The wide curtain of Goðafoss falling into a turquoise pool, with dark basalt cliffs on either side and green hills under a grey sky

Getting married in Akureyri & the North

The North’s small capital at the head of a long fjord, with Goðafoss, Lake Mývatn and the whale-watching harbour of Húsavík a short drive away — and the midnight sun in June.

Photographers When to marry here

Akureyri, a town of about 20,000, sits at the head of Eyjafjörður, a fjord some 60 km long, sheltered by mountains on both sides. East of it, Goðafoss spreads across the Skjálfandafljót river; beyond lies Lake Mývatn, with the lava towers of Dimmuborgir, the pseudocraters of Skútustaðir and the steaming vents of Námaskarð. To the north is Húsavík, on Skjálfandi Bay, often called Iceland’s whale-watching capital, and further east the horseshoe canyon of Ásbyrgi and the waterfall of Dettifoss, in the northern part of Vatnajökull National Park.

Couples come for the light and the space: vows by a waterfall or on the shore of Mývatn, portraits through a June night that never gets dark, then dinner back in Akureyri. Couples from abroad can marry legally in Iceland, before a district commissioner or a registered officiant; others sign the papers at home and hold a symbolic ceremony here.

A road along the shore of Eyjafjörður in low sunlight, golden grass and green fields by the fjord, snow on the mountains across the water

The tail of a humpback whale rising out of the dark blue sea as it dives

Three swans on Lake Mývatn at sunrise, the water and the mist turned gold, low hills dark on the far shore

Through the year

When to marry in Akureyri & the North

The North is drier and calmer than the south and west. At Akureyri rain falls on only about one June day in five, July highs average 15 °C, and the mean wind stays under 4 m/s all year. June brings the midnight sun; July and August are the warmest months and the busiest. May is dry but cool, with snow still on the mountains, and September brings the first northern lights. Winters are cold and snowy, with only about three hours of daylight at the solstice, but bright snow and dark skies suit winter portraits. On calm days in early summer and in August, swarms of harmless midges gather at Mývatn.

January: Quieter
February: Good with planning
March: Good with planning
April: Quieter
May: Good with planning
June: Best
July: Best
August: Best
September: Good with planning
October: Quieter
November: Quieter
December: Quieter

MidsummerAround 21 June the sun barely sets: in Akureyri it slips below the horizon just before one in the morning and is back half an hour later, and at Húsavík it doesn’t set at all. A ceremony or portraits at midnight are entirely possible.
Late summer and autumnWarm evenings into August, whales still in the bays, then darker nights and the first northern lights; in September the heath and the birch woods turn red and gold.
WinterSnow on the town and the mountains, Goðafoss half frozen, skiing above Akureyri and the northern lights over Mývatn — with about three hours of daylight around the solstice.

In numbers

Hottest month, average high: July · 15.1°C; Veðurstofa Íslands
Average high in the best months: Jun 13.7°C · Jul 15.1°C · Aug 14.8°C; Veðurstofa Íslands
Days with 1 mm of rain or more, best months: Jun 6.4 · Jul 7.3 · Aug 7.1; Veðurstofa Íslands

Temperatures: Akureyri, normals 1991–2020 · Rain: Akureyri, normals 1961–1990 · Checked 16 October 2026

Places

Where couples marry here

The kinds of places — ask your photographer which ones they know well.

Goðafoss
The ‘waterfall of the gods’, a wide horseshoe of falls half an hour’s drive east of Akureyri, with paths on both banks: vows by the river, portraits with the spray behind you.
Lake Mývatn
Lava towers at Dimmuborgir, green pseudocraters by the shore, the black crater of Hverfjall and the steaming, ochre ground of Námaskarð — a whole day of portraits within a few kilometres. Mývatn is a protected area: professional shoots and drones may need a permit from the Nature Conservation Agency.
Akureyri and Eyjafjörður
The town’s church at the top of its long flight of steps, the old wooden houses, the botanical garden and the fjord shore; whale-watching boats leave from the harbour all year round.
Húsavík, Ásbyrgi and Dettifoss
Húsavík’s harbour and its wooden church for a boat trip and portraits by the sea, then Ásbyrgi’s horseshoe canyon and the thundering Dettifoss in Vatnajökull National Park, where a wedding needs the park’s permit and drones are banned, except at set hours on the west side of Dettifoss.

Light

How the light falls

In June the sun circles the northern sky and only dips below the horizon for half an hour, so sunset runs straight into sunrise and the golden hour lasts most of the night. The fjord is often calm, a mirror for the mountains. In December the sun rises in late morning and sets before three, never more than about a degree above the horizon — soft blue light over snow, and long nights for the northern lights.

Travel

Getting there

Akureyri’s airport, a few minutes from town, has flights from Reykjavík of about 45 minutes, and some seasonal flights from abroad; by road the town is about 390 km from Reykjavík on the ring road. Through the tolled tunnel under Vaðlaheiði, Goðafoss is about 35 km east, Mývatn about 85 km and Húsavík about 75 km. In winter, check umferdin.is and safetravel.is before every drive.

Photographers