Forest Lagoon - bathing amongst the trees
Forest Lagoon at night
Akureyri is always one of our favourite places to visit, at any time of the year. But back in 2022 a new geothermal spa opened, overlooking the town, which has made it even more of a favourite trip. Forest Lagoon is just what its name implies, a spa lagoon in a forest setting and I think is a first for Iceland, which is not exactly known for its forests! The baths are nestled amidst the woodland of Vaðlaskógur, just minutes away from the heart of Akureyri. However, because they are on the other side of the fjord from the town itself and set partway up a hillside in an elevated position, you don´t feel as if you are in a town at all. The outdoor baths have a beautiful view of Eyjafjörður, one of Iceland’s longest fjords, and the pretty town of Akureyri on the other side of the fjord.
Looking down from the Lagoon to the fjord and mountains beyond
The story of how Forest Lagoon came to exist is really interesting. Ten years previously, in 2012, work had started on a 7.5km tunnel through the mountain range that rises to the east of Akureyri, which saves having to drive over the mountains to travel eastwards – pretty in the summer, but a treacherous undertaking in the winter. The project soon ran into problems as it was discovered that the tunnel ran through a river of hot water within the mountain. The tunnel flooded, and working conditions were extremely difficult. The project was delayed and was plagued by cost overruns while contractors struggled to control the deluge. Eventually, the hot spring water was redirected away from the tunnel, creating a waterfall of hot water which, since 2014 had just been left to flow unused into the sea. Some bright spark had the idea of using this wasted hot geothermal water and Forest Lagoon was created.
The hot pool at the edge of the forest, just as evening starts to fall
We had heard talk during the summer of this wonderful new spa that had opened and were very keen to try it out but it was some six months later, in November, that we finally made it up north to Akureyri. We had stopped overnight on the way up north and had spent the morning horse riding so what better way to ease those little-used muscles than to book a slot in Forest Lagoon for the evening? Having arrived in Akureyri and checked in to our cabin, we headed straight for the lagoon.
The pathway up to Forest Lagoon
As we drove into the car park and looked up the path to the spa itself, the first thing that hit us was how well it blends into its surroundings. It is unashamedly a luxury modern spa facility and yet somehow it seems to blend perfectly with the nature surrounding it. The team building it (the same team that designed the Blue Lagoon and Geosea in Húsavík) were determined to ensure it fitted its surroundings, using rocks from the mountain itself to incorporate into the building. The whole place is nestled into the pine and birch trees of the Vaðlaskógur forest and it feels quite different to any other spa we have been to in Iceland.
This woodland theme is carried on in the interior of the building, with several trees featured and highlighted within the interior of the spa and even in the lagoon itself. There has also been much timber as well as natural rock used inside the spa and its restaurant, continuing the feel of being in the woods. It really has been beautifully designed and thought out.
Outside, it feels quite magical. I think we were lucky that our first visit was on a clear November evening, as the view from the pool out through the trees at the lights of Akureyri twinkling away across the fjord was just incredible, like being in a wonderland. We have been back since, in the summertime, but I think the view is at its absolute best in the winter. I can only imagine what it is like if the Northern Lights are out as well, but even without them the view is breathtaking.
Looking out through the trees at the lights of Akureyri
Forest Lagoon has two pools; the large one which looks out over the fjord of Eyjafjörður and the town beyond, and a slightly smaller one, which is a few degrees warmer, behind the main pool and a little higher up so that it is possible to sit in the 40°C water and look down over the larger pool and the view beyond. I love this smaller hot pool, as it is cut into the woodland itself, the trees so close you can almost touch them. And when you get too hot you can either go down into the main pool again, some three degrees cooler, or take a dip in the cold plunge pool before hurrying back into the warm water again.
The pools feel almost as if they are part of the forest itself
There is a lovely sauna too, with a large picture window that again makes the most of the view. I don´t know why, but the times we´ve visited we have had the sauna to ourselves. Perhaps most people are so busy in the water enjoying the views and the two swim-up bars, one at each end, that the sauna is little-used. Maybe we have just been lucky, who knows?
The sauna seen here by night and by day
I am so very glad that this source of geothermal hot water was discovered and has been used to such a good purpose. Reykjavík is lucky to have several amazing geothermal spas within a very short distance, it´s about time that Akureyri had something to rival them. And rival them it does.
The lovely Eyjafjörður seen from the entrance to the lagoon
To be honest, I don´t know quite what it is that makes this place so special. Perhaps it is simply the fact that there aren’t many forests in Iceland, and having a hot pool right in the middle of one, surrounded by trees, makes for a unique experience. Whatever it is, it is lovely to have found yet another fabulous place to enjoy the wonders of Iceland´s geothermal energy!
