Reykjavik

Reykjavik is the world’s most northerly capital, and its best sights cost nothing: the soaring interior of Hallgrimskirkja church is free to enter, and the waterfront Sun Voyager sculpture, the honeycomb glass lobby of the Harpa concert hall, and the buzzing Laugavegur shopping street are all open to anyone. The whole compact center is walkable in a few hours, so skip taxis and trace the street art, the Old Harbour, and the Tjornin pond on foot. For a warm soak, the city’s geothermal public pools cost only a few euros and are where locals actually go, far cheaper than the famous spa lagoons out on the Reykjanes peninsula. Iceland is expensive overall, so cook at your hostel and save your krona for the day trips that justify the trip. Plan around the Golden Circle and the south coast waterfalls beyond the city. Visit in the shoulder months of April to May or September to October, when room rates drop well below summer prices but you still get long, usable daylight.