Geographically the town of Siglufjörður is an isolated place.  It is a narrow fjord surrounded by steep mountains. The first road built to connect Siglufjörður to the main road was in 1940 when the Siglufjörður mountain pass opened.  But all this has changed dramatically in recent years with a new tunnel from Ólafsfjörður village from the east side, a new hotel, modern restaurants, and large projects aimed at attracting tourism to this beautiful old fishing town. A place to have in mind if you are looking for a place to stay or a place to visit when planing a vacation in Iceland.  Although mentioned in the Book of Settlement, settled by Þormóður Rammi, Siglufjörður is seldom mentioned up until the middle of the 19th century when it began to develop into a village.  On the other hand, the location has its advantages.  For centuries, it was surrounded by valuable natural resources, particularly in the ocean.  It was a short distance from rich fishing grounds, often packed with cod and herring.

The center of the Herring frenzy

In the late 19th century and the beginning of the 20th-century, Siglufjörður had some lively trading, and Norwegian entrepreneurs started their first shark catching venture in Siglufjörður.  Understanding the value and volume of the massive Herring stock they also started a Herring venture, and Siglufjörður became the primary place of their herring operation; this marked the beginning of the town’s growth and highly fascinating history.  Icelanders quickly learned the value of the Herring stock and also started their ventures in that industry.  In the first decades of the 20th-century factories for herring-meal production were built left and right, both in the village and on the other side of the fjord.  The business was highly profitable, and Siglufjörður became a kind of Klondike town, and the population exploded in the thirties throughout the forties.

Siglufjörður is becoming one of the most excited urban tourist attractions in Iceland

Today the town is not as isolated as in the past and is connected to the main road with two tunnels, one from the west and one from the east.  This makes Siglufjörður a perfect place to visit and drive through. The town is one of those highly attractive towns in Iceland that people should visit. In the last century, the town has experienced dramatic changes that can be viewed in the Herring Museum.  At one point, it was the busiest place in Iceland during summer and the center of the booming herring industry. At that time, it was the most populated are in the whole country floating with herring entrepreneurs, workers, ships and everything that made up the herring boom. Today it is being transformed into an exciting tourist attraction in an interesting way.  A considerable amount of funds is being devoted to hotels, restaurants, ski lifts, golf courses, and museums.  The residents are renovating some of the old houses, and the town has finally managed to clean up all the docks that companies built in the thirties and the forties when the herring boom dominated the town.

Today a part of Fjallabyggð municipality

Siglufjörður is now part of the Fjallabyggð municipality after merging with its neighboring town Ólafsfjörður.  The Fjallabyggð municipality offers good service with two kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, excellent sports facilities and two swimming pools. Most of the houses were built in the thirties through the sixties, and the houses are heated with geothermal heating. The town has excellent healthcare and good service for the elderly.  Siglufjörður also has excellent sports facilities and one of the best skiing slopes in Iceland.

If you are going to visit the Northern Region in Iceland you might be looking for a places to stay. Here you can book from a selection of accommodationin the Siglufjörður region.

Below is the location of Siglufjörður on the map of Iceland