Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Faro Francesco Crispi
Lighthouse "Francesco Crispi"
Smöjen kalkbrottsbad
Smöjen Kalkbrottsbad
Naruto Strait and its famed whirlpools
Naruto Whirlpools
SpaceX Falcon 9 Booster Rocket
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Art at the VCC
Vintage Cocktail Club
The Buckhorn Saloon exterior
The Buckhorn Saloon and Opera House
The cozy interiors of Monozuki Cafe
Monozuki Cafe
Inside Mothership at the Bar
Mothership
Pagoda at Yamashiro
Yamashiro
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
The robotic instrument at the center of Moving Monuments incorporates found objects from across the city.
This Musical Robot Celebrates Toronto’s Vibrant Rhythms
The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was the largest freighter on the Great Lakes when it was built.
Why Is TikTok Obsessed With a 50-Year-Old Shipwreck?
Why Does the Salish Sea Glow in the Dark?
Repurposed finds, robotic elements and recorded vocals create a symphonic ode to Toronto.
Capturing Toronto’s Vibrant Rhythms in Sculpture

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Iceland Búðakirkja

Búðakirkja

This black church sits alone among a field of lava rock.

Iceland

Added By
Kendra M
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Búðakirkja   Kendra Mack
Hole in Búðahraun.   Kendra Mack
Snæfellsjökull   Kendra Mack
Búðir   Kendra Mack
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
  cararomanodesigns / Atlas Obscura User
Winter, after sunset   CricketMyers / Atlas Obscura User
  kaskalaga / Atlas Obscura User
Winter, just after sunset   CricketMyers / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

On the south coast of Iceland's Snæfellsnes peninsula, there's a village with only a hotel and a tiny black church called the Búðakirkja.

On paper, the hamlet of Búðir doesn't sound like much, especially when compared to Snæfellsjökull, the dormant ice-capped volcano looming nearby, but what Búðir lacks in infrastructure it more makes up for in its surreal, dreamlike landscape, epitomized the singular Búðakirkja.

Búðir sits within the Búðahraun lava field, an expansive environment of torn-up earth that has grown over with grassy flora. One could easily imagine creatures from fairy tales living amongst the jagged rock formations and in the deep holes that have formed here. Visitors can walk along the fields and down to the coastline along trails that look and feel unending. In the summer months, the peculiar "drumming" calls of the Common Snipe can sometimes be heard, which only adds to the unreal feeling about the place. 

The first Búðakirkja was built on the spot in 1703, but was eventually deconstructed due to the area lack of parishioners. The current church was reconstructed in 1987 after a single member of the church lobbied to have the chapel brought back. It has a historic graveyard as well as relics such as a bell and chalice from the time the church was first erected. However its pure black paint job and isolated location are the real attraction to the site. 

Related Tags

Churches Nature Sacred Spaces
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Iceland in Winter: Northern Lights & Geothermal Marvels

A land of folklore and myths on a backdrop of remarkable natural wonders.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

kendrawashere

Edited By

aribrown, Collector of Experiences, cararomanodesigns, CricketMyers...

  • aribrown
  • Collector of Experiences
  • cararomanodesigns
  • CricketMyers
  • kaskalaga

Published

March 18, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BA%C3%B0ir
  • http://nat.is/travelguideeng/budir_snaefellsnes.htm
  • http://nat.is/Churches/budir_church.htm
Búðakirkja
Iceland
64.821774, -23.38455

Nearby Places

Rauðfeldsgjá

Iceland

miles away

'Víddaflakk' ('Interdimensional Hopscotch')

Iceland

miles away

The Freezer

Rif, Iceland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Iceland

Iceland

Europe

Places 155
Stories 43

Nearby Places

Rauðfeldsgjá

Iceland

miles away

'Víddaflakk' ('Interdimensional Hopscotch')

Iceland

miles away

The Freezer

Rif, Iceland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Iceland

Iceland

Europe

Places 155
Stories 43

Related Places

  • Tramonti di sotto, Italy

    Pàlcoda Ghost Town

    This overgrown mountain village has been abandoned for nearly a century.

  • The inauguration of the Church in the Woods

    Canterbury, New Hampshire

    Church of the Woods

    Nature and religion are reunited at this unconventional church in the forest.

  • The Tree Church

    Ohaupo, New Zealand

    The Tree Church

    One man's dream has turned into this naturally growing chapel made of almost nothing but trees.

  • Paris, France

    Chapelle Notre Dame de la Medaille Miraculeuse

    A popular shrine where the Blessed Virgin allegedly appeared in 1830, displaying a holy armchair and two incorruptible remains of Lady Saints.

  • Sagrat Cor, the church at the very top of Tibidabo. (Wikimedia Commons)

    Barcelona, Spain

    Tibidabo

    Mountain where Jesus was first tempted by the Devil.

  • Budapest, Hungary

    Budapest Cave Church

    Once the home of a hermetic monk, this cave now houses a small church.

  • Burabay, Kazakhstan

    Burabay

    A pocket of pine forests, healing lakes, and legendary rocks rising from Kazakhstan’s endless steppe.

  • Church of the Good Shepherd

    Lullington, England

    Lullington Church of the Good Shepherd

    This tiny church is one of England's smallest.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.