overnight and the site colours each section by what the plows have actually done. Rental agreements in Iceland exclude damage from wind-caught doors and blowing sand, both of which are real. If the forecast is ugly and your dates are fixed, the winter departures run the same road with someone who has driven it in the dark since 2014.
Our recommendation
🎯 Fly to Akureyri, decide about the car there
The mistake is driving 480 km from Reykjavík for a lake you will spend six hours at. Fly north in 45 minutes and you gain most of a day.
Once in Akureyri the choice is simple: two or more people in summer should rent and drive, since the self-drive route reaches Krafla and lets you stay past the coaches. Solo travellers and anyone visiting between November and March should take a guided seat, which costs less than a rental day and comes with somebody who has driven that pass in the dark before.
Getting There Questions
How far is Lake Mývatn from Akureyri?
About 100 km east on Route 1, roughly 75 minutes without stops. The road is paved the whole way and plowed through winter. Goðafoss sits at the 45 km mark and makes the natural halfway stop.
How do you get from Reykjavík to Lake Mývatn?
Drive 480 km on Route 1, which takes six to seven hours, or fly to Akureyri in about 45 minutes from the city airport and drive the last 100 km. Flying is what most people do when the lake is the destination rather than the road.
Is there a bus to Lake Mývatn?
Strætó route 56 between Akureyri and Egilsstaðir stops at Reykjahlíð, about 80 minutes from Akureyri, with a couple of departures a day. It reaches the village but not the sights, which lie 5 to 17 km along road 848 with no local transport.
Can you get to Lake Mývatn without a car?
Yes, on a guided day trip from Akureyri. Nine of them run, they cost $132 to $211 for 6 to 7 hours, and they include the driving between sights that the public bus cannot solve. The alternative is two nights in Reykjahlíð with a hired bicycle.
How long does the drive take in winter?
The same 75 minutes in good conditions, longer in snow, and occasionally not at all when wind closes the road. Route 1 is a priority route for plowing. Check road.is on the morning you travel rather than the night before.
How far is Mývatn from Húsavík and Dettifoss?
Húsavík is about 50 km north, roughly 45 minutes, and Dettifoss about 50 km northeast on road 862. Both belong to the Diamond Circle along with Goðafoss and Ásbyrgi, and both need their own half day.
Where should I stay if I do not want to drive back?
Reykjahlíð on the northeast shore has hotels, guesthouses and a campsite, with farms and larger hotels spread around the south shore. The where to stay guide compares them, and what to bring covers the rest of the day.