Give it two days. Take a morning boat out into Eyjafjörður, where humpbacks are seen year round, then cross the water to soak at the Forest Lagoon. Day two goes east to Goðafoss and Lake Mývatn, both inside an hour's drive. In winter, swap the boat for Hlíðarfjall, the country's largest ski area, five kilometres above town.
Iceland's second town is a fjord port of 20,000 people with a botanical garden, a ski mountain and humpback whales in the water below it. It sits 50 km short of the Arctic Circle, and it is the one place on the ring road that works as a base rather than a stop.
Humpbacks feed in Iceland's longest fjord and are seen here in every month of the year, with minke whales, white-beaked dolphins and porpoise alongside them. Ambassador reports better than 99% sightings and puts you on another sailing free if the water stays empty.
Two heated pools cut into the pine wood on the far side of the fjord, looking straight back at the town and the mountains behind it. A Finnish dry sauna, a cold plunge and a swim-up bar come with the ticket. It stays open until midnight, which makes it the aurora bath from September on.
The Waterfall of the Gods drops in a broad horseshoe off the Skjálfandafljót, named for the lawspeaker said to have thrown his pagan idols into it when Iceland took Christianity in the year 1000. Free, signposted off Route 1, and worth the stop in any weather.
Guðjón Samúelsson's 1940 church stands at the top of a long flight of steps above the harbour, by the architect who later gave Reykjavík Hallgrímskirkja. Inside are a 3,300 pipe organ and a stained glass window centred over the altar.
One of the world's northernmost botanical gardens, 50 km short of the Arctic Circle, holding more than 7,000 plant species across 3.6 hectares. Entry is free. It is fully planted from 1 June to 30 September, and the gates stand open 08:00 to 22:00 through that summer.
Two 25 metre outdoor pools kept warm through the winter, five hot tubs between 38 and 42°C, a steam room, a cold tub and three slides, one of them the longest in Iceland. This is where the town actually spends its evenings, and it costs 1,350 ISK.
Iceland's largest ski area: 23 marked runs and eight lifts over a 537 metre vertical, with the fjord in front of you the whole way down and the longest trail running past 2.5 km. Snow cannons hold the season from late November to early May, and the chairlift also turns in summer for walkers.
The old wool-factory ravine climbing east out of the centre is now the art quarter, with the Akureyri Art Museum at the bottom of it. The museum opened in 1993, one of the youngest in Iceland, and runs contemporary shows across several linked buildings.
The only Icelandic ground inside the Arctic Circle, a cliff-edged island with puffins in summer and a working harbour all year. The Sæfari ferry sails from Dalvík three days a week and takes about three hours each way; flights from Akureyri run daily in summer and three times a week in winter.
A red and white house in the valley south of town that sells Christmas in every month of the year. Entry and parking are free, which makes it a cheap ten-minute detour rather than an outing you have to justify.
The biggest operator on the fjord, sailing from the town pier, and it rebooks you free if nothing surfaces.
A smaller local outfit running three-hour trips out of the same harbour.
The fjord's inhabited island, reached by ferry from Árskógssandur, with marked walks and heavy birdlife in summer.
Two forest pools facing the town across the fjord, with a dry sauna, a cold plunge and a swim-up bar. Open to midnight.
Two 25 m outdoor pools, five hot tubs and the longest water slide in Iceland, for 1,350 ISK.
Iceland's first beer spa, open since June 2017: 25 minutes in warm young beer and live yeast, then 25 in the relaxation room.
Akureyri's second pool, north of the river in Glerárhverfi, and quieter than the main one.
Milky geothermal water on a ridge above Lake Mývatn, an hour east and rarely as crowded as the south.
Contemporary shows across linked buildings at the foot of Listagilið, open since 1993.
Two permanent exhibitions, one on Eyjafjörður from settlement, one on the town on the bay.
The small wooden house, built around 1850, where the children’s author Jón Sveinsson grew up.
A hundred years of Icelandic motorcycling, in an 800 m² hall built for the collection.
Printing presses, lathes, sewing machines and margarine plant from the town’s manufacturing century.
The country’s flying history in a hangar beside the runway at Akureyri Airport.
A top-floor dining room over the harbour, Icelandic and international, and the best view of any table in town.
Local fish and lamb finished with a choice of rubs, and a sushi list built on the same day boats.
European plates in an old timber house, with a fish soup regulars order without reading the menu.
The other name locals give when asked where to eat well, and the other modern Icelandic room.
Breakfast and brunch on Skipagata: waffles, smoked salmon, avocado toast and proper coffee.
The Street Bar: exposed timber, mirrors, couches and a piano anyone is welcome to play.
Einstök's tasting lounge, over forty beers on the list and British football on the screens.
An hour east: pseudocraters, lava fields, Dimmuborgir and the Nature Baths. Give it four to six hours.
78 km north through the Tröllaskagi tunnels, a herring town wedged into a steep fjord.
The Arctic Circle island, three hours by ferry from Dalvík or a short flight from Akureyri.
23 runs, eight lifts and a 537 m vertical five kilometres above town, late November to early May.
Up to 20 km of groomed cross-country track in the woods south of town, 6 km of it floodlit.
The town lights the dark month with concerts, installations and outdoor events.
Iceland's biggest snowboard and music festival, split between Hlíðarfjall and a jump built downtown.
One of the largest motorsport weekends in Iceland: races, drag runs and displays.
An international golf tournament played through the night at the summer solstice.
Concerts, exhibitions and outdoor art across the town for two months.
A weekly recital series under the 3,300 pipe organ.
A music and family festival over the Icelandic bank holiday weekend.
The town's anniversary, marked with a full programme of cultural events.
Just south of the town. Icelandair flies to Reykjavík about 27 times a week and the hop takes 45 minutes, alongside the Grímsey service and seasonal international routes.
The scheduled coach to Reykjavík, 28 stops and roughly six and a half hours end to end. The Akureyri terminus is at Hof on the harbour front.
Every city bus in Akureyri is free, visitors included. Routes run as loops from Miðbær by the square, 06:28 to 22:55 on weekdays and 12:18 to 18:55 at weekends.
The Sæfari sails Dalvík to Grímsey three days a week year round, about three hours each way. The Hrísey ferry crosses from Árskógssandur, 35 km up the fjord.
Strained cultured dairy, closer to fresh cheese than yoghurt, eaten with cream and berries.
Made in Akureyri since 1939, softer than most, and eaten outdoors in any weather.
Fish, potato and onion mashed into a white sauce, served with dark rye and butter.
Bone-in lamb simmered with root vegetables. The broth is the point of it.
Wind-dried haddock or cod, torn into strips and eaten with a thick layer of butter.
Dense sweet rye baked underground by geothermal heat. Buy it in the Mývatn area.
Free-grazed on the highland edge until autumn, then served as chops or slow-roast shoulder.
Fished and farmed across the north, milder than salmon, and often served cold-smoked.
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