Herring Era Museum
About Herring Era Museum
The Herring Era Museum (Síldarminjasafn Íslands) in Siglufjörður tells the story of the herring boom that turned this small fjord town into one of the busiest ports in Iceland. Spread across three buildings on the harbor, it's the largest maritime and industrial museum in the country, and in 2004 it won the European Museum Forum's Micheletti Award as the best new industrial museum in Europe.
Start in Róaldsbrakki, a Norwegian salting station built in 1907. The ground floor covers how herring was salted and barreled for export, while upstairs the rooms where the herring girls lived each summer are kept much as they were. Next door, Grána recreates a 1930s reduction plant that turned herring into meal and oil, using machinery salvaged from abandoned factories.
The Boathouse, the newest of the three, rebuilds the harbor as it looked one evening in 1950, with full-size fishing boats moored at indoor piers. It gives the best sense of scale in the whole herring museum, so leave time for it rather than rushing through at the end.
Siglufjörður sits at the northern tip of the Tröllaskagi peninsula, about an hour's drive from Akureyri through the Ólafsfjörður and Héðinsfjörður tunnels. The museum opens daily from 10:00 to 17:00 in June, July and August, and from 13:00 to 17:00 in May and September, with visits by arrangement the rest of the year. Plan on about two hours, and check the current admission price with the museum before you go.
Good to know
Where is the Herring Era Museum?
The Herring Era Museum is on the harbor in Siglufjörður, at the northern tip of the Tröllaskagi peninsula in North Iceland. It's about an hour's drive from Akureyri.
What are the Herring Era Museum opening hours?
It's open daily from 10:00 to 17:00 in June, July and August, and from 13:00 to 17:00 in May and September. From October to April, visits are by arrangement with the museum.
How long do you need at the herring museum in Siglufjörður?
Plan on about two hours to see all three buildings. You can do a quicker loop in an hour if you focus on Róaldsbrakki and the Boathouse.
Why was Siglufjörður important for herring?
For much of the 20th century, Siglufjörður was the center of Iceland's herring fishery, and seasonal workers poured in each summer to salt and process the catch. The boom ended when the herring stocks collapsed in the late 1960s.
How do you get from Akureyri to Siglufjörður?
Drive north on Route 82 through Dalvík to Ólafsfjörður, then continue on Route 76 through the Héðinsfjörður tunnels. The trip takes about an hour on paved road.
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