SeasonMapAkureyri weather by month
Iceland
The best time to visit Akureyri is June to August — 84/100 in July, 16°C and 16 rainy days. The best season is summer, June to August (81/100 on average).
The worst month is December at 28/100 — freezing, rainy, clean air. See December →
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Iceland →
Akureyri, month by month
Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Akureyri is best for, the average high, rainy days and hours of sun a day from the climate normals, and how busy it tends to be.
| Month | Score | Tier | High | Rain | Sun | Crowds | On |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JanJanuary | 31 | F | 2°C | 18 d | 1 h | Busy | 3 |
| FebFebruary | 40 | F | 3°C | 17 d | 3 h | Busy | 2 |
| MarMarch | 49 | F | 4°C | 17 d | 6 h | Peak | 3 |
| AprApril | 68 | C | 7°C | 13 d | 9 h | Peak | 3 |
| MayMay | 76 | B | 11°C | 13 d | 11 h | Shoulder | 1 |
| JunJune | 80 | A | 14°C | 17 d | 11 h | Busy | 3 |
| JulJuly | 84 | A | 16°C | 16 d | 9 h | Busy | 3 |
| AugAugust | 78 | B | 15°C | 15 d | 8 h | Peak | 3 |
| SepSeptember | 64 | C | 12°C | 19 d | 6 h | Shoulder | 2 |
| OctOctober | 52 | D | 7°C | 19 d | 3 h | Busy | 1 |
| NovNovember | 38 | F | 4°C | 17 d | 1 h | Quiet | 1 |
| DecDecember | 28 | F | 2°C | 19 d | 0 h | Busy | 3 |
What's on in Akureyri through the year
Festivals, natural spectacles, holidays and the seasons to watch out for — curated and sourced. The month pages carry the detail.
- March
- Iceland Winter Games15 Mar – 1 Apr (usually)Festival
- May
- Whales in Eyjafjordur1 May – 30 Sep (usually)Nature
- June
- Listasumar arts summer15 Jun – 25 Aug (usually)Festival
- Arctic Open golf20 Jun – 2 Jul (usually)Festival
- August
- Akureyrarvaka24–31 Aug (usually)Festival
- September
- Aurora season1 Sep – 10 Apr (usually)Nature
- December
- Christmas market and New Year fire1 Dec – 1 JanFestival
- Hlidarfjall ski season15 Dec – 25 Apr (usually)Season
Crowds in Akureyri in July
How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.
BusySummer holidays in Iceland, school holidays in 7 of the markets that fill it(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Good to know before you go to Akureyri
Real experiences from travellers' own write-ups, quoted with a link to the original.
Visas & entry
A guide to Iceland's second city recommends staying at least 2 days and 3 nights, since Akureyri works best as a base for exploring the wider region rather than a quick stopover, with the Diamond Circle, a 260-kilometer scenic loop between Húsavík and Lake Mývatn, as the standout day trip worth the extra time. Their seasonal advice: June through August brings the most reliable weather and near-endless daylight from the midnight sun, while September through April offers northern lights viewing with noticeably less light pollution than Reykjavík.