A Geek’s Guide to Iceland

You love Game of Thrones, Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon GO and Settlers of Catan. You only read fantasy and science fiction, and you know what Hogwarts House you belong to. And be honest, every now and then, you try to use the Force to open doors? Say no more, we feel you! In this article, we will sum up the best geeky things to do in Iceland.

The starting point for geeky stuff in Iceland is game store Nexus. Nexus is Iceland’s safe haven for nerds and geeks. It has a great selection of board games, books, comics and cosplay costumes. Nexus also organises regular game nights, movie screenings and tons of other events. If you have any questions about the cosplay scene in Iceland, what new board games to buy or recently published fantasy books, just pop in and ask their friendly staff.

Are you a good sport? Is your enthusiasm sparked when you hear Pandemic, Gravwell, The Resistance, Unearth, Century: Spice Road, King Domino and Terraforming Mars? Then attend a board games evening in Reykjavík. They are organised in public spaces, are open to everybody and all start at 20:00. On Mondays there is Boardgamonday at Stofan Café, and the organisers are always around to explain the games that are going to be played. At art house cinema Bíó Paradís the group Reykjavíkurspilakvöld (Reykjavík Game Night) meets on Wednesday evenings to play board games. And every other week on Thursday night there is a game evening at game store Spilavinir.

People traveling through, tourists, and everybody else is very welcome to attend. Every week different games are played, and you can also bring your own.

Geocaching is an outdoor treasure hunt game. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then try to find a geocache (usually a container with small goodies) hidden at that location. Geocaching is a fun way to enjoy your surroundings and stay active. There are hundreds of geocaches hidden all over Iceland. Just sign up to geocaching.com and download a map with all the locations. In Reykjavík you will find them close to Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavík University, University of Iceland and in the old harbour.

Gotta catch them all! Pokémon GO is a mobile game that is, like geocaching, about treasure hunting. It’s an augmented reality game, in which the real world is combined with fictional Pokémon creatures, like Chansey, Alakazam and Vileplume. Pokémon are likely (but not exclusively) to be found in their “natural” habitats. Plenty of Pokémon pop up around Iceland and catching them is popular pastime. Follow the Twitter feed Pokémon GO Reykjavik‏ for the most recent appearances.

The Midgard Convention is Iceland’s first all-inclusive fan convention, focusing on video games, board games, cosplay, tabletop games, comics, artists, movies and books. It will take place on the 15th and 16th of September this year. It will be an action-packed weekend, filled with exhibitors, vendors, artists, panel discussions, workshops and interviews. Also, the Icelandic Cosplay Championship will take place at the convention, as well as Warhammer 40k tournaments, the Nordic Cosplay Championship preliminaries, X-Wing tournaments and board game competitions.

Are you playing EVE Online? You’re not the only one. It’s the largest science fiction multiplayer online game in the world, with hundreds of thousands of players. The headquarters of the company behind EVE Online, CCP, is based in Reykjavík. This year, EVE Online is celebrating its 15th birthday. The annual fan convention is organised from the 12th till the 14th of April at Harpa Concert Hall. The convention is visited by fans from all over the world, who are meeting in Iceland to enjoy the country and get to know other players. It’s a grand celebration of the EVE universe, with tournaments, keynote speeches and new design presentations. It’s also attended by CCP developers, who are there to meet fans and listen to suggestions.

As a fan, you probably know that many scenes of Game of Thrones are shot in Iceland. During the Game of Thrones revisited tour you will visit locations that were used in the series. The tour was designed with help from one of the Icelandic extras, who was killed by Wildlings. Visit Þjórsárdalur and a Settlement Era Viking lodge, which was the site of one of the greatest battles of the series so far. Walk around in the area where the White Walkers roam. Of course, there is no chance you will encounter them in real life… or is there?

We also recommend a Snæfellsnes self-drive day tour. The Snæfellsnes peninsula has some of the most diverse landscapes in Iceland, with waterfalls, caves, black beaches, and most importantly, Mt. Kirkjufell. This impressive mountain is seen in season 6 and 7 of Game of Thrones.

Are you geeked out yet over our suggestions? We sure are. Have fun!