Tales of the Table · Tales of the Table
Festi (1972–c. 2000) – Lost Tables
Festi was built by a partnership of Grindavík residents to a design by architect Ragnar Emilsson; construction began in 1968, the hall was first used on Sailors' Day in 1972 and formally opened that autumn. Besides a 350-seat hall the 1,700 m² building housed the library, a cinema, meeting rooms and
Festi was built by a partnership of Grindavík residents to a design by architect Ragnar Emilsson; construction began in 1968, the hall was first used on Sailors' Day in 1972 and formally opened that autumn. Besides a 350-seat hall the 1,700 m² building housed the library, a cinema, meeting rooms and the municipal offices, and among its managers was Tómas Tómasson, later of Tommahamborgarar fame, who even released a single by Pjetur og Úlfarnir on a Festi label. Nearly every popular dance band of the day played there – Trúbrot, Hljómar, Ingimar Eydal's band, and later SSSól, Sálin hans Jóns míns, Todmobile, Skítamórall and Írafár – and Stuðmenn played their very first public dance at Festi in 1975. It was one of the few community halls in Iceland that actually made money in its heyday, but dances thinned out as more venues opened in the 1980s and had all but ended by 2000. After standing empty for years and failing to sell, the building was turned into a guesthouse in 2014 and now operates as Geo Hotel Grindavík.
Guesthouse since 2014, now Geo Hotel Grindavík
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