Is Hotel Borg worth staying at?
How to make its central location, room choice and parking work for a short trip

ICENAVI · HOTEL BORG POSITIONStay by the square and the city sights link up on foot

Hotel BorgPósthússtræti 11Parliament House / CathedralWalkable from the squareTjörninLakeside walkOld HarbourRestaurants / tour meeting area

Hotel → square: Parliament, the cathedral and the surrounding streets sit in one easy loop.Hotel → Tjörnin: you can take a morning walk without finding a parking space first.Hotel → harbour: allow for the actual address if you are meeting a tour or choosing a restaurant.

Central Reykjavík is most useful when the weather turns

Hotel Borg is in the old centre, with Austurvöllur, Parliament House and the cathedral right outside. From there, you can break the walk to Tjörnin, Laugavegur, Harpa and the Old Harbour into manageable sections instead of returning to a parking space between each stop. Reykjavík weather changes quickly; a café or your room becomes a practical halfway point when the rain starts again.

That matters most on a short stop. On your first evening, you can still see a few streets after arriving from the airport. On a wet second day, shrink the lake-and-harbour loop and finish with a museum or the spa. If every day is planned out on the peninsula or beyond, the address mainly buys you an easier dinner, so recheck the price difference against driving and parking time.

Choose a room by usable space, not by “double room”

The official room range includes single rooms of about 18 m², doubles, Deluxe rooms and view-oriented Tower Suites. Typical facilities include Wi-Fi, coffee equipment, a mini-fridge, a bathroom, underfloor heating and a safe. With two adults and two large cases, floor space and a clear path around the bed become issues before the bed size does. Check the bed layout, exact square metres, extra-bed policy, bath or shower and luggage space before booking.

For one night, I would spend the difference on a useful location and a flexible cancellation rule rather than pay a full-trip premium for a Tower Suite. A larger room makes more sense for a celebration or two full city days when you will actually be in it. Treat the published area as a comparison point; the room type and price available for your dates belong to the booking page.

Parking and luggage are the hidden jobs of a central hotel

Hotel Borg's location information notes the narrow streets of the historic district, with P1 to P4 paid zones and multi-storey car parks nearby. Their hours and hourly rates differ, so “parking in the centre” does not mean a free hotel space. On a luggage-heavy arrival, check whether a short stop outside the hotel is legal, unload quickly and then move the car to the right zone. Picking it up after dinner can mean another fee period or a full garage.

For two people sharing one car, add the parking charge, the time spent walking cases and the time needed to retrieve the car before comparing an outer hotel. If you rent only for the day you leave Reykjavík, collecting the car and heading straight out is usually less fiddly. If you stay car-free, removing that parking task is where Hotel Borg's location becomes much more valuable. Airport transfers, group tours and whale-watching departures may meet elsewhere, so check the exact meeting address before booking.

How to use Hotel Borg for a one- or two-night stop

For one night, drop your bags after arriving in the afternoon, walk around Austurvöllur, the cathedral and Tjörnin, then stay in the old centre for dinner. If the weather worsens, shorten the lake walk to the square and a café, then use the spa. The next morning you can leave for the airport or your next base without doubling back for luggage. If the Blue Lagoon is part of the plan, confirm the entry slot and luggage storage before deciding between a city night and Keflavík.

With two nights, give one day to Reykjavík: walk Harpa, the Old Harbour, Sun Voyager, the cathedral and the shopping streets in one direction. Use the other for the Golden Circle, the South Coast or the Blue Lagoon. The guide to a two-day Reykjavík stop can use Hotel Borg as the city base, then fit the lagoon around your flight. If you prefer the livelier stretch between the shopping streets and harbour, compare Reykjavík centre and the harbour; if you need a kitchen and more room for a longer stay, Reykjavik Residence solves a different accommodation problem.

A convenient address does not replace a timetable. Whale-watching trips, airport buses and Golden Circle tours may meet at different corners of central Reykjavík; one extra block is minor without luggage and surprisingly slow with two cases, rain and an early start. Put the meeting point, earliest departure and post-checkout luggage plan on the same line before deciding what the central address actually saves.

Turn sightseeing distance into the number of times you leave the hotel

The useful part of staying beside the square is not that one landmark is “close”. It is that each outing involves one fewer decision. Walk along Tjörnin to City Hall in the morning, return for a jacket and continue to Harpa, then cross only a few streets after dinner if rain arrives. That back-and-forth matters on a one-night stay: you may not have time for every attraction, but you will almost certainly go in and out of the hotel more than once.

The calculation changes when the hotel is just a base for a rental car. If you leave with breakfast each morning and return at dusk, the walking advantage only appears at dinner. Hourly parking, finding a space and unloading bags can turn a simple check-in into two small moves. Reykjavík centre can still work with a car, but include where the car sits in the total cost instead of comparing room photos alone.

Q&A | Deciding on a short Hotel Borg stay