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93 km
About 1 h 25 min
Car 1–4 · Van 5–7
Free cancellation 24 h
South coast · from KEF
About Selfoss and the drive
Selfoss is the largest town in South Iceland, built where Route 1 crosses the wide Ölfusá river. It is a practical place to stay: there are supermarkets, restaurants, a swimming pool and plenty of hotels and guesthouses, and it sits at the crossroads between the south coast and the Golden Circle.
The town centre has a newer quarter of rebuilt old-style Icelandic houses with cafés and food halls, and a riverside walk along the Ölfusá. A few kilometres outside town, the churchyard at Laugardælir is the grave of chess champion Bobby Fischer. Down on the coast, the old villages of Eyrarbakki and Stokkseyri are a short drive away.
Your transfer from Keflavík Airport follows Reykjanesbraut towards the capital, then joins Route 1 eastwards over the Hellisheiði plateau and past Hveragerði. After the descent from the plateau the road runs straight across flat farmland to the bridge into Selfoss. Many travellers stay their first night here and pick up a rental car or start a south coast trip the next day; we can drop you at your hotel, a guesthouse, an Airbnb or a rental office in town.
Seasons and roads
Route 1 between Reykjavík and Selfoss is a main road kept open all winter, though the Hellisheiði section can close temporarily in storms; the driver then uses the Þrengsli road.
