Winter on Mýrar
Winter is the quiet half of the year here. The light is short and low, the glaciers sit white behind the farm, and on a clear night you can walk out of the door and stand under the aurora with no streetlight anywhere near you. These are the things guests ask us between November and March, answered from the farm.
How much daylight you get
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 November | 08:46 | 16:45 | 8 h |
| 1 December | 10:22 | 15:20 | 5 h |
| 21 December | 10:58 | 15:01 | 4 h |
| 15 January | 10:31 | 15:51 | 5 h 20 |
| 1 February | 09:43 | 16:47 | 7 h |
| 1 March | 08:10 | 18:18 | 10 h |
Sunrise and sunset at the farm, to the nearest minute, from the sun’s position at our own coordinates. A minute either way from one year to the next.
- Are you open in the winter?
- Yes, we take guests through the winter, with breakfast in the morning and dinner from the menu in the evening. The booking calendar on this site shows exactly which nights and which rooms are free, so what you see there is what we have.
- Can we see the northern lights from the farm?
- Often, from September to April, when the sky is clear. There is no village and no streetlight on Mýrar, so you do not have to drive anywhere: step outside the door, let your eyes adjust and look north. The Icelandic Met Office publishes an aurora forecast at vedur.is.
- How dark is it, really?
- Around the shortest day the sun is up for about four hours, from just before eleven until three in the afternoon, and it never climbs high. That also means long blue light before and after, which is the best light the glaciers get all year. The table above has the times month by month.
- What are the roads like?
- Route 1, the Ring Road, runs past the farm and is cleared through the winter, but it can close in a storm and it does so with little warning. Vegagerðin publishes live road conditions at road.is, and safetravel.is carries the weather and travel alerts. The farm sits 4 km off Route 1 on a road that is kept passable.
- We will not arrive until after dark. Is that a problem?
- Not at all, it is normal here in winter. Check in is until 22:00. If you arrive later than that, a note on the table in the lobby tells you which room is yours, so you can let yourself in and settle.
- Can we still get to Jökulsárlón in winter?
- Yes. It is about 50 km along Route 1, roughly 50 minutes when the road is clear, longer on snow. Drive it in daylight if you can, and check road.is before you set off. Ice cave and glacier tours run through the winter from the Jökulsárlón area and usually leave early in the morning.
- Can we get breakfast before an early tour?
- Yes. If you are leaving before breakfast is served, tell us the evening before and we will put together breakfast to go.
- What should we bring?
- Warm layers, a waterproof outer layer and shoes with real grip, plus a pair of ice grips if you have them, since the yard can freeze. A head torch is useful in the dark. If you are driving your own car, winter tyres are required in the cold months and studded tyres are allowed from 1 November to mid-April.
A winter night at the farm
Rooms, cottages and live prices are on the rooms page, and the booking calendar shows what is free.