30 km east of Hvolsvöllur is the recently constructed port of Landeyjahöfn, where the ferry to Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands) operates from.

It is an important service point for travellers and the local rural population serving large part of southern Iceland, the next town being Vík, 80 km to the east.

[7] In 2010, the volcanic eruptions at Eyjafjallajökull caused evacuations in the surrounding area, with people being relocated to Hvolsvöllur, where Red Cross mass care centres had been set up.

Above the altar there is a painting by Þórarin B. Þorláksson, an Icelandic painter, dating from 1914 which shows Jesus blessing the children.

Similar to the rest of the southern coast of Iceland, Hvolsvöllur has a subpolar oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfc) with cool summers and cold winters, although relatively mild for its high latitude.