Akureyri: the capital of northern Iceland

The Church Akureyrarkirkja, a masterpiece of modernist architecture by architect Guðjón Samúelsson, dominates the city from the top of a long central staircase.

Just nearby, the Botanical Garden of Akureyri, among the world's most northern, cultivates Arctic and subarctic plants despite proximity to the Arctic Circle.

Continuing toward the fjord, you board tours for whale watching in the Eyjafjörður, among Iceland's fjords with the highest concentration of humpback whales.

On winter evenings, far from city lights, the Northern Lights remain visible with good frequency above the mountains surrounding the city.

Eyjafjörður, the fjord overlooking Akureyri, is so rich in plankton that it attracts humpback whales and other whales almost year-round, making it one of Iceland's most reliable whale-watching locations, with success rates exceeding ninety percent in summer.

Akureyri's Botanical Garden, founded in 1912, manages to cultivate over seven thousand plant species thanks to the mild microclimate created by the fjord, unusual for a location near the Arctic Circle.