Where to Stay in Reykjavik

★★★★★

Reykjavik's 1930 art deco grande dame on Parliament square — the strongman-built landmark where Iceland's history checked in, now polished deco rooms, the Borg spa, and the city's ceremonial front porch.

★★★★★

Iceland's first true five-star — Ian Schrager's EDITION polish beside Harpa on the harbor, with basalt-and-oak interiors, the rooftop's best-in-city views, a serious spa, and the Tides restaurant's new-Nordic statement.

★★★★★

The design-smart middle path — Hilton's lifestyle brand done Icelandic on Hverfisgata, a block off the main shopping street, with local art, a sauna-equipped gym, bike loans, and the welcome-drink hour that sets the register.

★★★★★

The design hotel on stilts in the lava — a concrete wing hovering over a moss field by Thingvellir, with the Northern Lights Bar's glass corner, a geothermal outdoor pool, and the aurora performing over total darkness.

★★★★★

The Old Harbour's warehouse boutique — raw timber, leather, and harbor-industrial bones above the city's best bakery, with whale boats steps away and the design crowd's favorite lobby soundtrack.

★★★★★

Iceland's biggest hotel, used wisely — a 16-story glass tower of dependable modern rooms where the upper floors buy bay-and-Esja panoramas at mid-market rates, with the Beer Garden downstairs and downtown ten minutes' walk.

★★★★★

The biscuit-factory legend — Reykjavik's design hostel where salvaged-vintage dorms and privates share a sea-view gastropub, live-music nights, and the common room half the city's visitors pass through anyway.