School Bus Cafés of Iceland

Skool Beans is a speciality coffee cafe housed in a converted school bus in Vík, on Iceland's south coast. The bus came from the former US air base that closed in the early 2000s and was renovated over a couple of years before opening on 1 August 2020. It was the first school-bus cafe in Iceland and operates as a micro-roaster, tea lab, and chocolate mixologist, with a log-burning stove inside and a resident cat, Jeff. Set back from the main road against the old sea cliffs beneath Katla volcano, it sits beside a nine-hole golf course, with lupins in summer and fulmars on the cliffs year-round. The cafe closes December to March. HOURS Wednesday - Friday: 9AM–3PM Saturday - Sunday: 9AM–5PM (closed Mondays & Tuesdays)

American SchoolBus Cafe is a coffee shop in a converted American school bus in Hella, on Iceland's south coast. The bus originally carried schoolchildren in Pennsylvania before being shipped to Europe, where owner Alex found it in his hometown in Romania. He restored it there over about a year, keeping the original school bus seats and decorating the interior around American nostalgia, 80s pop culture, and midcentury design, then shipped it via Rotterdam to Reykjavík and drove it to Hella. The menu focuses on Italian espresso, hot drinks, and a few pastries, since counter space limits what can be prepared. The cafe stays open year-round, including through the winter.