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Árbær Open Air Museum: Less a Museum Than a Time Machine

Árbær Museum is the largest open-air museum in the country, featuring houses from the 19th and early 20th centuries that have been mostly relocated from downtown Reykjavik. This creates an enjoyable ensemble that showcases the history of Reykjavik. Árbær Museum is part of the Reykjavik City Museum. In 1957, the city decided to restore an abandoned farm called Árbær, originally established in the 19th century, located in a beautiful spot by Ártúnsbrekka slope, and turn it into a museum. They moved old and historically significant houses from the city centre to the farm’s grounds, which were on the outskirts of the capital at the time but are now in the middle of the city due to urban expansion. It is an exceptionally enjoyable place to visit all year round. Visiting the museum is like traveling in a time machine, seeing and experiencing bygone times, with over twenty houses forming a kind of village, which is particularly family-friendly to explore.