Seydisfjordur in Autumn: The Fjord Town and East Fjords Roads

Why autumn suits Seydisfjordur better than summer

Seydisfjordur sits at the end of Route 93, a 27 km climb from Egilsstadir over the Fardagafoss pass and down past the waterfall Gufufoss into a bowl of mountains. In September the town of roughly 600 people empties out: the Norrona ferry from Hirtshals still calls, but the summer coach crowds are gone and the rainbow-painted road up to the Blue Church is often yours alone. September is the best month overall, with the rowan trees along Nordurgata turning and the first snow usually holding off until late October.

Bring layers rather than an umbrella. Autumn here means 4-9°C, frequent horizontal drizzle and wind funnelling down the fjord, but also long clear spells when the light on Bjolfur, the mountain over the town, turns copper. Daylight drops fast — around 13 hours in mid-September, closer to 8 by late October — so plan outdoor walks for the morning and keep afternoons for the car, the pool or the cafes. Check road conditions daily at road.is and weather at vedur.is before committing to any mountain road.

The drive from Egilsstadir and where to stop

Route 93 from Egilsstadir takes 30-40 minutes in good weather and longer in fog, which is common on the pass above 400 m. Pull in at Fardagafoss for a 20-minute walk to the falls, then again at Gufufoss, where the water drops in tiers beside the road. If you arrive on the morning ferry, Egilsstadir is your first supply stop: it has the region's main supermarket, fuel and pharmacy, and Seydisfjordur itself has limited shopping. Fill the tank before the climb.

From Seydisfjordur, the Ring Road south toward Djupivogur is the easiest East Fjords day trip, around 1 hour 45 minutes one way, passing fjord shoulders and small farms at Breiddalsvik. North toward Borgarfjordur Eystri, the paved road ends and a rough track crosses to a village with puffin cliffs at Alfaklettar and a cafe in season. I would skip the Borgarfjordur detour in a standard two-wheel-drive rental after heavy rain; take it only with a proper 4x4 and time to spare.

What to do in town when it rains

Seydisfjordur is small enough to walk end to end in twenty minutes. The Blue Church, painted in 1922 and reached by the rainbow street, anchors the east bank; the old Norwegian herring-era warehouses along the harbour now hold studios, a workshop and a small cinema. The town swimming pool and the local arts centre give you indoor options when the cloud sits low. The Technical Museum, on the road into town, covers the town's telegraph and herring history and is worth an hour on a wet afternoon.

For food, expect a handful of places open, with autumn hours shorter than summer. Book a table if you are travelling at a weekend, and treat the town's cafe as a lunch stop rather than assuming an evening service. Hotel capacity is small — the cluster of properties near the harbour and up the slope is the whole of it — so book ahead even in October. Given the funnel data showing strong hotel interest but few completed bookings, autumn is the moment to reserve early and lock in a harbour-side room before the winter closures begin.

Practicalities: car, costs and timing

Distances are honest here: Egilsstadir airport, with its links to Reykjavik, is 27 km away, and Akureyri is roughly 260 km around the coast, a four-hour drive in good conditions. Rental cars are cheaper picked up in Egilsstadir than Reykjavik if you are flying in, and autumn rates drop after mid-September. Fuel up in Egilsstadir; the pumps in Seydisfjordur are limited. Ferries run year-round but sail less often outside summer, so check the schedule before building a route around one.

If you have three nights, I would give two to Seydisfjordur and one to Egilsstadir for the ring-road stretch south. Skip the high mountain tracks after the first snow, skip the temptation to day-trip to Dettifoss in low cloud, and treat the town as a place to slow down rather than a base for long excursions. Late September into early October gives you the best balance of open roads, open cafes and autumn colour.