Iceland South Coast Wool Festival + Pre-Festival Westfjords Knitting Tour 2026

Iceland South Coast Wool Festival: How to Plan Your Trip — and the Best Guided Tour to Join Before the Festival

If you’re searching for the Iceland South Coast Wool Festival, South Iceland Wool Festival, or Iceland Wool Week, you’re likely planning a trip centered around Icelandic wool, knitting, and traditional fiber arts. This unique cultural event draws knitters, spinners, weavers, and slow travelers from around the world who want to experience authentic Icelandic textile traditions firsthand.

What many travelers don’t realize is that the most meaningful way to experience the Wool Festival is to begin your journey before the festival—off the beaten path—with a guided knitting and cultural immersion in rural Iceland.

That’s exactly what our guided Westfjords Knitting & Culture Immersion Tour (September 18–26) offers: a rare chance to explore Icelandic wool traditions with Icelandic women guides before you attend the festival on the popular South Coast on your own.

What Is the Iceland South Coast Wool Festival?

The Iceland South Coast Wool Festival (Ullarhátíð Suðurlands) is a regional celebration of:

• Icelandic sheep and fleece

• Traditional spinning, dyeing, and weaving

• Lopapeysa knitting

• Small-batch yarn producers

• Rural wool and textile heritage

Often referred to internationally as Iceland Wool Festival or South Iceland Wool Week, the event typically takes place in September in towns along Iceland’s southern lowlands. It is one of the best opportunities to:

• Purchase authentic Icelandic yarn

• Meet local fiber artists

• Attend wool demonstrations and workshops

• Learn about Icelandic textile history

• Experience community-based craft culture

Unlike large commercial fiber events, the South Coast Wool Festival remains locally driven and culturally grounded.

What You’ll Experience at the Iceland Wool Festival

Most visitors attend the festival for:

• Icelandic Yarn & Wool Market

• Handspun and mill-spun Icelandic yarn

• Naturally dyed skeins

• Raw fleece and roving

• Finished knitwear, especially lopapeysa sweaters

• Wool & Knitting Demonstrations

• Traditional Icelandic spinning

• Ancient weaving techniques

• Natural wool dyeing

• Lopapeysa construction and design

• Cultural Talks & Storytelling

Festival presentations focus on:

• Sheep farming in Iceland

• Historic textile survival skills

• Women’s role in preserving wool traditions

• How geography shapes fiber and design

The festival is an excellent entry point into Icelandic wool culture—but it is designed more for inspiration and shopping than for full hands-on immersion.

Why Start Your Trip Before the Wool Festival?

Most travelers fly directly into Reykjavík and head straight for the busy South Coast. What they miss is the deeper rural world where Icelandic wool traditions are lived daily.

By starting your journey before the South Coast Wool Festival, you gain:

• Quiet access to rural communities before crowds arrive

• Time to truly understand Icelandic sheep and fiber

• Meaningful relationships with local designers and farmers

• The ability to attend the festival with knowledge—not just curiosity

• Better travel flow with no backtracking

And that’s exactly why we designed our Westfjords Knitting & Culture Tour to run immediately before the festival.

Guided Westfjords Knitting & Culture Tour

September 18–26 | Before the Iceland Wool Festival

Our small-group, women-led tour takes you deep into the Westfjords of Iceland, one of the country’s most remote and culturally preserved regions—before you continue on to the South Coast on your own.

This tour is specifically positioned as a pre-festival immersion for people attending the Iceland Wool Festival.

Led by Icelandic Women Designers & Cultural Guides

Your guides on this journey are Icelandic women designers and storytellers with deep family roots in rural Iceland. Their personal relationships provide access to:

• Private sheep farms

• Home textile studios

• Soak in nature spas & hot springs

• Family stories tied directly to wool production

This is not a commercial wool tour—it is relationship-based cultural travel.

Learn to Knit a Traditional Lopapeysa With Cultural Context

During the guided Westfjords knitting tour, you will:

• Learn about Icelandic sheep breeds and fleece structure

• Study the difference between tog and þel

• Learn traditional lopapeysa construction

• Knit daily alongside Icelandic designers

By the time you arrive at the South Coast Wool Festival, you won’t just be shopping—you’ll be recognizing techniques, patterns, and fiber qualities with confidence.

Personalized Farm Visits Before the Festival Crowds Arrive

Our Westfjords itinerary includes small, private farm visits that are not accessible to independent travelers without local connections. You’ll experience:

• Rural sheep farming firsthand

• The full journey from fleece to finished knitwear

• Seasonal realities of Icelandic fiber production

• How isolation shaped regional knitting styles

This depth of learning simply isn’t possible during a busy festival weekend alone.

The Ideal Travel Flow for Wool Festival Visitors

This two-part journey is the best way to experience both the authentic and iconic sides of Icelandic wool culture:

1. Before the Festival — Guided Westfjords Immersion

• Remote villages

• Icelandic women designers as guides

• Farm visits and knitting instruction

• Daily scenic travel and storytelling

• Start knitting a lopapeysa (sample size)

2. After the Tour — Independent South Coast Wool Festival Travel

• Attend the Iceland South Coast Wool Festival

• Shop for Icelandic yarn with confidence

• Visit waterfalls, black sand beaches, glaciers

• Explore Selfoss, Hella, and nearby festival towns at your own pace

This flow allows you to enjoy:

• Depth first

• Celebration second

• Freedom afterward

Who This Pre-Festival Knitting Tour Is Designed For

This journey is ideal for:

• Travelers already planning to attend the Iceland Wool Festival

• Knitters seeking cultural immersion

• Fiber artists and designers

• Slow travelers and cultural travelers

• Women who value women-led travel

• Anyone wanting to avoid crowds while gaining deeper access

You don’t need to be an advanced knitter—beginners are welcomed with guidance.

Why a Guided Tour Before the Festival Changes Everything

By the time you reach the South Coast Wool Festival, you will:

• Understand Icelandic yarn grades

• Recognize regional lopapeysa styles

• Know how yarn moves from farm to sweater

• Speak with makers using shared technical language

• Shop with intention, not overwhelm

• Carry personal connections to the fibers you see for sale

The festival becomes richer, slower, and far more meaningful.

Join the Westfjords Knitting Tour Before the Iceland Wool Festival

September 18–26, 2026 | Limited Spaces

If you’re already searching for:

• Iceland South Coast Wool Festival

• South Iceland Wool Week

• Iceland knitting tours

• Lopapeysa workshop Iceland

• Iceland wool travel experience

This guided pre-festival Westfjords tour is the natural foundation for your Iceland fiber journey.