Skógar Museum in Skógar, Iceland

Iceland is renowned for its stunning landscapes and rich history. A short drive from the famous Skógafoss waterfall is a lesser-known museum offering insights into how Icelanders lived in years gone by and how technology helped them survive in one of the world's most rugged and inhospitable landscapes.

Founded in 1949 on the initiative of Þórður Tómasson, who curated it until his retirement in 2013 at the age of 92, the museum houses 18,000 regional folk craft artifacts displayed across three museums and a number of historical buildings. Visitors can explore a folk museum, a technical museum, and an open-air museum. The folk museum tells the story of rural life in Iceland, focusing primarily on the 19th century. Exhibits include agricultural tools, traditional dress, Viking artifacts, and the fishing boat Pétursey, which was in use from 1855 until 1946.

There is also a natural history gallery showcasing Iceland's diverse wildlife, from stuffed birds and animals to eggs and plants. Next door, the technical museum shows how Icelanders have adapted technology to their unique environment. Exhibits highlight telephone and radio communications, roadbuilding and infrastructure, the Icelandic Coast Guard, and search and rescue, with many unique vehicles on display.

The technical museum is also home to the gift shop and café. Behind these buildings is the open air museum, which features historic structures from various periods of Icelandic architecture. Visitors can step inside a turf farmhouse, an early 20th-century school, a church, a cattle shed, a wooden house, a hydro-electric plant, and a storehouse.