In our other guide to Reykjavík, we spent some time exploring the landmarks and neighborhoods of this great city, but that only one piece of the puzzle. There’s more to Reykjavík than meets the eye.
Reykjavík is a city with a growing reputation. And while it is certainly a beautiful place, for many, aesthetics are not the main draw; it’s the nightlife. Throughout my travels, I’ve received a lot of information in passing from my fellow travelers, and when it comes to Reykjavík, I pretty much only ever hear people talk about its nightlife. So I’m here to see what all the buzz is about! I was expecting a strange, post-Viking, Girl-With-The-Dragon-Tattoo-esque brand of nightly festivities… but that wasn’t quite what I got. Now that I’ve visited Reykjavík for myself, I’m a little disappointed that it’s nightlife has eclipsed the rest of what this vibrant city has to offer, but I can understand why.
WHY IS EVERYONE TALKING ABOUT REYKJAVÍK’S NIGHTLIFE?
Reason #1
First of all, Reykjavík is FUN! It’s a really cool atmosphere, and Icelanders go hard. Most bars in Reykjavík will stay open until whenever people start leaving, and this usually won’t start happening until sunrise. I had a great time hopping from bar, to club, to bar until the wee hours of the morning, and I wasn’t the only one. Drinking along side me were a diverse mix of Icelanders and foreigners who never failed to keep my night interesting. I’d be excited to go back!
Reason #2
Second, Reykjavík has become a common stop-over destination for many transatlantic flights. Travelers on these flights will often build an extra day into their layover to explore Reykjavík. Still, many others will visit for one night only. And what else are they going to do? It’s a great last hurrah for any Euro-trip.
Reason #3
Third, (and this is where things get a little sleazy), Reykjavík is becoming known as a good place for a one-night stand. Why?
- Urban Reykjavík is cultivating an extremely progressive culture wherein the shame associated with promiscuity, that is typical of other cultures, is fading away. Indeed, many young locals do not view their sexuality and their morality as being intertwined. This doesn’t necessarily translate to a higher level of sexual activity amongst them, but it does provide a shame-free environment for travelers to escape to, if only for one night.
- As discussed before, Reykjavík is often a lay-over city. This means that many people who come here can act with relative anonymity.
- Also, Icelandic people are pretty gorgeous. Each one of them is a picture of blond/blonde, Aryan perfection. It’s a little intimidating.
Is this good or bad? The jury is still out on that. On the one hand, I like the idea of there being a place with such drastically different ideas about what sex is supposed to mean. These sorts of cultural dissonances fascinate me. But on the other hand, this has attracted a small but growing culture of psuedo-sex tourism, and that never leads to anything good. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.
But one thing is for damn sure: stumbling out of a club in the middle of the night in broad daylight is severely disorienting. Having arrived about a month after the summer solstice, most of my drinking was done in an odd, perpetual twilight, as the sun refused to fully set. And by the time Winter comes around, residents of Reykjavík will live in non-stop darkness. It's an interesting quirk of Iceland's northerly location.