The airport at Akureyri in northern Iceland is often called ‘the gateway to the Arctic'. That's because this single runway airfield serves the unofficial capital of Iceland's north and it's just 62 miles south of the Arctic Circle. If you hire a car from Akureyri Airport you'll find the city centre is just two miles to the north. The airport itself occupies a semi-reclaimed strip jutting into the fjord. There's a modern terminal building, car parking and an aviation museum at the site. The F821 road leads from the airport along the side of the fjord to Akureyri itself.
If you hire a car from Akureyri Airport you'll soon see that the town itself stands on the edge of a fjord with mountains in most directions. Note that this is an ice-free harbour sheltered by the heights around it and warmed by the sea currents. Both the town and airport enjoy a surprisingly mild climate. The sights of the area include the ski facilities at Hlíðarfjall and the old medieval remains at the village of Gásir, while visitors to Akureyri itself enjoy the unlikely sub-Arctic attractions: the most northerly public Botanical Gardens and world's most northerly 18-hole golf course.
