Akureyri Swimming Pool: Geothermal Pools and Winter Soaks
Plan a winter soak at Akureyri Swimming Pool and the Forest Lagoon, with pool temperatures, opening hours, entry tiers and distances from town.
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Akureyri suits winter travelers who want a real town as their base: geothermal water on tap, a compact centre you can cross on foot, and dark fjord-side roads minutes from the lights. The town's swimming culture is part of that appeal, and a hot soak after a cold afternoon outdoors is as much a local habit as a visitor attraction.
Two soaks dominate the choice. Akureyri Swimming Pool is the municipal pool in the centre, open all year, with outdoor lanes, water slides and hot pots running from 5°C to 43°C. The Forest Lagoon is a newer geothermal spa a short drive across Eyjafjörður, built around birch and pine woodland with fjord views.
What Akureyri Swimming Pool offers in winter
Akureyri Swimming Pool is one of the town's most popular attractions and stays open all year. The complex includes two 25-metre outdoor pools, water slides, a splash pool, an indoor pool, hot pots, a cold tub and a steam bath, all heated by natural geothermal water.
Winter is when the outdoor lanes earn their reputation. Steam rises off the water into cold air, and the short daylight window means many visits happen in the dark, with the pool lights on and the mountains around the fjord fading out. The facility is maintained to a high standard and has good disabled access, so it works for swimmers and for travelers who only plan to sit in a hot pot.
Where it sits and how to reach it
The pool is at Skólastígur 4 in Akureyri, about a 10-minute walk from the town centre, which makes it the obvious choice if you are staying downtown without a car.
Listed opening hours run from 06:45 to 21:00, which gives you a pre-dark morning swim or a late evening soak after a northern lights drive. Hours can shift with the season, so match your plan against the pool's own timetable before you set out.
Pools, hot pots and temperatures
The temperature spread is the practical detail to know before you change: water across the complex ranges from a 5°C cold tub to a 43°C hot pot. That range lets you alternate a few minutes in the hottest pot with a cold plunge, the pattern Icelandic bathers tend to follow.
Families with children get slides and a splash pool alongside the lanes, while swimmers get proper 25-metre outdoor lengths. If your priority is laps rather than soaking, go earlier in the day when the hot pots are quieter and the lanes are freer.
Forest Lagoon: pools, sauna and cold plunge
The Forest Lagoon sits in Vaðlaskógur forest opposite Akureyri, with views over Eyjafjörður. It has two geothermal pools: a 530 m² main pool held at 37°C with three swim-up bars and an indoor entrance, and a quieter 330 m² pool at the same temperature.
The Finnish dry sauna runs at roughly 80°C with humidity around 20%, and its windows look over the fjord and surrounding mountains; swimsuits stay on inside. Next to it, a cold pool at 11°C is there for the sauna-and-plunge cycle the spa recommends. A wood-clad bistro with an indoor fireplace and fjord views completes the visit.
Getting to Forest Lagoon from Akureyri
The spa is in Eyjafjarðarsveit, across the fjord from Akureyri, about 3.6 km or a 5-minute drive from the city centre. From Reykjavík the drive is roughly 391 km and around four hours, which matters if you are tacking the lagoon onto a longer ring-road itinerary.
Because it sits outside town, the Forest Lagoon is a car trip rather than a stroll, so pair it with an evening when you already have transport. Travelers without a car should plan a taxi or a ride with their tour operator rather than expect to walk.
Forest Lagoon hours, entry tiers and towel rental
The lagoon opens daily from 10:00 to midnight, with guests required to leave the water at 23:30. Entry is tiered: a warm admission, a calm tier that adds a drink and towel, and a delight tier with two drinks and a towel. Youth aged 13 to 15 and children aged 6 to 12 pay a reduced rate, children five and under enter free, and the last entry for children is 18:30.
Towels are not included in the basic admission but can be rented, and the lagoon accepts Icelandic currency only, so plan your payment before you arrive. Check the booking page for current admission figures rather than relying on older listings.
Choosing between the town pool and the Forest Lagoon
The town pool wins on convenience and cost: you can walk there from the centre, swim proper lanes, use the slides with children and move between a 43°C hot pot and a 5°C tub without booking anything. The Forest Lagoon wins on setting and comfort: forest, fjord views, a dry sauna and a bistro, at a higher entry price and with a drive attached.
Couples and travelers marking an occasion tend to prefer the lagoon's atmosphere, while families watching the budget and swimmers chasing distance get more from the municipal pool. A sensible plan for a short stay is one visit to each, using the town pool on your arrival evening and the lagoon on a clear afternoon.
Winter evenings, cloud and northern lights
Both pools sit close to town, and Akureyri's street lighting washes out much of the sky directly overhead. Geothermal steam also fogs the view on cold nights, so a soak is a poor substitute for a dedicated dark-sky drive if seeing the aurora is your main goal.
Use the pools to warm up before or after chasing. The best odds come from getting away from town lights toward the fjord or inland valleys on a night with broken cloud, since aurora visibility depends on solar activity and clear skies rather than on soaking.
Nearby alternatives for a longer soak circuit
North Iceland has outdoor pools fed by geothermal water in most towns, several with hot tubs and saunas, which makes a pool stop easy to fold into a winter road trip. Akureyri's pool is the most complete in the region, with the widest temperature range and the longest opening season.
If you are driving the Diamond Circle, GeoSea in Húsavík pairs a geothermal soak with Skjálfandi Bay views and is a natural stop on the way to or from the northeast. Compare it with the Forest Lagoon for setting, and with the town pool for value.
How many nights to plan around Akureyri
Allow three nights in Akureyri if aurora viewing matters and you also want a pool visit or two. That gives you room for one cloudy evening spent soaking, one clear evening out chasing, and a spare night for weather that closes in.
Akureyri sits just south of the Arctic Circle, so late-autumn and winter nights are long enough for aurora watching from September through early April. Book the soak for a forecast-clear evening and keep the rest of the itinerary flexible. If you are weighing other bases for the same trip, the northern lights in Iceland guide covers season and viewing spots around the country.
Plan Your Winter Soak
Choose the town pool for walkability, lanes and the widest temperature range; choose the Forest Lagoon for forest setting, fjord views and a proper dry sauna. Both work in winter, and combining them gives you a warm base for evenings spent watching the sky.
Book lagoon entry ahead for holiday periods and bring Icelandic currency or a card that works locally, then confirm the day's opening hours on the operator's page before you drive out. Keep at least one evening free of plans so a clear-sky forecast can redirect you.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far is Akureyri Swimming Pool from the town centre?
The pool is at Skólastígur 4, roughly a 10-minute walk from the centre, so it is easy to reach on foot if you are staying downtown. That makes it the simplest soak option for travelers without a car.
What temperatures are the pools and hot pots at?
Water across Akureyri Swimming Pool ranges from a 5°C cold tub to a 43°C hot pot, with outdoor lanes and a steam bath in between. At the Forest Lagoon the two geothermal pools sit at 37°C, the dry sauna runs around 80°C and the cold pool is 11°C.
Can you watch the northern lights from the pools?
You can look up from the water, but town lighting and rising steam make the pools a weak viewing spot. Better odds come from driving away from Akureyri's lights on a night with clear skies, since auroras depend on solar activity and cloud cover rather than on location alone.
How does Forest Lagoon compare with the town swimming pool?
The town pool is walkable, has proper 25-metre lanes and slides, and covers the widest temperature range. The Forest Lagoon is a short drive across the fjord with forest surroundings, fjord views, a dry sauna and a bistro, and charges more for that setting.
Do I need to book the Forest Lagoon in advance?
Booking online secures your entry slot and lets you choose the admission tier in advance. The lagoon opens daily from 10:00 to midnight, with the last water entry at 23:30, so pick a time that leaves room for the drive back into town.
What should I bring to an Icelandic geothermal pool?
Bring a swimsuit and a towel, since towels are not included in the basic Forest Lagoon admission and can be rented on site. The lagoon accepts Icelandic currency only, so sort out payment before arrival.
Sources
Notes for your Arctic winter trip
Optional updates to our northern lights guides.
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