Where the Christmas Lights Still Burn on 6 January
You step off the bus into a town that has not yet packed Christmas away. In Kópavogur, the Second Day of Christmas — 6 January, Þrettándinn, the thirteenth day — is the last night the lights stay up and the last night the bonfires are lit. The air smells of smoke and roasted almonds, the streets around the town centre are still strung with bulbs, and families are out in the dark at four in the afternoon because the sun set an hour ago. This is the quiet, stubborn end of the Icelandic Christmas season, and Kópavogur keeps it with bonfires, elves and the last of the seasonal food.
Watch the Elf Bonfires Burn on Þrettándinn
On the evening of 6 January, bonfires are lit across Iceland to mark the departure of the elves and the end of Christmas. In Kópavogur the tradition is kept with communal fires — often on open ground near the town's edges and in the surrounding Reykjavík area — where families gather in the dark to watch the flames and, in some accounts, to see the elves ride away. The fires are the anchor of the night: arrive before they are lit, stay until the wood collapses, and dress for the cold because you will be standing outside for an hour or more.
- Bonfires are traditionally lit on 6 January, the last night of the Christmas season.
- They are a family event — children, grandparents, thermoses of hot chocolate.
- The fires are outdoors and the January dark comes early; plan to be there by late afternoon.
- Kópavogur sits immediately south of Reykjavík, so the town's celebrations are part of the wider capital-area marking of Þrettándinn.
Eat the Last of the Christmas Food
The Second Day of Christmas is your last chance to eat the food that defines the Icelandic holiday table before it disappears for another year. In Kópavogur's bakeries and cafés you will find the seasonal staples still on the counter in early January: laufabrauð, the paper-thin fried bread stamped with patterns; hangikjöt, smoked lamb served hot or cold; rúgbrauð, the dense dark rye bread; and kleinur, the twisted fried dough knots that appear only at this time of year. The town's shopping streets and the area around the town centre have bakeries and grocery shops where these are sold, and the Christmas markets that run through December often continue into the first days of January.
- Laufabrauð — thin, patterned fried bread, made and eaten in the Christmas season.
- Hangikjöt — smoked lamb, the centrepiece of the holiday meal.
- Kleinur — fried dough knots, a Christmas and New Year treat.
- Rúgbrauð — dark rye bread, often served with the smoked lamb.
- Look for these in Kópavogur's bakeries and the Christmas market stalls that run through the season.
See the Lights and the Town Centre
Kópavogur keeps its Christmas lights up through the season, and on 6 January they are still on. Walk the town centre in the early dark — the lights reflect in the wet streets, the shops are still decorated, and the pace is slower than Reykjavík's. The town is a short bus ride or drive from central Reykjavík, which makes it an easy evening out if you are staying in the capital. The Christmas market season in the capital area runs through December and into early January, and Kópavogur's own market and town-centre events are part of that run.
- Christmas lights stay up through the season and are still lit on 6 January.
- The town centre is walkable and decorated; the atmosphere is quieter than central Reykjavík.
- Kópavogur is immediately south of Reykjavík and reachable by bus or car.
- Christmas markets in the capital area run through December and into the first days of January.
Join the Wider Capital-Area Celebrations
Kópavogur is part of the Reykjavík capital area, and the Second Day of Christmas is marked across the region with concerts, family events and the last of the Christmas programming. In Reykjavík itself, the period between Christmas and Þrettándinn is full of concerts, and the bonfires on 6 January are lit in several places across the area. If you are based in Kópavogur, you can move between the town's own fires and the city's events on the same evening — the distances are short and the buses run.
- Þrettándinn (6 January) is marked across the Reykjavík capital area, not only in Kópavogur.
- Concerts and family events run through the Christmas season in the capital area.
- Bonfires are lit in multiple locations on 6 January.
- Public transport connects Kópavogur with central Reykjavík.
When to Go and How to Plan
The Second Day of Christmas falls on 6 January. In 2026 that is a Tuesday. The Christmas season in Iceland runs from Advent through Þrettándinn, so if you want the full run of markets, lights, concerts and seasonal food, arrive in December and stay through the first week of January. The weather is cold, dark and often wet — pack for wind and rain, and plan your outdoor time around the short daylight window. Kópavogur is small and easy to navigate, and its position next to Reykjavík means you can base yourself in the capital and still be in Kópavogur for the bonfires on the last night of Christmas.
Start by checking the dates for 6 January 2026 and building your trip around the final week of the Icelandic Christmas season — the markets will still be running, the lights will still be up, and the bonfires will be lit one last time before the town packs Christmas away for another year.