Kirkjubæjarklaustur, often abbreviated to Klaustur, is a centre of commerce and service in the district, with 120 inhabitants. Klaustur, situated in the district Skaftarhreppur, offers great variety of landscape and vegetation. A natural environment of striking contrasts.
Kirkjubæjarklaustur's geographical location makes it better known than other villages its size. It is the only place between Vik and Hofn which offers services, which includes a fuel station, a bank, a post office and a supermarket. Nearby tourist attractions include the Laki craters, (шестибальное извержение которого в 1783 году привело к всемирному похолоданию, голоду (в 1794 году) в Европе) the Eldgja and Skaftafell, all in Vatnajokull National Park. An attraction close to the village is Kirkjugolf ("Church floor"), a natural pavement of basalt. These are basalt columns in the earth, but only the tops can be seen, and as the name suggests, they have the appearance of a paved church floor. This lava formation has similar origins to the Giant's Causeway in Ireland. All these attractions contribute to Kirkjub?jarklaustur being a popular stopping point for tourists.
Even before the time of the first Norse settlement in Iceland, Irish monks are thought to have lived here. Since 1186, a well known convent of Benedictine nuns, Kirkjubæjar Abbey, was located in Kirkjub?jarklaustur, until the Reformation in 1550.
The names of the waterfall Systrafoss ("the waterfall of the sisters") and of the lake Systravatn on the highland above the village refer to this abbey. Folk tales illustrate the history with stories about good and sinful nuns.The Systrastapi (sister's rock) is where two of the convent's nuns were buried after being burned at the stake. One of the nuns was accused of selling her soul to the Devil, carrying Communion bread outside the church, and having carnal knowledge with men; the other was charged with speaking blasphemously of the Pope. After the Reformation, the second sister was vindicated, and flowers are said to bloom on her grave, but not that of the first nun. Systravatn also has a legend relating to the convent. The nuns traditionally bathed in the lake, and one day two nuns saw a hand with a gold ring extending from the water. When they tried to seize the ring, they were dragged below the water and drowned.
The village became well known in Iceland during the Lakagigar volcano eruptions in 1783. The pastor of the local church and dean of Vestur-Skaftafellssysla, Jon Steingrimsson (is) (1728 - 1791), delivered what became known as the "Fire Sermon" (eldmessu) on July 20, 1783. The legend says that this sermon stopped the lava flow, and the village was spared at the last moment. The current church, constructed in 1974, was built in memory of the Reverend Jon Steingrimsson.