Welcome to Skalatjörn Guesthouse
Experience the real Icelandic countryside with Skálatjörn, a little family hotel located on a serene and quiet goat farm in
Skálatjörn, Iceland. This farm stay offers comfortable accommodations complete with free Wi-Fi, views of the most famous volcanoes in Iceland, Eyjafjallajökull and Hekla, and close to attractions. Skálatjörn is perfect for travelers who love nature, animals, and the calming countryside. Your lovely and welcoming hosts, Helena and Stefan, will make you feel at home and will tend to your needs to make your stay the best possible. Meet their friendly goats and furry friends that live on the farm, it is truly a great place to stay for your Icelandic vacation.
Helena and Stefan have amazing hospitality and uniqueness. Staying on this farm you will have the pleasure of meeting their friendly goats, dogs, and cats. Nature lovers will love this accommodation as the surroundings are picturesque and full of serene ambiance. You will feel a bit isolated but still close enough to attractions, activities, and grocery stores. Helena and Stefan´s excellent online reviews with nothing less than 5 stars show how happy past guests have been with their stay. The guest´s rating on booking.com is 9.4.
Accommodation
Helena and Stefan’s comfortable house was built in 2006 and is fully modern. They enjoy having people at their own house and offer two bedrooms equipped with two single beds and free Wi-Fi is also available. If you want to stay in a
cozy apartment they also offer one apartment above the stable with stunning views of Hekla volcano and Eyjafjallajökull volcano, equipped with 2 double beds, 1 sofa bed. This apartment is good for a small family with kids. They also have six studio apartments equipped with a private bathroom, kitchenette with microwave, stovetop, and beautiful views of the mountains.
Your hosts, Helena and Stefan, are proud goats farmers that moved from Reykjavik city in 2014 after living there for the past 30 years before deciding to move to the countryside. Helena worked as a teacher and hairdresser with her own salon. Stefán worked as a carpenter and bricklayer. They look forward to welcoming their guests and give them a touch of what it is like to live in the countryside. Your hosts will make you feel at home, comfortable, and safe. We’d love to have you visit us.
Skalatjorn works towards protecting the population of goats in Iceland and has the ambition to maintain the goat as a farm animal in Iceland
Helena likes to receive guests. We will go into the area of goats inside if there is a bad weather and I’ll tell you about the history of Icelandic goats how they were transported to Iceland and how they were used. Also, I will allow you to touch them give them food, and help with the work. If people also want to take selfies with the baby goats if the goat is ready. Goat inspection can take from 30 min to 60 min.
Come and visit the goat
The Icelandic goat is an endangered species and Helena and Stefan are one of the farmers working towards protecting and maintaining the goat stock in Iceland.
The Icelandic goat, also known as the ‘settlement goat’, is an ancient breed of domestic goat believed to be of Norwegian origin and dating back to the settlement of Iceland over 1100 years ago. This breed of goat was on the verge of extinction during the late 19th century, but recovered prior to World War II, only to precipitously decline again. As of 2003, there were 348 goats in 48 flocks distributed throughout most parts of Iceland At the end of 2012, the herd had increased to 849. Since this breed has been isolated for centuries, the Icelandic populations are highly inbred. The Icelandic goat is very rare outside its native land. Under its coarse, long guard hair, the Icelandic goat has a coat of high-quality cashmere fiber. Icelandic goats are kept mainly as pets and their economic potential for meat, milk, cashmere, and skin production remains to be explored. The Icelandic goat is currently of little economic value.
The Icelandic goat is the only farm animal sponsored by the Icelandic government for the purpose of ensuring its survival.