Iceland
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
7.5km²
Area
17km
Coastline
110m
Highest point
178
People
9°C
Warmest sea
August
1,142km
To the mainland
When to go to Hrísey
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.
Island in Iceland
Hrísey is an island in Iceland. It covers 7.5 km², with 17 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 110 m. About 178 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,142 km away.
Getting there
- Akureyri International Airport (AEY)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 41 km in a straight lineCar hire at AEY airport (Akureyri)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesHríseyjarferjan Sævar, Sæfari
- 1,142 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 Hrísey.
- 1lighthousesHríseyjarviti
- 1ferry terminalsHrísey
- 1campsitesTjaldsvæði Hríseyjar
- 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.
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 41 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 64 %0–50 m
- 36 %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.
5 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) | -1 | -1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | -1 |
| Night low (°C) | -6 | -6 | -5 | -3 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 3 | -1 | -4 | -5 |
| Sea (°C) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 |
| Rain (mm) | 118 | 101 | 105 | 88 | 83 | 63 | 90 | 101 | 129 | 144 | 137 | 135 |
| Wet days | 20 | 18 | 20 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 21 | 20 | 20 |
| 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) | 22 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 18 | 21 | 22 |
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 | +0.9 | +0.2 | −0.1 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +1.0 | −0.1 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.8 | +0.4 |
| 2021 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +1.6 | +2.4 | +1.3 | +0.3 | −0.4 | −0.9 |
| 2022 | −0.4 | −0.8 | −0.4 | +0.1 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.7 | −0.4 | +0.3 | +0.1 |
| 2023 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.5 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.9 | −0.1 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.3 | +0.6 | +0.7 |
| 2024 | +1.0 | +0.4 | +0.2 | −0.4 | +0.5 | −0.1 | +0.3 | −0.5 | ±0.0 | −1.1 | −1.5 | −1.2 |
| 2025 | −2.2 | −0.6 | ±0.0 | +0.7 | +2.2 | +1.2 | +1.7 | +1.7 | +1.0 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.9 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q631719) · 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 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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