Hotel Review - Hotel Leifur Eiriksson, Reykjavik, Iceland
I stopped in the Leifur Eiriksson hotel during my 4 day trip to Iceland in March 2013 as part of a package deal through Icelandair (For my full Iceland review click here). We were presented with a choice of hotels and the Leifur Eiriksson looked ideal - it was reasonably priced and had a great location, plus the decor and facilities looked suitable. As a 3 star hotel we were fully satisfied with our experience there and would definitely use the hotel again when staying in Reykjavik.
Location
The hotel is in the centre of Reykjavik on the corner of Skólavörðustígur and Frakkastígur - For me the location was perfect as the hotel is opposite the iconic Hallgrímskirkja church that dominates the skyline of Reykjavik. We could literally look out of our room window and see this marvellous creation. There are two buildings - One on either side of the street, the main building holds the reception and dining area, while the red roofed building has more accommodation.
Furthermore, the main shopping street of Laugavegur is a couple of minutes walk, and all the way down Skólavörðustígur and the surrounding streets are plenty of restaurants and places to eat - from Sushi, to traditional Icelandic, to Mexican. The Sun Voyager sculpture and old harbour are both in walking distance, while if you want to go for a drink, the main bars and clubs again are no more than a 10-15 minute stroll.
Accommodation
The Room - Our room was a standard twin in the secondary building on the opposite side of Skólavörðustígur. We were given an electronic key-card that opened the front door to the building as well as our room. For a 4 day stay, the accommodation was perfect - The beds were comfortable, and both had a bedside lamp and set of drawers, while there was plenty of other storage such as the wardrobe and desk drawers. The room was exceedingly clean and all the furnishings were in good quality and well kept, the only drawback was the small antiquated TV, however I question why you would be visiting Iceland to sit in your hotel to watch the TV?!
The temperature of the room was spot on - When we first arrived, the radiator was turned off and we thought "Shit this is going to be freezing!", however once we turned it on, the room was lovely and warm within no time and we both slept comfortably.
The Bathroom - The bathroom wasn't overly spacious, but it had a toilet, sink and shower, plus a mirror and tiled shelves for storing toiletries etc. We were slightly confused with the shower to start with as there is no separator between the shower and the toilet, therefore water will cover the whole bathroom floor - Just make sure you don't leave any items of clothing on the floor as we nearly did on the first day!
Food/Drink
The Hotel Leifur Eiriksson provided a buffet style breakfast that we had each day - The dining area was downstairs near the reception area in the main building. There was a good selection to choose from; several varieties of cereal, hot & cold milk, bread & toaster, cold cuts such as cold salami and ham, fresh juice, water and a tea & coffee machine. You could also order toasted sandwiches if you wanted something a little more substantial.
Staff
The staff were simply amazing! The reception was manned by two different Icelandic women, I think I fell in love with them both ^__^ - They were both insanely beautiful, and there accent was just like something out of heaven; I could have literally stood and listened to them talk all day, with that same gormless expression that I'm sure I had every time we spoke to them. Aside from the slightly weird stalker rant, the staff could not have been more helpful - They were friendly, spoke perfect English, helped us book transport to the Blue Lagoon, gave us regular updates about the coastal weather for our whale watching trip, and recommended some restaurants for us to eat at each night.
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