Reykjavik Downtown
Best for: Collecting after city nights and starting the road days later
The booked offer identifies the specific city branch. Confirm staffed or agreed self-service hours.
Reykjavik car hire
Reykjavik car hire suits a city-first stay when the useful driving days begin later. Choose the booked downtown branch, arrange the transfer from your hotel and check its opening hours. Hertz at Flugvallarvegi 5 and Höldur/Europcar at Njarðargata are different city handovers. Keflavik International Airport is a separate pickup, and returning a city rental there needs an accepted one-way offer. Compare airport transport and parking alongside the rental total.
Editor: Ane
Reykjavik Downtown at a glance
- Search starts at
- Reykjavik Downtown, with the same return point
- Example branch
- Hertz: Flugvallarvegi 5, 101 Reykjavik
- Another city handover
- Höldur/Europcar: Njarðargata, Fluggörðum skýli 23
- Airport transfer
- Flybus runs between Keflavik and BSÍ; add the last transfer to the branch
Search Reykjavik car hire
Search starts at Reykjavik Downtown, with the same return location and EUR as the requested currency. Check the exact branch, collection instructions and full conditions in the selected offer.
Preparing live car hire search
Choose when to collect in Reykjavik Downtown
Keflavik International Airport
Best for: An international arrival that starts driving outside the city immediately
Match KEF and the supplier collection arrangement. A tired driver should rest before a long first leg.
Supplier collection arrangements
Selected city branches and collection arrangements. Check current hours and availability before booking. Your selected offer and voucher identify the booked branch.
Flugvallarvegi 5, 101 Reykjavik; vehicles stand outside the downtown branch building.
- Hertz
Agree your date’s staffed hours or an arranged self-service handover. This is not the KEF branch.
Njarðargata office at Fluggörðum skýli 23, Reykjavik, beside the domestic airport.
- Höldur / Europcar
A separate domestic-airport arrivals desk serves reservations. Use the station on your booking.
Find the city branch before leaving your hotel
A Reykjavik Downtown search is a city collection, not an arrivals desk at Keflavik.
Find the branch named in the offer
Hertz has a Reykjavik Downtown branch at Flugvallarvegi 5. Höldur/Europcar has a Njarðargata office at Fluggörðum skýli 23, beside the domestic airport. These are separate supplier examples, not interchangeable collection addresses. Check which operator and station your selected offer names before arranging transport. A downtown label does not promise hotel delivery.
Prepare for the city handoverArrange the last transfer
Flybus connects Keflavik with BSÍ at Vatnsmýrarvegur 10. Getting off there does not put you at every city rental office. Allow a separate walk or taxi with your cases to the booked branch, or choose the appropriate hotel-transfer ticket first. Keep the confirmation accessible and send the branch your revised arrival time if a flight or coach delay changes the plan.
Check seasonal hours directly
City branch hours can be shorter than airport hours and can change by season. Agree the staffed collection appointment for your travel date before arranging transport. If self-service collection is offered, arrange it in advance and obtain the document and key-access instructions. A key box does not itself confirm an after-hours reservation.
Compare a BSÍ bus terminal pickup
If the first Reykjavík stay needs no car, compare an airport coach followed by collection at BSÍ. The terminal kiosk and operator hours need checking separately from the coach timetable and from Keflavík Airport rental.
Compare a BSÍ bus terminal pickupCollect when your Reykjavik stay becomes a driving trip
Compare the two complete journeys, including airport transport and return.
Spend the city nights without a parked rental
If the opening plan is central Reykjavik on foot, a later city collection can avoid paying for idle rental days and overnight parking. Include airport transfers, luggage handling, transport to the branch and any change in the available rental total. The result depends on your actual hotel and dates; city pickup is not automatically cheaper than Keflavik.
Compare city-first and airport-first costsStart at KEF when the drive begins on arrival
Keflavik collection is the relevant alternative for an international arrival that immediately continues outside the capital. Avoid a transfer into Reykjavik followed by a trip back to an airport branch. If the driver is tired after an overnight flight, allow rest before starting a substantial road leg; collecting a car does not make a long first drive sensible.
Compare Keflavik collectionKeep RKV separate from KEF
Reykjavik Domestic Airport is beside the city and is a different pickup from Keflavik International Airport. Höldur has a reservation-based arrivals desk at the domestic airport as well as the nearby city office. A flight itinerary, coach destination and rental location must agree. Do not book a domestic-airport rate simply because the incoming ticket describes Reykjavik.
Check hotel parking before keeping a car in the city
A short parking decision can change the collection day.
Match the plate and zone
Reykjavik uses P1, P2, P3 and P4 parking zones with different charging periods. P1 has a three-hour maximum, so it is not a substitute for a long hotel parking arrangement. Use the signs at the space and enter the hire vehicle’s current registration correctly in the payment system. End an app session before returning or swapping the vehicle.
Separate overnight access from room price
Ask the accommodation whether parking is on-site, reserved or in a public street, and whether access works for the planned arrival and departure. Add that cost to the days when the car is actually used. For a central stay, a later handover can be more convenient than moving a vehicle around the charge zones between city activities.
Compare Iceland starting pointsChoose the car for the first road days and real bags
City collection changes the start, not the requirements of the route.
Compare usable boot space
A compact can suit a couple travelling with light cases on open paved roads. A longer loop with four people may justify an estate or a larger category for luggage and comfort. Count the cases and occupied seats before comparing offers. A category image does not establish the shape of the actual boot, and a seven-seat vehicle can lose luggage space when every seat is upright.
Check seats and luggage fitSeparate seasonal fit from permission
A 4WD choice does not make a closed road passable or grant access to every highland road. Ask whether the specific vehicle and agreement permit each planned side road, and check current conditions before leaving the capital. For a paved-route trip, transmission, tyres, driver confidence and weather matter alongside vehicle size. Remove an unsuitable leg rather than assuming an upgrade solves it.
Plan the Ring Road rentalCheck a highland detour at the city branch
A later city pickup still needs explicit vehicle acceptance for the numbered highland sections you intend to drive. Roads 35 and 550 can be contractually restricted even without an F prefix. Resolve the actual car and route before leaving the branch, and keep a route that avoids unknown water crossings.
Plan an authorised F-road rentalCompare the total city rental and usage charges
Include charges that do not appear as extra rental days.
Separate the road charge from the mileage allowance
Iceland’s national road-usage charge applies across vehicle energy types from 2026. Short-term rental companies can choose a daily-fee arrangement instead of per-kilometre billing. Ask how your selected supplier passes the charge through, whether it is included and whether a service fee applies. Unlimited mileage does not settle that question. Keep the odometer record where billing uses actual distance.
Build the complete rental budgetConfirm card, cover and additional drivers
Use the selected rate’s security-hold, accepted-card and licence requirements, including the main driver’s name. Check which risks the cover excludes before adding a gravel or coastal leg. Have extra drivers accepted on the agreement before they drive, and arrange the correct child seat rather than hoping the branch has an unreserved one.
Separate damage products from the card hold
Compare the city rate’s included collision waiver with named gravel, glass and sand-and-ash products. Door, water and underside exclusions can remain even with a low collision excess. Record the separate deposit or preauthorisation and incident-reporting process before the first road day.
Review Iceland cover exclusionsBuild the departure around conditions outside Reykjavik
The Ring Road and a short southwest rental serve different trips.
Use a loop when the return is the same city branch
A full Ring Road rental returns to its starting area after a much longer journey than a city-based day drive. Check the available days, overnight stops and return appointment before committing to a loop. A shorter trip may be better served by a limited out-and-back on open roads; do not compress remote driving days to preserve a planned sightseeing list.
Choose a loop or a one-way planCheck the named roads each morning
Use current road status and weather alerts before leaving Reykjavik and again when conditions change. Autumn or spring can bring winter-like driving conditions. Do not follow an apparent navigation shortcut onto a closed road or an unapproved track. Keep enough flexibility to change an overnight or return plan without rushing through a warning.
Plan the rental road daysMake a winter city departure shorter
Leave the capital with a route that fits the available daylight, current road conditions and somewhere practical to stop. Check closures before each leg and change the overnight plan if necessary. Retain time to return to the contracted city branch without racing deteriorating weather.
Plan a winter driving dayReturn to the contracted branch and protect the flight
A city pickup does not automatically include a Keflavik return.
Book a different return as a separate choice
If you want to collect in Reykjavik and finish at Keflavik, search the exact two locations and read the selected one-way conditions before paying. The supplier must accept that return point, vehicle and time; an airport appearing elsewhere on the website is not permission. Compare the confirmed one-way total with a same-city return followed by airport transport.
Compare the intended return pairFinish fuel, inspection and transport in order
Follow the booked fuel or charging policy, photograph the car and mileage, and complete the agreed key return. Höldur’s Njarðargata office has a key deposit box for after-hours returns, with responsibility continuing until staff inspection. Agree the process for your own supplier. Leave time for the onward transfer and airline check-in rather than treating the moment of parking as the end of the airport journey.
Choose the next stop before collecting
Reykjavik Skarfabakki Harbour pickup planning
For a cruise stop, keep Skarfabakki harbour collection separate from a city branch and allow the transfer both ways.
Reykjavik Skarfabakki Harbour car hire optionsReykjavik Downtown rental questions
Can I collect a car after spending a few days in Reykjavik?
Yes, search Reykjavik Downtown for the dates when driving begins. Include transport to the booked branch and any hotel parking in the comparison with an airport rental.
Is Reykjavik Downtown the same as Keflavik Airport?
No. Downtown branches, Reykjavik Domestic Airport and Keflavik International Airport are different handovers. Match the branch and flight code on the reservation.
Can a Reykjavik rental be returned to Keflavik?
Only with an accepted offer for those exact pickup and return points. Check the one-way charge, vehicle conditions and handover hours before confirming.
Does unlimited mileage include Iceland’s road-usage charge?
Not necessarily. Suppliers may bill road usage daily or by distance and may add a service component. Check what is included in the selected quote separately from its mileage allowance.
Can I collect or return outside city branch hours?
Only through the supplier’s agreed process. A key box does not establish collection permission, and responsibility can continue until the vehicle is inspected.
Compare Reykjavik car hire
Choose your dates and compare the total price, pickup arrangements and rental conditions. Check the branch and return plan before confirming an offer.
Search Reykjavik car hire