How to Buy and Use Reykjavik Public Bus Ticket | Strætó Smartphone App
Home → Travel → Planes, Trains, and Automobiles → How to Buy and Use Reykjavik Public Bus Ticket | Strætó Smartphone App
Iceland Trip Posts
Upcoming Posts
What Surprised Us in Iceland
What Will We Do Differently Next Time We Travel to Iceland
Follow us on Facebook to see when the new posts are up
Strætó is a public bus company operating 27 bus routes in Reykjavik and 21 routes outside of the city. It is the only available public transportation option in Iceland.
Reykjavik is a very walkable city, but if you are not in the mood for walking and looking for a more reasonably priced transportation option than a taxi (there is no Lyft or Uber in Iceland!), Strætó is the solution.
Table of Contents
Strætó Smartphone App
If you have the exact change, you can buy the ticket on board, but I find it so much easier to purchase the tickets via the app.
Click the links above to download the app.
Plus you can use Strætó app to plan your trip and get live bus schedule.
Request the PIN to activate the app before your trip to avoid surprises when you are in Iceland. Enter you phone number staring with + and country code.
Buying the Strætó Bus Ticket
This process is very straightforward. Just go to the Strætó app -> Buy Ticket -> select number of tickets -> pay and you are done.
As of the time of this post, adult ticket is 490kr ($3.8), young adults (12-17), seniors, and disabled ticket is 245kr ($1.9). Or you can get a day pass for 1,930kr ($15).
A single ticket is valid for 75 minutes once it is activated.
You can buy them in advance. They won’t be activated until you manually do so.
Using the Strætó Bus Ticket
When you are ready to board the bus, go to the Purchased Tickets menu option in the app and activate the ticket. You don’t want to activate it too early because as soon as you do the 75-minute timer starts.
Then click “Press Here and Show” and be prepared to see your face! It activates the front camera of the phone. And this is what you show the bus driver as you enter. I am assuming this is so the driver knows you are not showing a screenshot of the ticket.
Strætó Tips
- Enter the bus through the front door and exit through the middle or back door.
- Make sure you are getting on the bus going in the right direction (that’s speaking from personal experience). Check the schedule posted by the bus stop to confirm your destination is on the list.
- We found locals very eager to help if we were not sure how to use the tickets or whether we are at the right stop.
- The buses don’t stop at every stop unless you let the driver know you are planning on exiting or they see a passenger who wants to board the bus. To request the stop, watch for your stop name on the display and push the stop button when you see it.
- Use Strætó App to plan your trip and get the bus arrival times.
See our other Iceland posts:
