Last updated September 16, 2026

The Svartá river winding through green farmland beside Varmahlíð, with a red-roofed farmhouse and layered mountains behind

Jakub Hałun / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Varmahlíð

Where to Stay in Varmahlíð Village Center, Varmahlíð

Varmahlíð is small enough that there's only one place to stay: the village itself, clustered tightly around the point where the Ring Road (Route 1) meets Route 75 into the rest of Skagafjörður. The core — filling station, grocery store, restaurant, swimming pool, and Hotel Varmahlíð — covers only a couple of hundred meters. Hestasport's horse farm and cottages sit a short walk further out on the village's edge, about 900 meters from the junction, on a working riding farm rather than in the service cluster itself. There's no second district to compare it against; the whole of walkable Varmahlíð functions as one overnight base.

What it's actually like to stay here

Functional and low-key rather than picturesque — a small cluster of buildings around a road junction, backed by the forested slope of Reykjarhóll hill and opening onto the flat, green Skagafjörður valley in every other direction. It's a working rest stop more than a village with its own streetscape, and its appeal is entirely about what surrounds it: horse farms, open farmland, and mountains on the horizon.

Stay here if

Best for road-trippers who need a compact, no-fuss overnight base with real services at a Ring Road junction, and for anyone who wants an actual connection to Skagafjörður's horse country rather than just driving past it — Hestasport's farm sits right at the edge of the walkable village.

Walkability
Very walkable within its small core — the filling station, grocery store, restaurant, swimming pool, and Hotel Varmahlíð all sit within a couple of hundred meters of each other around the Route 1/Route 75 junction. Hestasport Cottages, on the horse farm at the village's edge, is about 900 meters from that core — roughly an 11-12 minute walk, still comfortably within the village rather than a drive away.
Noise at night
Quiet overall, with light passing traffic on Route 1 through the day that thins out by evening. Rooms directly facing the road can pick up some daytime traffic noise; the Hestasport cottages, set back on the farm, are quieter.

Best Hotels in Varmahlíð Village Center, Varmahlíð

Hotel Varmahlíð

★★★
  • 📍 Best location

Our take The practical, no-nonsense choice for a Ring Road overnight — genuinely the most central address in Varmahlíð, with everything the village offers within a short walk.

Highlights

  • Right at the Route 1/Route 75 junction, walkable to the filling station, shop and pool.
  • All rooms have private bathrooms, a step up from a typical rural guesthouse layout
  • On-site restaurant and bar, so dinner doesn't mean getting back in the car.

What to know

  • The restaurant keeps seasonal hours and is more limited outside summer — worth checking ahead if arriving late or off-season
  • Road-facing rooms can pick up some daytime traffic noise from Route 1
Check availability on Booking.com

Glaumbær III

Our take A farm guesthouse six minutes' drive from the village, next door to the Glaumbær turf houses. Each room has its own bathroom and kitchen, so it works as a self-sufficient Ring Road stop.

Highlights

  • Minutes from the Glaumbær turf-house museum, one of Skagafjörður's main stops
  • Private bathroom and a fully equipped kitchen in each room
  • Terrace with open views across the Skagafjörður valley

What to know

  • This is a guesthouse on a farm, not a hotel — no restaurant, bar or staffed front desk
  • It's a six-minute drive from Varmahlíð, so a car is assumed rather than optional
Check availability on Booking.com

Transportation & practical information

Everything in the village core is a short walk. Onward travel to Glaumbær, Sauðárkrókur, the Route 76 coastal detour through Siglufjörður and Tröllaskagi, and Akureyri is by rental car, since nearly every visitor is passing through on a self-drive Ring Road itinerary.

Varmahlíð is a Ring Road junction more than a destination, and everything worth stopping for is a drive from it — Glaumbær, Sauðárkrókur, and the Route 76 coast road through Siglufjörður and Tröllaskagi. Nothing in the area is reachable on foot.

Frequently asked questions

Is there more than one area to choose between in Varmahlíð?
No — the village is small enough that it functions as a single walkable base, with no separate district to compare it against.
Can I walk to Hestasport's horse farm from the village center?
Yes — it's about 900 meters, roughly an 11-12 minute walk, from the Route 1/Route 75 junction to Hestasport's cottages and reception.
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