Súgandisey Island & Lighthouse: A 15-Minute Walk from Stykkishólmur Harbour

The Easiest Panoramic View in Stykkishólmur

Súgandisey is a small basalt islet tethered to Stykkishólmur harbour by a rock causeway, and it is about as low-effort a viewpoint as Iceland offers. From the harbour front, the causeway crossing and the walk up to the lighthouse take roughly 15 minutes at an easy pace. No car, no boat, no ticket booth — just a footpath and a set of steps.

The Lighthouse and the Climb

The small orange lighthouse on top of Súgandisey has stood there since 1948; its lantern mechanism is older still, moved from a previous posting and now considered one of the oldest lighthouse fixtures still in service in Iceland. Getting to it means a short but genuinely steep climb up a staircase cut into the basalt columns that form the island’s cliffs. The stairs are the only real effort involved, and they’re over quickly.

What You See From the Top

The payoff is a 360-degree view over Breiðafjörður, the wide bay scattered with skerries and islands that separates the Snæfellsnes peninsula from the Westfjords. On a clear evening this is one of the better sunset spots in town, and in summer, when the sky never fully darkens, it draws a steady trickle of visitors well past 10pm for the midnight sun. Below, the harbour, the old wooden warehouses, and the colorful roofs of Stykkishólmur’s town center lay out in miniature.

• Getting there: On foot from Stykkishólmur harbour via the causeway; no vehicle access to the island
• Duration: About 15 minutes each way, plus time at the top
• Cost: Free, open access year-round
• What to bring: Sturdy shoes for the stone steps; a windbreaker, since the exposed clifftop catches wind off the bay
• Best time: Early morning for quiet light, or late evening in summer for sunset and midnight sun

Where to Stay

The Stykkishólmur Inn sits in the walkable old town, close enough to the harbour that Súgandisey is a genuine before-breakfast or after-dinner walk rather than a planned excursion — leave your car keys in the room and head straight down to the causeway. Book direct on Ourhotels.is for the best rate.

Photo: Dreizung via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0.