Best time to visit Reykjavík

July is the best month in Reykjavík, scoring 51 out of 100, with December the weakest at 13. The 38-point spread means timing is worth planning around without being decisive. The good window runs June to August — 3 months within ten points of the best.

July is the warmest month at 13.9 °C and January the coolest at 2.1 °C — a 11.8 °C spread across the year. It never reaches 30 °C in an average year, which takes heat off the list of reasons to avoid any particular month. At the other end, 98 nights a year fall below freezing: the winter here is a real one.

There is a real wet season here. January, September and December carry the rain — up to 22 wet days in a month — while May to July drop as low as 15. That 7-day gap is the biggest single difference between a good month and a bad one in Reykjavík, and it moves further than the temperature does.

The sea peaks at just 12 °C, which is wetsuit territory even at its warmest — a coast to look at rather than swim in. Daylight swings hard — 21 hours at midsummer against 4.3 at midwinter. That 16.7-hour difference changes how much fits into a day more than the temperature does.

The three strongest months are July, June, August. The one to think twice about is December. Each month below has its own page with rainfall reliability, extremes, daylight, sea temperature and crowd levels.

Reykjavík month by month