Easter in Iceland: Everything You Need to Know Before Visiting

Easter in Iceland is a time that many Icelanders look forward to because they get a long holiday, and they get to indulge in even more chocolate, sugary drinks, and delicious food. Here is what you should know before visiting during this holiday.

Religion in Iceland

For most people around the world that celebrate Easter, this holiday is very religious. While more than 260,000 Icelanders are registered as Lutheran, most of them are not religious nor is Easter in Iceland centered around religious activities.

Keep in mind that there are about 377,000 people that live in the country. One of the reasons many Icelanders are registered as Lutheran, is that it used to be that as soon as a person was born in the country, they were automatically registered to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland.

Weather to Expect & Clothes to Pack

It’s important to understand that Spring in Iceland is about the days getting longer and not about blooming flowers or even the weather being that much warmer. I suggest packing clothing that is appropriate for winter. If you need help with what to pack, you can download my free Ultimate Packing Checklist. It has individual lists for summer and winter.

Seeing the Northern Lights Around Easter in Iceland

It is possible to see the Northern Lights during March and April. However, as the days continue to get longer and brighter, the possibility of seeing them diminishes greatly. It helps to check the Icelandic Meteorological Office’s page about the level of Aurora activity here. Even during the darkest days of winter, it’s not guaranteed that you will see them. It helps to keep that in mind, so you can manage your expectations

Easter Traditions in Iceland

1. There is a 5-day weekend, which is quite nice. We get off on Maundy Thursday until Easter Monday. Most Icelanders take this time to go north for as nice skiing holiday or even go abroad.
2. One of the biggest parts of Easter here is buying giant Icelandic chocolate eggs that are hollow on the inside so they can be stuffed with candy and an Icelandic proverb.
3. Páskaöl or Easter drink is essentially malt and orange soda (appelsín) mixed. Icelanders consume a lot of this over the holiday. It’s non-alcoholic but filled with a lot of sugar.
4. Easter dinner is normally lamb, green peas, picked red cabbage, caramelized sugar potatoes, corn, salad, and mushroom gravy. Some people add or take away some things but what I mentioned is pretty much what most Icelanders eat. Of course, there is some type of dessert. Because I‘m plant-based, I eat a vegan wellington in place of the lamb and a vegan chocolate egg
5. The growth of microbreweries in Iceland continues to expand. Páskabjór (Easter beer) is very popular for this holiday, so I highly recommend trying a variety of beers, if you drink alcohol. Please note that you have to go to the government owned alcohol stores to buy alcohol in Iceland, if you are not getting it at a bar or restaurant. These stores are closed every weekend and every national holiday. So, they are closed on the Thursday and Friday before Easter, as well as the Monday after Easter.

You can purchase the food I mentioned and chocolate eggs in Iceland in any of the major grocery stores, such as Krónan, Bónus, Hagkaup, and Nettó, but alcohol has to be purchased at a vínbúðin.

Important things to keep in mind as a visitor

Due to the long holiday, many stores are either closed or have limited hours. I highly recommend checking websites of places to see what their hours will be during Easter.

Easter mug on the All Things Iceland merch shop

If you would like an adorable Icelandic Easter themed gift for you or a loved on this season, check out the Easter mug on the All Things Iceland Merch shop.

Festivals Happening during Easter in Iceland

1. Aldrei fór ég suður – This annual festival is held in Ísafjörður in the Westfjords during Easter weekend. The Icelandic artist Mugison, who I interviewed years ago, is the one that founded this music festival. It is helpful to keep in mind that winter in the Westfjords can be intense. Flights might get cancelled and/or the weather might not be the greatest for driving.
2. Reykjavík Blues Festival

Icelandic word of the episode

Gleðilega Páska – Happy Easter

Föstudagurinn langi – The Long Friday

Random fact of the episode

In the podcast episode, I share how having fun on Long Friday in Iceland was pretty much illegal. A law was changed in 2019, so that is not the case any longer but it’s fascinating to know that people were not allowed to sing, dance, drink or doing anything fun on that day.

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