4 Best Sights in West Iceland and Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Iceland

Located in one of the oldest fishing villages in Iceland, the Fishermen's Park and Maritime Museum has a number of traditional turf houses you can explore while learning all about the industry that has long supported this community. Part of the museum is the back garden (free), where you'll find large whalebones from the nearby shore. If you're feeling strong, you can try to lift one of the Steintök, or lifting stones, that local people used to showcase their strength years ago. There are four total that range in weight from 50 to 339 pounds.

There are two main exhibits at the Settlement Center: a breakdown of the Saga of the Settlement of Iceland and a display of Egill Skallagrímsson, both Iceland´s most famous viking and the country's first poet. It's a fantastic place to stop early on in your trip, so you can bring the knowledge with you on the rest of your travels.

For a history lesson on Akranes and the surrounding region, make a visit to this museum, where you'll learn about the working life of the locals and the living conditions of the first settlers. The museum has exhibits on fishing, farming, social life, and housekeeping—you'll even find a rowboat with a full fishing rig that dates back to 1874. Three of the museum's buildings are homes fully furnished as they would have been when the area's first settlers called Akranes home. If you're lucky, you'll catch the forge in action; the museum staff get it up and running for visitors on occasion.