Iceland Airwaves returns to Reykjavík for its main festival from 5 to 7 November 2026: 107 acts across seven downtown venues, from Fríkirkjan, the Free Church on the Tjörnin lake, to IÐNÓ, Kolaport, NASA, LEMMY, Rosenberg and City Hall. 48 of the acts are Icelandic, which is the reason to hear it here, in their own rooms.
The special events are the ones to plan around. Shygirl opens the week at City Hall on 4 November, with Alaska and Joey Christ. On 5 November Daði Freyr plays Eldborg, the main hall at Harpa, with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and The Streets close it there on 8 November, with Úlfur Úlfur in support. Each is ticketed separately from the festival pass.
Harpa opened on the old harbour in 2011 and is free to walk into, so go in daylight and look up at the glass. In early November the sun rises at about half past nine and sets before five, and clear nights bring the chance of aurora outside the city.
