Skogár Folk Museum

Too often, folk museums in remote locations disappoint with dusty, incomplete collections and disgruntled staffers, but the Skogár Museum is a glowing exception. It’s the labor of love with more than 12,000 pieces in the collection and about 8,000 on display. Tour guides lead visitors through the rooms where the items are lovingly displayed, vividly making past centuries come to life. For instance, we learned that 19th-century Icelanders predicted weather patterns by hanging a cow bladder in front of their doors: if it expanded, a high was approaching; if it deflated, bad weather was coming. There’s also an entire room dedicated to fishing, still Iceland’s largest industry, including a one-mast wooden boat built in 1855.

Don’t miss the restored turf farmhouses behind the museum: single-room homes with an adjoining barn that were used by Icelandic farmers in the 1800s and call to mind The Hobbit. Visitors can also tour a larger restored wooden house that was in use until 1949 and Skógar Church. Opening hours vary throughout the year; contact the museum before you visit.