Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Hótelið er rólegt á veturna þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar. - The hotel is quiet in the winters when no tourists are there.

The basic noun is hótel (a neuter noun).
Icelandic usually shows the with a definite ending attached to the noun instead of a separate word:
- hótel = hotel
- hótelið = the hotel
The ending -ið is the neuter singular definite ending in the nominative case.

Why is the adjective rólegt ending in -t?

Rólegt means “quiet” here and agrees with hótelið in gender, number, and case.

Hótel is neuter, singular, nominative.
Predicate adjectives (after vera “to be”) must match the subject:
- masculine: hótelinn er rólegur – the (masc.) hotel is quiet (hypothetical)
- feminine: íbúðin er róleg – the apartment is quiet
- neuter: hótelið er rólegt – the hotel is quiet

So rólegt is the neuter singular nominative form of the adjective rólegur.

What does á veturna mean literally, and why is it used for “in the winter”?

Á veturna is a common idiomatic time expression meaning “in (the) winter / in the winters.”

Literally:

á – on / at / in
veturna – the accusative plural of vetur (winter) with a definite sense

So it’s something like “on the winters”, but in natural English we say “in (the) winter.” Icelandic often uses á + accusative plural for “in (the) [season / recurring time]”, e.g.:

á morgnana – in the mornings
á kvöldin – in the evenings
á veturna – in (the) winter(s)

Why is it veturna and not just vetur or vetri?

It’s about both case and a habitual / general meaning.

The base word is vetur (winter).
In á veturna:
- á takes the accusative here.
- veturna is accusative plural (with a definite sense: “the winters”).

This plural, especially with á, expresses a recurring or general time period: during the winters, in wintertime.
Other cases would change the meaning or sound odd here:

á vetri (dative singular) exists but is more like “in (one particular) winter” and is less idiomatic for the general “in winter” sense in this kind of sentence.
á vetur is just wrong; the form must be declined correctly.

What is the function of þegar in this sentence?

Þegar means “when.” It introduces a subordinate time clause:

þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar
→ “when there are no tourists there”

Structure:

Main clause: Hótelið er rólegt á veturna – The hotel is quiet in the winter
Subordinate clause: þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar – when no tourists are there

Word order after þegar is the normal subject–verb–rest order: engir ferðamenn (subject) + eru (verb) + þar (place adverb).

Why is it engir ferðamenn and not engin ferðamenn or ekkir ferðamenn?

Engir is the correct form of “no / none” for this noun phrase.

Enginn is the base form (roughly: no / none).
It declines by gender, number, and case like an adjective.

Here:

ferðamenn is masculine plural nominative (subject of eru).
So we need masculine plural nominative of enginn → engir.

Some key forms:

masc. sg. nom.: enginn – no (man)
fem. sg. nom.: engin – no (woman)
neut. sg. nom.: ekkert – no (thing)
masc. pl. nom.: engir – no (men / tourists etc.)

So engir ferðamenn = “no tourists” as the subject of the clause.

What is happening with the plural ferðamenn? Why not ferðamennir or something like that?

Ferðamenn is the nominative plural of ferðamaður.

ferðamaður = “traveller / tourist” (literally journey-man).
Plural of maður is irregular:
- singular: maður – man
- plural: menn – men

So:

ferðamaður → ferðamenn (nominative plural)

There is no extra plural ending like -ir here because the plural is built into -menn.
Thus engir ferðamenn = “no tourists.”

Why is it eru þar and not something like eru í hótelinu?

Both would be grammatically possible, but they differ in focus:

eru þar – “are there”, with þar referring back to the place already mentioned (the hotel). It’s a bit more concise and natural here.
eru í hótelinu – “are in the hotel”, explicitly saying “in the hotel” again.

Since the location is already clear from Hótelið er rólegt, Icelandic often just uses þar (“there”) instead of repeating í hótelinu.

What’s the difference between þar and þarna?

Both can be translated as “there”, but they’re used slightly differently:

þar: more neutral / textual “there,” often just referring back to a previously mentioned place (like hótelið in this sentence).
þarna: more pointing / spatial “there,” often when you’re physically pointing or gesturing, like “there (over there).”

In a written sentence like this, referring back to the hotel just mentioned, þar is the more natural choice.

Why is the verb eru in the present tense if English might say “when there are no tourists there” or “when there aren’t any tourists there”?

Actually, English also uses the present for a general statement: “when there are no tourists there.” The tenses match well:

eru – present plural of vera (to be)
Clause meaning: a general situation in winter, not one specific time

Icelandic commonly uses the present tense with þegar for habitual or general truths:

Hótelið er rólegt á veturna þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar.
→ The hotel is (generally) quiet in the winter when there are no tourists there.

If you wanted a clearly past-time situation, you’d change both to past:

Hótelið var rólegt á veturna þegar engir ferðamenn voru þar.
→ The hotel was quiet in the winter when there were no tourists there.

Why is the word order þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar and not þegar þar eru engir ferðamenn?

Þegar engir ferðamenn eru þar is the most natural, neutral order:

subject: engir ferðamenn
verb: eru
place adverb: þar

Icelandic basic clause order is also subject–verb–(other stuff), especially in subordinate clauses after þegar.

Þegar þar eru engir ferðamenn is possible, but:

it sounds more marked or emphatic, with extra focus on þar (“there, in that place”).
in normal explanatory sentences like this one, speakers prefer subject–verb–place.

Is á veturna specific to winter, or is there a pattern for other seasons and times?

There is a clear pattern. Icelandic often uses á + (definite) accusative plural for habitual time expressions:

á veturna – in (the) winter(s)
á sumrin – in (the) summer(s)
á kvöldin – in the evenings
á morgnana – in the mornings

They all express a repeated / general time frame, rather than one specific morning or one specific winter.