Viking Village

Extremely rigid and disappointing customer service. I reported a booking-date problem almost immediately after making a €600+ reservation and several days before the stay. This is peak tourist season in Iceland, just before the solar eclipse, when accommodation is extremely scarce. The hotel therefore had several days to potentially resell the room. Yet they refused every solution I proposed: date change, amendment fee, future credit or transfer of the stay. I understand what “non-refundable” means. But applying this rule with absolutely no flexibility in these circumstances is a commercial choice, not an impossibility. What shocked me most was the complete absence of empathy or human consideration. I never felt treated as a guest facing a genuine problem, but simply as a commercial transaction: the money had been secured, so there was no reason to look for a solution. In the context of mass tourism and exceptionally high prices in Iceland, this attitude is particularly unpleasant. Hospitality should still involve some consideration for the people behind the bookings. Once they have your money, do not expect flexibility or goodwill if anything goes wrong.

Horrible smell of sewage in the bathroom, room 12. Disrespectful handling of the request to change rooms. There were no rooms of the same category as ours available until the next day, so they offered us a room in the category above. But we had to pay the difference. Unbelievable! After we insisted on changing to any room until the next day, we were told no because it would require an additional room cleaning. Unbelievable! They gave us room 8 after two days spent breathing through our mouths when entering the bathroom.

Where do I begin… parking is terrible. There’s about 8 spots and if they are full, you have to do a 13 point turn to try to get out. Best option is to park next door and walk through the dumpster area. When you walk into the lobby, the decor is nicely themed and as advertised - the only plus. We waited for the front desk clerk and since we prepaid, she just gave us the room number and key, and we were set. No explanation or welcome. Felt like checking into a motel. We had booked a cottage that should sleep 5, but once we got inside, we were faced with a rundown cabin that sleeps 2. We were a party of 3, and it would’ve been fine if the couch was a sofabed but no extra linens or pillows were to be found. I went back to the empty front desk and waited for her return. I was approached with rudeness and questioning. I had booked through a third party, and they only had us down for 2 so what’s wrong with a room for 2?! I told her we are actually a party of 3 and asked if we could get the cottage that sleeps 5 like I had booked and will pay for a 3rd occupant if needed. We ended up paying about an additional $80USD each night, while she reluctantly searched for availability. We finally moved to a 5 bed cottage, other than that note, it was not much different from the original. The cottage has a small monitor for a tv, a mini fridge, small fan for “ac”, nonworking wall heater, and old outlets (hope you have several adapters). The ladder to the upstairs beds was narrow and steep - ideally for kids only. Now for the bathroom… yes I know the water is from a hot spring and smells of sulfur, but I was not expecting the shower to barely fit a person to make a 360 turn. The toilet seat didnt match the toilet, and we had to tighten it down. The only soap was like one you’d find at a public restroom to wash your hands. BYO shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. If not, you could by sample size from the front desk for about $12USD. We survived our 2 nights by telling ourselves “this is just like camping.” We also had friends with us staying in the main hotel, and we definitely had it better than them. Their rooms were so small, one of them even hit their head on the shelf! When they asked about possibly changing to an updated room in their new section, they said it would be $400 more a night! No thanks since that would be double the price. Never again, don’t stay here based on their instagram preview showing only the nice lobby and restaurant decor.