Where to Park in Reykjavík

Okay, you’ve flown to Iceland, landed, got through the airport, picked up your rental car and found your hotel. There’s just one thing left to figure out – where do you park the car? In this article, we will tell you.

First of all, it’s worth looking into whether your hotel or guesthouse has parking lots for guests, which is not uncommon. The rule of thumb is that the only region where parking fees are charged is downtown Reykjavík. Basically, if you don’t see a parking sign (a big P on a blue and white sign) on the street or parking lot, you don’t have to pay anything.

In the city centre, there are different zones that charge different rates, and generally the closer you get to Laugavegur high street, the more expensive it is. Below prices are subject to change and are valid at time of writing (beginning of July, 2018).

P1 Red and pink. ISK 320 ($2,98 or €2,55) an hour.
P2 Dark blue. ISK 170 an hour ($1,58 or €1,36).
P3 Green. ISK 170 per hour for the first two hours, and ISK 50 ($0,46 or €0,40) the following hours.
P4 Orange. ISK 170 an hour (only during weekdays).

You can find the latest parking fees on the website of the parking service.

There are also great parking garages right downtown. You will find them at the following locations:

• Kolaportið parking building on Kalkofnsvegur 1
• The Vesturgata lot on the corner of Vesturgata and Mjóstræti
• City Hall on Tjarnargata 11
• Traðarkot on Hverfisgata 20
• Stjörnuport on Laugavegur 94
• Vitatorg on the corner of Skúlagata and Vitastígur

There’s also a parking garage at Bergstaðastræti 6, but this one is only for people long-term users.

A handy-dandy live overview of available parking spots in Reykjavik’s parking houses can be viewed on a mobile-friendly website. This part of the website is only available in Icelandic but below’s our guide to navigating it. It should be simple enough.

It is always free to park after 18:00 and always free on Sundays, unless you’re in a multi-storey parking lot.

Areas P1, P2 and P3 all charge from 09:00 to 18:00 on weekdays, and from 10:00 to 16:00 on Saturdays. Outside those hours, it is free.

Area P4 charges 08:00 to 16:00 on weekdays only, after hours and on weekends it is free.

Update September 2018

The parking service in Reykjavík has put up new parking meters in 2018. With these meters, you type in the license plate number of your car. This way, your car is registered in the system and you don’t have to take a ticket back to your car.

With all of the new parking meters, you can pay with coins and with credit card.

Also, if you’re planning on staying in Reykjavík for a longer time, check out the app Leggja. This is an app that makes paying for parking easier, but it’s only targeted to residents of Reykjavík.