Highland Base Hotel

Style

World’s end enclave

Setting

Rugged mountain high

The journey to Iceland’s Highland Base Hotel may be long and winding, but reach its remote locale and you’re rewarded with out-of-this-world landscapes, dreamlike lodgings and ringside seats to the Northern Lights (if you’re lucky). Bundle up for thrilling mountain jaunts — zipping about in a snowmobile and hiking over glaciers — then find a warm welcome back at the strikingly designed base. Not just friendliness, but steaming dips in the on-site hot springs, soul-soothing comfort food, and morning brews in a window nook as you survey the summits.

Facilities

Rooms

54, including two suites.

Checkout

11am, and check-in is at 3pm. Between 1 October and 14 June, check-out is at noon and check-in is at 4pm. Both are flexible, on request and subject to availability.

More Details

Rates include a buffet breakfast, one activity a day and access to the hot springs. You’re also welcome to join storytelling and stargazing sessions for free during the winter. There’s a two-night minimum stay between 1 October and 14 June.

Also

Unfortunately, the isolated location of this retreat makes it unsuitable for wheelchair users.

Free Internet Access

On-Site Restaurant

Spa

At the Hotel

Hot springs, a boutique and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: tea- and coffee-making kit and Blue Lagoon bath products. Suites and lodges also have minibars.

Our Favourite Rooms

Views stretch across the valley from every room, and each has its own blanket-lined window nook from which to enjoy them. The stay’s already very remote, but if you’re seeking yet more seclusion, book one of the Lodges for their standalone setting and tiered living spaces.

Spa

Highland Base Hotel doesn’t have a traditional spa set-up, but its geothermal hot springs, cold plunge pool and sauna (all connected to rooms through a trail of underground tunnels) are equally restorative, not least for their sweeping valley views and connected bar. The springs are open between 8am and 11pm, but head for a soak once the sun has set and you’ll be greeted by clear night skies, aglow with constellations, and maybe an aurora or two.

Packing Tips

Go all-out in full 66°North gear, in moss and lava-rock hues, to echo your Icelandic locale.

Also

Highland Base Hotel is the remote sister stay to the Smith-approved Retreat at Blue Lagoon.

Children

Little Smiths are welcome during the summer season, but between 1 October and 14 June children aged eight and up are welcome.

Gallery

Food & Drink

Top Table

Nab a table with striking valley views.

Dress Code

Match the Alpine aesthetic with your finest faux furs and cosiest knits.

Hotel Restaurant

You can reach the Highland Base Restaurant through the hotel’s tunnels if you wish. The dining room’s warmed with dark-wood accents, and vaulted ceilings and window walls maximise the view. The hotel's head chef works closely with regional chefs to craft elevated Icelandic fare, cooked with local and organic produce (where possible, given its volcanic state). Buffet breakfasts fuel you up for the day’s adventures, and come with a shot of cod-liver oil for an additional boost. Lunch and dinner menus feature classic comfort food: langoustine soup, goose with blueberries, pan-fried Arctic char and a warming mushroom soup. Then — if you’re staying in the summer season — from 2.30pm each day, raid your second buffet, this time filled with waffles loaded with whipped cream and syrups, and paired with a hot cocoa. There are also grab-and-go options for anyone planning a no-breaks day in the mountains.

Hotel Bar

There’s no formal bar, but you'll find a selection of Icelandic liqueurs, craft cocktails and wines at the restaurant and in the lounge.

Last Orders

Breakfast is between 7am and 10am; lunch is noon to 3pm, and dinner is 6pm to 8.30pm. Waffles are served in the summer between 2.30pm and 4.30pm.

Planes

Keflavik is the closest international airport, which is between three to six hours away from the hotel by car. Once you’ve landed, take a 45-minute taxi into Reykjavik; your next move will be determined by the season. If you’re visiting between 1 July and 30 September, you can either take the hotel’s daily shuttle service direct (which leaves from Reykjavik’s central Skógarhlíð bus terminal) or rent a car and make the drive yourself — just be sure it’s an F-road certified four-wheel drive. For stays between 1 October and 14 June, the only way to reach the hotel is in one of the hotel’s guide-driven Super Jeeps, which leave from Skógarhlíð at 9am on Thursdays and Fridays. The cars leave the hotel and head back to Skógarhlíð on Saturdays and Sundays at 1pm, so be sure your flights work with these departure times (it's recommended you book a night in Reykjavik to be safe). Our Smith24 Travel Team is on hand if you need any help booking. Winter transfers are ISK14,900 a person, each way.

Automobiles

If you’re staying during the winter season, you won’t be allowed to drive on the Central Highlands roads. For summer stays, you’re welcome to bring a set of wheels as long as it’s a four-wheel drive that’s certified for Iceland’s mountainous F roads.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

The Kerlingarfjöll mountains are your playground at Highland Base Hotel, and — much like the setting — activities change with the seasons. The eight-month winter period (October to June) could either be all hot chocolates and fireside snuggles (there’s plenty of those to be had); or you could snowmobile up Fannborg and weave between the sprawling Hofsjökull glaciers. If you want to ski down Fannborg Mountain or across the backcountry, all the gear you’ll need is available to rent in Reykjavik, so be sure to stock up before you arrive, and pre-booked guides are on hand to show you the slopes. Back at base, stargazing and storytelling are hosted every evening from October to April, and the hotel’s natural hot springs are open for a soak year-round.

As the snow begins to melt, swap your skis for wheels and pick up one of the electric bikes for a private mountain tour. A network of all-ability hiking trails wrap around the mountains for avid walkers too — the route up to Hveradalir, which passes geothermal hot springs, mountains spewing plumes of steam and bubbling mud pools, is particularly rewarding.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .