Reykjavik Folklore Walking Tour: Meet the Elves, Trolls & Ghosts of Iceland

Discover the enchanting world of Icelandic folklore on a walking tour through Reykjavik. Encounter elves, trolls, ghosts, and learn about Icelandic magic and storytelling traditions.

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Your Friend In Reykjavik - Meet and greet and start our journey with the Mythical Creatures of Iceland.
  • Skúli Magnússon Sheriff - Our first stop is the oldest graveyard in Iceland which dates back from around 900.
  • Playground - Here we visit some Elves
  • Cathedral of Christ the King - The Trolls of Iceland really don’t like the Church
  • Hólavallagarður - At the 2nd oldest cemetery in Reykjavik, we visit the most famous ghost of Iceland. The Deacon of Dark River.
  • Tjörnin - By the Reykjavik lake we hear stories about Icelandic monsters
  • Reykjavik City Hall - We walk by the Reykjavik City Hall and sometimes we even visit the great map of Iceland discussing locations of Trolls and other creatures.
  • Alþingishúsið - Here we visit the Icelandic Guardian spirits
  • Austurvollur Square - Our final destination of the Icelandic Mythical Walk.
What's Included
  • Professional guide
  • Live entertainment
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Embark on an enchanting stroll through Reykjavik’s oldest district, stepping into the world of Elves and Trolls in Iceland. To discover a unique aspect of Icelandic culture, join us for a visit to the city center’s elfstone and a ghostly stroll through two of Reykjavik’s most ancient burial grounds.

We’ll share eerie tales of well-known phantoms like the Deacon of Dark River, extraordinary Icelandic beasts, the 13 Yule Lads or Icelandic Santas known as Jólasveinar, and Grýla, their infamous child-eating troll mother.

You will also be introduced to the art of Icelandic sorcery (specifically, how to rouse the undead).

With the long, dark winter nights in Iceland, storytelling has always been a fundamental source of amusement. Remarkably, approximately one in every ten Icelanders publishes a book in their lifetime, a testament to our deep-rooted love for weaving tales. Trust us, this spirited walk adorned with a plethora of stories will not disappoint.

  • Children must be accompanied by an adult
  • Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
  • Please be at Ingolfur Square 5 minutes before the starting time
Location
Ingólfur Square
Austurstræti
Your Guide will meet up with you at Ingolfur Square in the center of Reykjavik by the two stone pillars (They are over 3 meters high) The square on Google Maps https://goo.gl/maps/wmKoKvB8YZfC3p8C7 Our expert local guides usually wear a light blue jacket with Your Friend in Reykjavik on the back
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(547 Ratings)
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Daydream53758438193
Sep 1, 2024
Lovely walk around! - Loved this little walking tour! Stefan made it very fun and entertaining. Whether you belive or not, it was a lovely introduction to some of Iceland's folklore and great spots to visit. The beautiful cemetery was the best! I also revisted the secret garden a few times over my stay, to enjoy the sunshine and flowers. Thankyou!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Chayak2014
Aug 27, 2024
Great walking tour - learned so much - Our guide was wonderful. We learned so much about Reykavik, facts and legends. I definitely recommend taking the time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Georgemo5195db
Aug 25, 2024
Great Folklore Tour through Reykjavík! - This was a great tour through the city center looking at the spots that a tourist may miss, especially anything attributed to Icelandic folklore. Mathias was awesome with a great sense of humor, he had a lot of great stories for us!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sarah_c
Aug 6, 2024
Fun and entertaining tour. - Stefan I. was an awesome tour guide; informative, funny, and a great storyteller. Learned a lot, highly recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Nikki77717
Aug 5, 2024
Stories and walk among the older neighbourhoods in Reykjavik - Fun stories were told by an Icelander Páll, as we walked in the old downtown neighbourhoods. He told stories of Elves, trolls, and told us two saga stories.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amy
Sep 1, 2024
Fun walking tour! - We had a really nice time on the walking tour! The stores of the elves, trolls and ghosts (and evil cat!!) were fun. I probably wouldn't recommend for little kids, but older kids would enjoy it. There is a lot of walking and standing, and it was absolutely pouring rain when we went - the show must go on! So just make sure you're prepared no matter what. My only tiny criticism is that the tour guide was a little soft spoken. I'm only 40 and felt hard of hearing! But otherwise, really fun experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Drew_b
Aug 4, 2024
Stephen I - Great time with a great tour guide. Was a good way to get some exercise and explore parts of the city that are less common.
Review provided by Viator
Kateryna_u
Aug 3, 2024
Good but could be better - The tour was interesting but our guide seemed a bit off. We almost had a feeling that he was high. Could be wrong, but overall we had mixed feelings about the tour.
Review provided by Viator
Sheila_m
Aug 8, 2024
Disappointing with a pointless walk - Pointless destinations - like the cemetery just to see all the graves nothing specific. And disjointed stories and anecdotes. Nicely told but whole tour never came together. And too many people -22. .
Review provided by Viator
Erin_c
Aug 2, 2024
Disappointed - We were incredibly disappointed that we spent time and money on this tour. Our food tour was cancelled when our guide broke his leg, and we decided to sign up for this folklore tour instead of visiting a public pool or museum since another member of our group had a wonderful experience earlier in the week. She said it was a small group or four which made it easy to see and hear, and that the stories were entertaining. However, upon arriving, we found out there were 15 other people on the tour in addition to the 3 in our party. This made it difficult to see and hear since not everyone could stand in close proximity while walking. Additionally, this tour had very little to do with folklore. We visited City Hall and saw a map, heard about street signs and houses, and saw a kindergarten. There was one point where our guide told us elves live in the rocks and it’s like a different dimension, and we saw a rock a bit later. We heard one story about a farm women who didn’t like a girl and left her in the house on Christmas while they went to church. This was a five minute story. We also heard briefly about the fact that there were 13 Yule Lads, but that took less than two minutes, and no stories or legends were shared. In fact, we walked through a cemetery at one point which would have been a great opportunity to share a ghost story. Instead we were shown where a relative was buried and told about Icelandic naming practices. As we left, the guide stated, “I could tell you about how to wake the dead, but I don’t feel like it.” What?! This tour was a random walk around Reykjavík and had very little to do with folklore. I’m gutted that we spent so much money to walk around places we could have gone for free without any type of new information or stories. I’m disappointed that we spent our last night in the city participating in this tour rather than one of the many other options that could have been u h more educational or entertaining.
Review provided by Viator
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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