Iceland in August
· Updated · BootsnAll
Along with June and July, August is the most popular time to visit Iceland. It's nearly as warm as July, a little wetter, and has a few fewer hours of daylight, which isn't a bad thing once you've tried to sleep through a Reykjavik June night. It's also the month with the most going on: a long holiday weekend, Pride, Culture Night and the Reykjavik Marathon all land in August.
It's expensive, though, and by the end of the month you can feel autumn coming.
August weather
The Icelandic Met Office's 1991-2020 averages for Reykjavik put the August high at 14.1°C (57°F) and the low at 8.6°C (47°F), just below July. It's wetter, with about 65 mm of precipitation over 12 days. Early August feels like summer. As the month creeps toward September, temperatures drop and a chill comes into the air, especially at night.
Daylight, and the return of the dark
On 1 August the sun rises in Reykjavik around 4:35am and sets around 10:30pm. By 31 August it's up around 6:05am and down around 8:45pm, still nearly 15 hours (Reykjavik sunrise and sunset times). The bright nights are over, but you still have plenty of daylight for exploring.
Real darkness comes back late in the month, which means the first Northern Lights of the season are possible if the sky is clear. Don't plan a trip around them in August, but check the Met Office aurora forecast in the evening. See viewing the Northern Lights.
Things to do in August
The outdoor activities popular earlier in summer, including horseback riding, glacier walks, caving, hiking and snorkeling, all carry on in August.
- The highlands. Hard-to-reach areas like the rugged interior are still accessible. F-roads close again in mid-September, so August is the last full month for them. Check umferdin.is, and remember that no insurance covers river-crossing damage. See the Highlands.
- Hornstrandir. The remote Westfjords reserve is still reachable by boat from Ísafjörður. See how to get to Hornstrandir.
- Puffins, while they last. Elding's puffin tours from Reykjavik end on 20 August, so go early in the month if puffins matter to you.
- Whale watching. Tours run all year from Reykjavik, and North Sailing in Húsavík runs daily trips on Skjálfandi Bay. Your odds of blue whales are better earlier in the summer.
You'll still want a warm jacket and good boots, and layers for the changing temperatures. Add more warm clothes if you're visiting at the end of the month.
>> more on what to wear in Iceland in summer
Festivals and events in August
August is a great month to catch a festival in Iceland. Here's the calendar in order.
Commerce Day weekend and Þjóðhátíð
Iceland's version of Labor Day weekend, Verslunarmannahelgi, ends on Commerce Day, a public holiday on the first Monday in August (3 August in 2026, 2 August in 2027). A lot of Icelanders head out of town to camp, so campsites and roads get busy.
The biggest party that weekend is Þjóðhátíð in Herjólfsdalur on Heimaey, in the Westman Islands. It runs over the long weekend with big concerts, bonfires, fireworks and the Sunday night hill sing-along, brekkusöngur. About 15,000 people were there on the Sunday in 2022. If you want to go, sort out transport to the island early.
Reykjavik Pride
Reykjavik Pride runs for most of a week in early August, built around the Pride Parade. The 2026 festival ran 4-9 August, with a Pride Centre, Youth Pride events and a Rainbow Conference alongside the parade.
Culture Night and the Reykjavik Marathon
The Reykjavik Marathon is held on 18 August, or the Saturday after it, to line up with the city's anniversary. The same day is Culture Night (Menningarnótt), Reykjavik's largest celebration, with concerts, performances and events across downtown, and fireworks. In 2026 both were on Saturday 22 August, and the 2027 Culture Night is set for Saturday 21 August. Expect big crowds downtown.
Reykjavik Jazz Festival
The Reykjavik Jazz Festival closes out the month. The 2026 festival ran 25-30 August.
What happened to Fiskidagurinn mikli?
Older guides send you to Dalvík in north Iceland for Fiskidagurinn mikli, the "Great Fish Day" seafood feast, the weekend after Commerce Day. It was held 20 times between 2001 and 2023, and in November 2023 its organizers announced it was over for good, citing rising security and supply costs. It hasn't come back since, so don't plan a trip around it.
>> more on holidays and events in Iceland
What August costs
August is still high season. Most hotels and tour companies keep summer rates until September, so you'll pay more for lodging and activities than you would a few weeks later. Book early, especially around the Commerce Day weekend and Culture Night.
For flights, Icelandair flies to Keflavik all year, and in summer Delta, United, Alaska, Air Canada, WestJet and Air Transat run seasonal flights too. PLAY is gone; it ceased operations on 29 September 2025. Fares move too much to quote, but September usually costs less than August. See Iceland in September.
>> more on flights to Iceland and budgeting for Iceland
FAQ
Is August a good time to visit Iceland?
Yes, especially if you want the highlands, warm-ish weather and festivals. The downsides are high prices, busy sights and more rain than June or July.
Are the puffins still there in August?
Early in the month, yes. Puffin tours from Reykjavik run until 20 August. After that, you've missed them until next spring.
Is the Blue Lagoon open?
Usually, but check. It's near Grindavík, where the Sundhnúkur crater row erupted nine times between December 2023 and August 2025; the ninth eruption ended on 5 August 2025. The lagoon has closed temporarily during eruptions, and the Icelandic Met Office reported in September 2026 that the ground there is still rising. See Safetravel for the latest and our page on the Blue Lagoon.
Photo by pieter.morelion