6 Best Sights in City Center East, Reykjavík

This tinier-than-tiny museum is crammed into what used to be a set of public bathrooms at the bottom of a stairwell right off a city sidewalk. Somehow it all seems fitting for a museum focused on punk rock. Photos, posters, handbills, equipment, and instruments line the walls and displays at this subterranean memorial to one of the country's favorite music genres.

This historic house stands out for both its architectural and historical importance. It was here, in 1986, that President Ronald Reagan and President Mikhail Gorbachev met and officially marked the end of the Cold War. The house is not open to visitors, but it's worth spending some time exploring the exterior.

Ingólfur Arnarson is renowned as the first Nordic settler in Iceland. Beyond this statue lies the city's architectural mélange: 18th-century stone houses, small 19th-century wooden houses, and office blocks from the 1930s and '40s.

Many graduates from the country's oldest educational institution, established in 1846, have gone on to dominate political and social life in Iceland. Former president Vigdís Finnbogadóttir and numerous cabinet ministers, including Iceland's former prime minister, Gunnlaugsson Davíð Oddsson, are graduates, as are film producer Hrafn Gunnlaugsson and well-known author Þórarinn Eldjarn.

This steel sculpture resembling a Viking ship is hard to miss as you drive along the water in Reykjavík. If you're traveling on Sæbraut, you'll see it on the water right before you hit the Harpa Concert Hall (when traveling east to west). The Sun Voyager was created by local sculptor Jón Gunnar Árnason. The original intention was to create a dreamlike boat that appears to float off into the sun. If you visit during sunset, you'll feel immediately transported.

With a focus on Icelandic artists, this museum also digs into works of art that help bring the country’s folklore and culture to life. This exhibit is pretty small and specific—you can breeze through it in less than an hour—but your ticket fee also grants you admission to two other nearby exhibits: Ásgrím Jónsson's house and the Art Museum of Iceland.