Höfn hotels with a spa, and where to soak
If you want a spa in Höfn, only one of the three stays on this page offers one: Árnanes Country Hotel, outside the town, describes a spa for its guests. Apotek Guesthouse and Old Airline Guesthouse have none, no sauna and no hot tub. The good news is that the town's warm water is public. The Höfn swimming pool has a 25 m outdoor pool, a jacuzzi at 39°C, a hot tub at 41°C, a steam bath and an ice bath, and the Hoffell hot tubs, five pools fed by a hot spring below Hoffellsjökull glacier, sit about 10 km north. Plan your soak around those, not around a hotel spa.
Höfn is a fishing town on a spit of land in the southeast, with a view of Vatnajökull's outlet glaciers across the lagoon. It is the main overnight stop between Jökulsárlón and the Eastfjords. Its warm water is public: a modern outdoor pool in town and natural-fed hot tubs at Hoffell, rather than hotel spas.
Where to stay
Hotel spa, town pool or Hoffell tubs?
Höfn's best warm water is the municipal pool in town and the Hoffell hot tubs under the glacier, so a spa in the hotel matters less than a bed close to both.
The Höfn swimming pool is the everyday answer. It opened in 2009 as a family outdoor pool of 25 m, with a jacuzzi kept around 39°C, a hotter tub at 41°C, a children's pool, a steam bath and an ice bath for contrast. After a long day on Route 1 from Skaftafell or the Eastfjords, that is a better recovery than most hotel spas in the region. Like every Icelandic pool, it asks you to shower without a swimsuit before you get in, and both guesthouses here sit within the town.
The Hoffell hot tubs are the reason to keep an evening free. Five man-made tubs are fed by local hot spring water and sit under the Arnarbæli cliff, with a view of Hoffellsjökull, an outlet glacier of Vatnajökull, about 10 km north of Höfn. Entry is paid, the tubs are seasonal, and sources disagree on the exact months, so check before you drive. I would go at the end of the day, after the drive back from Jökulsárlón. The turn-off lies close to Route 1, west of the town, so it fits naturally on that return.
Árnanes Country Hotel is the only stay on this page that describes a spa of its own, but I could not confirm what it includes, whether a hot tub, a sauna or treatments, so I would ask before counting on it. What is certain is that it is family-friendly and pet-friendly, sits outside the town near Höfn, and has 1,704 reviews at 8.5. If a private soak is the point of the trip, I would treat its spa as a bonus and plan the town pool or Hoffell as the main event.
In town, the two guesthouses suit travellers who will use the public pool. Apotek Guesthouse occupies a former pharmacy, has a shared kitchen and offers rooms with private or shared bathrooms, rated 8.9 from 1,744 reviews. Old Airline Guesthouse sits by the harbour, with a shared kitchen, a lounge and shared bathrooms, rated 9.1 from 315 reviews, and gives Jökulsárlón at about an hour's drive. Neither has a spa, a sauna or a hot tub, so pack swimwear and walk to the pool. Apotek also has free private parking on site, useful if you drive out to Hoffell.
A traveler's takeI would not choose a bed in Höfn for a hotel spa; there is barely one to choose. I would sleep at Old Airline Guesthouse by the harbour or at Apotek Guesthouse, walk to the Höfn pool for the 41°C hot tub and the steam bath, and drive to the Hoffell tubs one evening for the glacier view. If you are travelling with a dog, Árnanes Country Hotel is the pet-friendly option, and its spa is a bonus to confirm, not a reason to book.
Spa & wellnessOld Airline Guesthouse
Harbourside guesthouse in Höfn with shared kitchen and lounge
Why guests love itHöfn sits just off Route 1 in Southeast Iceland, and Old Airline Guesthouse stands by the harbour with modern rooms, a shared kitchen and lounge, and a washing machine for mid-trip laundry. Bathrooms are shared, which keeps the price down. Our editorial take for families and couples: cook with the local langoustine, dry the hiking gear overnight, and leave early for Jökulsárlón, about an hour's drive west, before the tour buses fill the car park.
Spa & wellnessApotek Guesthouse
Mountain-view rooms in a former pharmacy, with shared kitchen and free parking
Why guests love itApotek Guesthouse is set in a former pharmacy building in Höfn. It has a shared kitchen and free WiFi, which suits budget travellers and families. Guests can choose rooms with a private or a shared bathroom, all with mountain views, and free private parking is on site. Guests rate it 8.9 across 1,744 reviews, a solid record for a simple guesthouse.
Spa & wellnessArnanes Country Hotel
A family and pet-friendly country hotel with a spa near Hofn
Why guests love itArnanes Country Hotel, near Höfn, presents itself as family-friendly and pet-friendly, with a spa for relaxing and a certification from Valpas as bed bug-safe, which some parents will find reassuring. The listing gives few details about rooms, so check what suits your party before booking. The countryside setting sits outside Höfn rather than in town. Guests rate it 8.5 across 1,704 reviews, a large and dependable sample.
Local tips
- 1Use the Höfn swimming pool as your spa: it has a 39°C jacuzzi, a 41°C hot tub, a steam bath and an ice bath for contrast.
- 2Drive about 10 km north to the Hoffell hot tubs for five spring-fed pools under the Arnarbæli cliff, facing the Hoffellsjökull glacier.
- 3Check the Hoffell opening season before you go: the tubs are seasonal, and the published opening months differ between sources.
- 4Ask Árnanes Country Hotel what its spa includes before booking for it; a hot tub, a sauna and treatments are very different things.
- 5Pick Apotek Guesthouse if you want a private bathroom option in town; Old Airline Guesthouse by the harbour has shared bathrooms only.
- 6Shower without a swimsuit before entering the Höfn pool, as in every Icelandic pool, then go straight for the 41°C tub.