Iceland
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2017 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
4.4km²
Area
15km
Coastline
105m
Highest point
61
People
9°C
Warmest sea
August
1,129km
To the mainland
When to go to Grímsey
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in August (9 °C) and coolest in March (3 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Human settlement
Grímsey is an island in Iceland. It covers 4.4 km², with 15 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 105 m. About 61 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,129 km away.
Getting there
- Grímsey Airport (GRY)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at AEY airport (Akureyri)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesSæfari - Grímseyjarferja
- 1,129 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Grímsey.
- 2beaches
- 1viewpointsFotarklappir
- 1lighthousesGrímseyjarviti
- 1ferry terminalsGrímsey
- 1marinasHafnarsvæði
- 1campsitesCampsite Grimsey
- 3hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 1restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Grímsey in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Grímsey, each with its own numbers.
2beaches and covesCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
8.6°C
Sandvík
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 51 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 45 %0–50 m
- 55 %50–200 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
2 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| Night low (°C) | 0 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Sea (°C) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 |
| Rain (mm) | 108 | 91 | 97 | 77 | 63 | 43 | 63 | 75 | 106 | 124 | 118 | 126 |
| Wet days | 22 | 19 | 20 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 22 |
| Sun h/day | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 4.2 | 6.3 | 7.9 | 5.7 | 4.5 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 32 | 32 | 30 | 26 | 22 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 24 | 28 | 31 | 32 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.6 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.3 | +0.2 | +0.6 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.3 |
| 2021 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | +0.5 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +1.6 | +2.1 | +1.5 | +0.5 | −0.5 | −1.1 |
| 2022 | −0.5 | −0.6 | −0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | −0.6 | −0.2 | −0.7 | −0.1 | +0.3 |
| 2023 | +0.5 | +0.5 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.5 | −0.7 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.0 |
| 2024 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +0.5 | −0.2 | −0.2 | −0.6 | ±0.0 | −0.8 | −0.7 | −2.5 | −1.7 | −1.3 |
| 2025 | −1.7 | −0.4 | +0.3 | +0.9 | +2.2 | +0.8 | +1.5 | +1.0 | +0.2 | −0.5 | −0.2 | +0.7 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q213707) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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