Garðabær, Iceland
Garðabær is a town of 11,421 people in Capital Region, Iceland, founded in 1878.
Why visit Garðabær
Townapedia lists 46 museums and landmarks, 76 parks and trails, 168 places to eat, 21 places to stay and 22 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include National Theatre of Iceland, Reykjavík City Theatre, The Pearl and Hafnarborg.
Weather in Garðabær
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Garðabær
Garðabær (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkarðaˌpaiːr̥] ) is a town and municipality in the Capital Region of Iceland.
From the Wikipedia article Garðabær (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Things to do22
National Theatre of Iceland
Cinema and theater · 6.5 km
Theatre in Iceland
Reykjavík City Theatre
Cinema and theater · 4.7 km
Theatre in Iceland
University of Iceland
School · 5.9 km
Public university in Reykjavik, Iceland
University of Iceland -School of Education
School · 5.5 km
Former college in Reykjavík, Iceland
10 more on the map.
Museums and landmarks46
Gallery 16C
Museum · 3.1 km
Small privately owned Art Gallery and workshop, Sculptures, Paintings, Glass
16C Dalvegur
Icelandic Museum of Design and Applied Art
Museum
Art museum in Garðabær, Iceland
Icelandic Phallological Museum
Museum · 6.7 km
Museum in Reykjavík, Iceland
Icelandic Punk Museum
Museum · 6.5 km
Music history museum in Iceland
Imagine Peace Tower
Monument and historic site · 8.8 km
Memorial to John Lennon near Reykjavík
34 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds76
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64 more on the map.
Restaurants and cafes168
A. Hansen
Restaurant · Steak House · 2.7 km
Vesturgata
Mo-Su 17:00-22:00; Fr-Sa 22:00-03:00 "Karaoke bar on the second floor"
Ara
Restaurant · Pizza, Burger · 4.4 km
1 Búðakór, Kópavogur
Mo-We 11:00-22:00; Th 11:00-23:00; Fr 11:00-25:00; Sa 12:00-25:00;...
Brasserie Kársnes
Restaurant · Regional · 2.8 km
13b Hafnarbraut, Kópavogur
Mo-We 15:00-22:00; Th-Sa 11:30-23:00; Su 11:30-22:00
Eldofninn
Restaurant · Pizza · 4.4 km
Bústaðavegur, Reykjavík
Mo off; Tu-Fr 11:30-21:00; Sa-Su 17:00-21:00
Flatbakan
Restaurant · Pizza · 2.6 km
2 Bæjarlind, Kópavogur
Mo-Th 11:00-20:30, Fr 11:00-21:00, Sa 12:00-21:00; Su 16:00-20:30
Joe & The Juice
Cafe · Coffee Shop · 5.0 km
Miklabraut, Reykjavík
Mo-Fr 08:00-20:00, Sa-Su 11:00-18:00
Krua Thai
Restaurant · Thai · 2.5 km
14 Bæjarlind, Kópavogur
Mo-Fr 11:30-21:00; Sa 12:00-21:00; Su 17:00-21:00
Neó
Restaurant · Pizza · 2.4 km
1 Hagasmári, Kópavogur
Su-Tu 11:00-21:00; We 11:00-23:00; Th 11:00-21:00; Fr-Sa 11:00-22:00
Nü - Asian Fusion
Restaurant · Asian, Coffee
6 Garðatorg, Garðabær
Su-Th 11:30-21:00; Fr-Sa 11:30-22:00
156 more on the map.
History
Garðabær is a growing town in the Capital Region. It is the fifth largest municipality in Iceland with a population of 20,116 (1 January 2025).
The site of Garðabær has been inhabited since Iceland was first settled in the 9th century. Landnámabók, the Book of Settlement, tells of two farms on the site of Garðabær: Vífilsstaðir and Skúlastaðir. The former was named after Vífill, who was a slave of Ingólfur Arnarson, the first settler of Iceland. Ingólfur gave Vífill his freedom and he made his home at Vífilsstaðir.
From the History section of Garðabær on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to stay21
Norðurey Hotel Reykjavík Road
Motel and hotel · 1.5 km
72 Reykjavíkurvegur, Hafnarfjörður
Churches and places of worship30
Digraneskirkja
Church · Lutheran · 2.8 km
82 Digranesvegur, Kópavogur
Fríkirkjan í Hafnarfirði
Church · Independent Lutheran · 2.6 km
8 Linnetsstígur, Hafnarfjörður
Shopping77
Gas and EV charging70
Schools, colleges and libraries52
Healthcare35
Map of Garðabær
250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Reykjavik Airport (RKV) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 5 km away.
- Hafnarfjörður 3 km south, about 3 min by car
- Kópavogur 3 km north, about 3 min by car
- Reykjavík 5 km north, about 5 min by car
- Seltjarnarnes 8 km northwest, about 8 min by car
- Akranes 27 km north, about 27 min by car
- Keflavík 32 km west, about 32 min by car
- Grindavík 38 km southwest, about 38 min by car
- Þorlákshöfn 37 km southeast, about 37 min by car
- Selfoss 48 km east, about 48 min by car
- Borgarnes 50 km north, about 50 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
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Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Garðabær, Ultraago, Public domain
- Iceland-Reykjavik-National-Theatre-1, Guðmundur D. Haraldsson, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Reykjavík University (31811484225), Jeff Hitchcock from Seattle, WA, USA, CC BY 2.0
- University of Iceland - 2013.08 - panoramio, rheins, CC BY 3.0
- Khi-adalinngangur2, Salvör Gissurardóttir, CC BY-SA 2.5
- Hafnarborg- image, Touristlink, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Árbæjarsafn, Steinninn, CC BY 4.0
- Icelandic Phallological Museum visitors, APK, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Iceland - Peace Tower 28 (6571385177), McKay Savage from London, UK, CC BY 2.0
- Öskjuhlíd hill, Reykjavík, Mx. Granger, CC0
- Kópavogur 11, Reykholt, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Iglesia Libre Reikiavik, Reikiavik, Distrito de la Capital, Islandia, 2014-08-13, DD 088, Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Hallgrimskirkja mai 2026, Steinninn, CC BY 4.0
- Hafnarfjördur Frikirkjan, Ypsilon from Finland, CC0
- Kringlan 2023, Eysteinn Guðni Guðnason, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 20190623 Perlan 8841 (48469867211), Ray Swi-hymn from Sijhih-Taipei, Taiwan, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Stadion des FH Hafnarfjörður, SergejPassau, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kópavogsvöllur, Jóhann Heiðar Árnason, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Hlíðarendi stadium, Reykjavík, Raf24~commonswiki, CC BY-SA 4.0
- NAUTHOLSVIK,REYKJAVIK THERMAL BEACH (2715066532), Helgi Halldórsson from Reykjavík, Iceland, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Garðakirkja, Steinn inn ♨, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Lava rocks in a park in the centre of Hafnarfjördur-2, Szilas, Public domain
- Flensborg 738, Steinninn, CC BY 4.0
- Sky Lagoon Exterior, Laurenmcl, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Mjóddin 0975, Steinninn, CC BY 4.0
- Reykjavík iceland hdsr 2019 10 22 9999 86, Hyppolyte de Saint-Rambert, CC BY-SA 4.0
- About Kringlan (8426657991), Helgi Halldórsson from Reykjavík, Iceland, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Gerðarsafn og menningarhús, Ogkelt, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Rútstún-17júní2007, Jóhannes Birgir Jensson, CC BY-SA 3.0
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