Byggðasafnið í Görðum

About the museum

The Görðum local heritage museum was founded and opened in 1959 and is traced back to Rev. Jón M. Guðjónsson, who is named as its founder. The museum stands at Görðum, an ancient farm in Akranes that was a church seat and parsonage from the earliest days of Christianity until the late 19th century.

The museum site has several old houses, some of them moved there from other places. Garðahús was built as a parsonage in 1876–1882 and is considered the first concrete house of its kind in Iceland, possibly in the Nordic countries. It was added to the museum in 1959, restored to its original state in 1986–1990, and now houses exhibitions. There are also Neðri-Sýrupartur, Sandar-Vestri, Stúkuhús, Geirsstaðir, Fróðá and Bátahús, as well as a forge where Icelandic smiths work, and visitors are sometimes able to watch.

The basic exhibition opened on 15 May 2021 and traces the history of Akranes from a small fishing village in the 17th century to a modern town. It is based on stories, photographs and objects on both floors of the building and is divided into five parts: life at sea, life on land, work and play, and travellers. The cutter Sigurfari, an 85-tonne vessel built in Hull in 1885 and brought to Iceland in 1974, also stands on the museum site. Akraneskaupstaður (the municipality of Akranes) owns 90% of the museum and Hvalfjarðarsveit 10%.

Highlights

• Basic exhibition on the history of Akranes from the 17th century to the present day
• Garðahús, the first concrete residential house of its kind in Iceland
• Cutter Sigurfari, a vessel from 1885 on the museum site
• Old houses and an outdoor area with a view of Akrafjall
• Audio guide included in the admission ticket

Permanent exhibitions

• Grunnsýningin – The history of Akranes from a fishing village in the 17th century to a modern town, told through stories, photographs and objects in five parts.
• Húsin – Ten old houses on the museum site, including Garðahús, Stúkuhús and Bátahús.
• Kútter Sigurfari – The story of the ship built in Hull in 1885, which now stands on concrete foundations on the museum site.

Founded

1959

Operated by

Akraneskaupstaður (90%) og Hvalfjarðarsveit (10%)

Admission & discounts

Adults aged 18–66 pay the full price. The audio guide is included in the admission ticket.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum is at Garðaholt in Akranes, Garðaholt 3, 300 Akranes.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Gift items are sold at the museum. Groups can order coffee and kleinur (traditional Icelandic fried dough twists).

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit