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Iceland Super Saver: Puffin Cruise plus Whale-Watching Tour from Reykjavik

Reykjavik, Iceland

From $133.47

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

4 hours 30 minutes
Offered in: English

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Overview

Discover the natural majesty of Iceland with the Reykjavik Super Saver, a combination of two popular tours at a discounted price. Realize your dreams of seeing wild whales during a 2.5- or 3.5-hour whale-watching tour and marvel at adorable puffins as you sail the rugged shores of Akurey island on a 1-hour puffin cruise. Enrich your knowledge of the majestic creatures while listening to commentary from a knowledgeable guide on each captivating cruise.

Reykjavik Super Saver that offers two incredible tours for a discounted price
Spot marine life, including harbor porpoises and humpback whales, on a whale-watching tour
Choose between a 3.5-hour whale-watching cruise, or a 2.5-hour high-speed boat version
Learn about some of Iceland’s most majestic native wildlife from expert guides on both tours

What's Included

Free Wi-Fi on whale-watching cruise
Warm overalls on whale-watching cruise
Binoculars on the puffin cruise
NEW - Special Tours App (available in English, German, French, Spanish, and Chinese)

Food and drinks
Gratuities
Hotel transfers (available to purchase separately)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Geirsgata 11, 101 Reykjavík, Iceland
Special Tours Ticket Office

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Puffin Express Cruise to Akurey from Reykjavik (1 Hour)Select a departure time to suit your schedule and then depart from your Reykjavík hotel (if pickup option selected). If you have not added the hotel pickup then you will meet us in Reykjavík's Old Harbour where you will board a comfortable boat destined for the idyllic island of Akurey, famed for its dense puffin population.

Find a comfortable seat on board and warm yourself with a soft, provided blanket while listening to illuminating narration that details the behavior and physiology of the puffins.

As you approach the island, gaze out of the window and marvel at the agile birds as they dive into the water for fish. Use binoculars to get a closer look at the puffins and scour the sea for other bird species like Arctic terns, black guillemots and northern fulmars.

Arrive at the rocky shores of Akurey and circle the island for more prime puffin vantage points. Then, make the serene journey back to land where your hotel drop off will be waiting (if option selected).'

Whale-Watching Tour from Reykjavik (2.5 or 3.5 Hours)Opt for a tour length and departure time to suit to your schedule and then embark on either a leisurely 3.5-hour cruise or an express 2.5-hour high-speed boat ride. Depart from your Reykjavik hotel (if option selected) and travel to the quaint Old Harbour to board your luxurious whale-watching vessel.

Keep your eyes open for common sightings of minke whales and humpback whales while your guide helps scan the open seas. While listening to illuminating natural commentary from your guide, scan the calm ocean for sightings of other wildlife species like white-beaked dolphins and porpoises. Keep your eyes open and your camera ready for common sightings of minke whales and humpback whales!

Revitalize with steaming beverages like hot chocolate and aromatic coffee throughout your cruise in the inside viewing area (at your own expense). After capturing countless photographs of majestic whales,relax during the journey by boat and coach to your Reykjavik hotel (if option selected).

In the unlikely event you don’t spot any whales in Faxaflói Bay, receive a complimentary ticket for another whale-watching cruise.

Please note: You can choose to take the tours on the same day, or across separate days during your Iceland vacation.

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Warm clothes recommended
Please note: You will need to reconfirm your cruise times with the supplier, refer to voucher for further details
Not wheelchair accessible
Hotel pick up: Available to book directly with supplier (extra fees apply).

Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 33 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

4.0

93 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 93 reviews

Great Trip

joey_b, Aug 2023

A lot of fun. Unfortunately we did not see any whales, but we did see dolphins. The tour guide was very funny. We did see a lot of puffins on the second part of the tour. Definitely recommend.

Wonderful tour!

joste2005, Aug 2023

The guides for both the whale watching tour and puffin cruise were incredibly knowledgeable and the boat captains were great at communicating with other tours to find as many whales/puffins as possible.

Great morning tour

MEREDITH_C, Aug 2023

Our (puffin) guide, Patrick, was a hoot! I could have sworn he was from the US Midwest, because to me he had no accent. He was very funny while being informative as well. Saw lots of puffins. The whale watching was fantastic as well. Although we didn’t see any whales, we did see many dolphins and porpoises.

Super trip!

Liz_v, Aug 2023

Our guide Blanca was excellent at pointing out whales, dolphins, and birds. It was a very enjoyable trip.

Puffin yes 100%, Whale maybe. Guides were great!

Gabriella_S, Aug 2023

Our tour guides were great! I will say, though, the puffin watching was much more exciting than the whale watching. This isn't anyone's fault, obviously, because whales are wild animals after all. The puffin watching wasn't more than an hour long, but the whale watching was 2.5 hours, and only until 2h in did we get any indication we would be seeing whales. The puffin watching boat was small and quaint, and our guide provided us with all the puffin facts! The whale watching boat was huge, and because we went farther out to sea, we were provided with optional sea-sickness pills (which I gladly took, just in case). I would recommend the puffin watching to all, the whale watching to some.

Okay

Kathy_K, Aug 2023

Really enjoyed the whale watching. Very good information about whales. We even saw whales!! Puffin part was okay. Again interesting information but could only see puffins with binoculars. Boat was never close enough for a good view.

A whale of a good time

Ashley_G, Aug 2023

Great trip, smooth ride, warm and great coffee! We enjoyed the trip and especially enjoyed seeing a humpback whale!

Waste of time

Greg_B, Jul 2023

The advert is seriously misleading. It’s not a 1 hour Puffin tour and 2 hour whale tour. It’s basically bobbing around the ocean looking for some whales and dolphins where the birds also hang out. You don’t get close enough to anything to photograph properly. We were hoping to see puffins breading but nothing at all. Just some on the ocean. Over priced for what you got and frankly a waste of time and money

A wonderful experience ! Highly recommended !!!

Susanne_A, Jun 2023

A wonderful experience ! We saw so many whales. Some of them very close. Absolutely fantastic !!! Very friendly and helpful guide and crew. Highly recommended !!!

Great whales tour, puffin - not so much

Ekaterina_V, Jun 2023

The whale watching part of the tour was great. We were lucky to see both whales and dolphins, the tour guide was pleasant and gave us a lot of information about the whales. That being said, I think it's important to keep in mind that seeing whales is not guaranteed, our boat was fortunate enough on that day, but it is possible that you could spend a few hours at sea and not see any wildlife, not that it would be the tour company fault though. They provided us with warm overalls which we gladly put on, as even in June it was very cold and windy. They also gave us free pills from motion sickness, my recommendation is to definitely take one, I was glad that I did. The puffin part of the tour was rather disappointing, it is very short and quick, plenty of puffins at the island, but the boat can't come close enough for you to actually be able to see anything, even with binoculars. They do provide binoculars for you to use, but I'd recommend to bring your own, so you don't have to share with other people, as there are not enough for everyone. I am hesitant as whether I would recommend the puffin part of the tour or not. On the one hand, it is a very unique experience as not many places in the world can boast about having puffins, on the other hand, you barely see anything from such a distance. The tour guide was OK, but not really engaging and informative. They mentioned that puffin population is decreasing dramatically, so it's probably worth to go see them now while we still can.

Just a “so,so” experience

Sue_T, Jul 2022

The speaker for the day wasn’t that great. Didn’t see much, really just an expensive boat ride. The boat it’s self was very nice.

Fun boat trip

Annmarie_R, Jul 2022

The information provided about the whales, dolphins and puffins was very informative. We were very lucky that the seas were very calm and we saw two types of whales along with dolphins. It was a worthwhile trip

Show more respect for whales please.

Judith_A, Jul 2022

We saw whales which was great but sadly the lack of regulations regarding how many boats and how close they can get really disturbed me. I come from a country where boats must cut engines near whales and must not go to close. These boats actually cruised along with the animals. More must be done to stop whaling and show more respect. Then whales will come up to the boats and show off. It is not this particular operator. The boat was great. Iceland must change its attitude. The puffin trip was terrific. Highly recommended.

Excellent whale watching, but a very small boat for too many people at the puffin tour

Thomas_H, Aug 2021

The whale watching was actually a five star experience with some animals to be seen for quite a while and an informative guide. The puffin cruise, however, was disappointing because there were way too many people on the small boat. As a result, you couldn't really enjoy the short journey.

Response from Host, Oct 2021

Thank you for your review, and we apologize for the late reply! We're glad that you enjoyed your whale watching tour with us, but we're sorry to hear that the puffin express tour was not as enjoyable for you. We have a maximum number of passengers allowed on each boat and we never go over this number for safety reasons. Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

It's worthwhile for the budget minded

Tricia_W, Aug 2021

We saw a humpback whale! Very cool! The whale watching tour was just the right amount of time and the tour guide was knowledgeable. The puffin cruise was ok and kind of short. There were tons but we couldn't get very close to the puffin island so it was hard to see them unless they flew by. For the price it's still worthwhile.

Response from Host, Sep 2021

Thank you for your review! We're glad to hear that you enjoyed your Whale Watching tour with us and we will pass the compliments along to your guides and crew. For both the puffins and the whales, it's ultimately up to the wildlife to decide how close we get to them. Sometimes we're able to see the puffins from very close, and other times it's easier to see them with the binoculars on board. This is part of work with wild animals, but we always do our best to get as close as possible while following the IceWhale code of conduct for wildlife encounters :) Thank you for sailing with Special Tours, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

Whales & Puffins

Magaly_M, Aug 2021

Our tour guide was enthusiastic and very informative. The sea was smooth and we saw 3 different types of whales. It was a great day!

Response from Host, Sep 2021

Thank you for your review! We're glad to hear that you enjoyed your tours with us, and we will pass the compliments along to the guide and crew. Thank you for sailing with Special Tours, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

More birds than whales!

robert_m, Jul 2021

Never no what you see! Don’t expect jumping whales otherwise you’ll be disappointed! But the of seeing the fountains of air of a humpbag and their backs snd vins gliding through the water are exiting enough. The boat ride itself is an adventure on its own! Puffin tour in smaller boat is nice, good guide provided lots of info and you can see a lot of birds. Youre not allowed to acces the islands where they breed so you are bound to the boat.. but very nice trip!!

Response from Host, Jul 2021

Thank you for your review! We're glad that you enjoyed your tours with us and we will pass the compliments along to the guides. Since we're working with wildlife we can never guarantee sightings, nor can we guarantee what behaviors the whales will exhibit when we do see them. That's part of the beauty of working with nature and wildlife - each tour is unique and every encounter special. You're also absolutely correct about the puffin islands, it's banned to go onto the islands because they are a protected breeding ground. Our boat allows us to get as close as possible while still following guidelines and respecting the bird life :) Thank you for sailing with us, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

Humpbacks, Minkes and Dolphins, Oh MY!

Sandra_R, Jun 2021

I thought this was great. A nice easy day, relaxing on the water. We had 3 hour whale watching in the morning, and then came back for a 10 minute break and got on a different boat for the 1 hour puffin cruise. We were done in time for a late lunch, but if you were hungry, there were snacks for purchase on the whale watching boat. We were so fortunate to see humpback whales, Minke whales and dolphins!!

Response from Host, Jul 2021

Thank you so much for your review! We're glad that you enjoyed your Whale Watching & Puffin Express tours with us. Humpbacks, minkes & dolphins are three of the four most common species that we see in the bay - it sounds like it was quite a successful tour! Thank you for sailing with Special Tours, and we hope that you enjoy the rest of your stay in Iceland. Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

Puffins and Whales

Melissa_L, Jun 2021

We had really rough seas on on the Whale Watching part. They told us this before leaving in case we wanted to cancel. The staff was very helpful handing out ginger candy and sick bags. We unfortunately did not see any whales but we did see lots of Puffins and other sea birds. If it had been high tide, we may have been able to get closer to the island where the Puffins breed. The Biologist was very informative and we learned many interesting things about the wildlife of Iceland.

Response from Host, Jun 2021

Thank you for your review! We're glad that you enjoyed your tours with us and will pass the compliments along to the guides. We always let passengers know the sea conditions ahead of time to allow anyone who is prone to sea sickness the chance to reschedule or cancel. We're glad that you were still able to sail out in this case and see the puffins. Thank you for your review, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

Nice combination of two tours

Robert_C, Jun 2021

We really wanted to see whales up close but were only able to see three or four in the distance. We did love the journey out to sea anyway. We were provided with wet suits which really kept us warm and enjoyed the adventure even though we didn’t get some up close viewing. The smaller boat to the island of puffins made it easier to get a little closer to view the birds but here again not quite close enough. There was no opportunity to see the birds up close and personal, just huge flocks of them flying around the island. We still enjoyed it though. It was a nice morning.

Response from Host, Jun 2021

Thank you for your review! We're glad that you enjoyed your Whale Watching & Puffin Express tours with us. We always do our best to get as close as possible to the wildlife that we encounter while following the guidelines and code of conduct. It is ultimately up to the animals to decide how close they want to be to our boats. Thank you for sailing with Special Tours, and we hope that you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Iceland! Kind regards, Special Tours Crew

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