Sunday, 16 August 2026

• CLASSIC WHALE TOUR | 09:00, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, 17:00, 19:30
• PREMIUM WHALE TOUR | 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 20:00

Today's whale watching tours from Reykjavík are on schedule! Remember to dress according to weather and feel free to borrow our thermal overalls if needed!

Report from Eldey: On this beautiful sunny and calm morning we set sail into Faxaflói. Not long after we left the harbour, we spotted a minke whale! This minke whale, a tiny juvenile, was especially curious and began investigating our boat while circling all around us. We could see the white bands, often called "mittens" on the pectoral fin of this individual as it swam right next to the boat! After spending some time with this minke, we said goodbye to it and sailed further out. A few moments later, we spotted some harbour porpoises going about their day! They were in quite a hurry, so we did not stop with them. After leaving the porpoises we were lucky and spotted a pod of 4-5 white-beaked dolphins! Not long after, we spotted a blow in the distance: a humpback whale! And this humpback was joined by 7-8 more white-beaked dolphins. We even saw several time the fluke of this whale. Fantastic tour! Easy like a Sunday morning!

-María Huamán.

Report from Háfsulan: This morning we left the harbour with the best possible weather conditions for whale watching: the sun was shining, the sky was clear and the ocean was flat. We passed by the puffin islands next to the city and took a look at the last puffins of the season. A few minutes later, when we sailed a little bit further out onto the bay, we found the first species of the tour, a humpback whale. Unfortunately, this individual was rather shy and we took a quick look at it before sailing to look for something else. It didn't take us very long to find some signs of activity in the distance. When we got closer, we realised that there were 2 minke whales quite close to each other. We spent quite some time with them because they seemed relaxed around the boat. They even surfaced a few times right next to us, so we could take a good look at their beautiful white mittens in their pectoral fins. Unfortunately, the tour was coming to an end so we had to go back to Reykjavik while we enjoyed the wonderful conditions and the beautiful landscape around us. 

- Samantha Smith

Report from Eldey: On the afternoon tour, we set sail into Faxaflói under the same calm and peaceful sea conditions we found this morning. Not long after leaving the harbour, we spotted a minke whale very close to the coast. It was wonderfully calm, making lots of beautiful surfaces and allowing us to enjoy several great looks at it. We sailed further out into the bay, encountering two small harbour porpoise pods along the way, but unfortunately, no other cetacean species were spotted. Nature is unpredictable, but every encounter is special, and we were grateful to enjoy such a peaceful afternoon at sea!

-Sigrún Helgu

Report from Háfsulan: We still have the brilliant sun shining as we set sail this afternoon. We were only a few minutes from harbor before we had one minke whale surface to the right of our boat! The seas were still very calm which allowed for excellent spotting conditions. When this individual resurfaced they showed off their ´speedy skills´ and it was amazing to see how fast they can move. We had a very nice few surface sequences before it was time to set our sights further out into the bay. Farther into the bay we admired our Northern gannets, Northern fulmars, and Atlantic puffins as they took to the skies around us. We then spotted another solitary minke whale and this individual changed direction and swam right to us! It appears we were just as interested in the minke whale as they were curious about us because for the next 30 minutes we were circled by them! They even did a bit of a spyhop to see what we were up to! We could see this individual through the surface of the water and watch their minke mittens as they swam around us. With calm conditions we could hear as they took a breath, and then also smell their fishy breath. After the most amazing encounter, this individual had finished their boat inspection and swam off to continue feeding. As we continued we spotted the blow of one humpback whale! This individual treated us right away to a fluke dive! On a clear day we could clearly see this individuals blow as they surfaced for a breath. Just when we thought the tour could not be more special, we were able to admire this humpback whale as they surfaced directly to our left hand side before seeing another fluke dive! After this it was time to wave them goodbye and head back to port. What an incredible tour!

-Guillermo

Report from Eldey: We headed out for our evening tour with sunshine in our faces. After a while of searching, we discovered a small pod of white-beaked dolphins! These dolphins were especially playful and active, leaping out of the water and bow riding along with us! We spent some time admiring these beautiful animals we left them to continue on with their day and we searched the bay a little bit further. Not long after, we encountered another pod of white-beaked dolphins but this pod was in a hurry to get somewhere, so we waved them goodbye. As we were heading back to the harbour, suddenly we spotted a very tiny juvenile minke whale circling a boat. Once we got a bit closer, this minke whale swam right over to us and began investigating our boat, rolling around next to us, and showing very curious behavior. It was the same minke whale from the morning! We spent the rest of the tour watching this lively young whale in awe, before we left to return to Reykjavík. 

-Maria Huamán

Report from Háfsulan: We had absolutely pristine conditions today. The bay was laying flat with almost mirror like reflections, and the sun was shining wonderfully. The journey was not long until we spotted the first sighting of the tour - a minke whale. It seemed friendly and resurfaced frequently so that we could get closer looks of its body. There was no wind so we could very clearly hear its loud exhales. We decided to head further out. A big spout came up from the surface in the distance and a dark body followed. It was a humpback whale. It was very calm in its behaviour and we could get some nice viewings. Each time it went for a deeper dive it showed off its beautiful tail fluke, stunning us all on the boat. Although it went for quite long dives, it left us more time to enjoy the exceptional sunset with orange colors painting the sky and the serenity of being alone in the bay. What a wonderful evening tour this was!

- Frida Skarfors

Northern fulmar, Northern gannet, Atlantic puffin, Arctic tern, Greater and lesser black-backed gull, herring gull, glaoucous gull, black guillemot, black-legged kittiwake, great skua, arctic skua