Christmas in Iceland

Bored with the same holiday routines every year? Shake things up, and head to Iceland, where Christmas celebrations are among the most festive and elaborate in the world.

The celebration of Christmas, known as “Yule” or “Jól,” begins on Christmas Eve at 6 p.m. and lasts through the Twelfth Night, or The Epiphany, on Jan. 6^th. Celebrations in Iceland are an interesting mix of religious practice and traditional folklore. If you visit during the holidays, you’ll learn about the 13 Yule lads, elves that visit in the 13 days before Christmas, each bringing unique mischief. Kids put a shoe in the window at home hoping for gifts from the Yule lads during the night. If the children have behaved well they’ll wake up to find a little gift in their shoe but if they’ve been naughty, they find an old potato.

The arrival of the holidays brings a flood of decorations, festive music and celebration to the country’s cities and towns. Due to Christmas falling in the darkest time of the year, Iceland puts a large emphasis on lights during the holiday season, with city squares, homes and harbors brightly lit up in colorful lights.

Iceland’s usual buzzing culinary and bar scene provides an ever greater sense of celebration in December, with holiday-themed menus, specially brewed seasonal ales and mulled wines.

In the days leading up to Christmas, Reykjavik offers concerts and events, pop-up stores, Christmas villages in Old Harbor, downtown Hafnarfjörður and in the Laugardalur valley and an ice rink in Ingólfstorg Square. Visit the Árbær Open Air Museum to learn about Iceland’s historic Christmas traditions.

Iceland, a natural winter wonderland, is the ideal place to celebrate the holidays. As it is a such a quickly growing holiday destination, you’ll want to book hotels and restaurant reservations well in advance if you plan on staying Dec. 24–26.