Reykjavik Shore Excursion: Whale-Watching Cruise

Reykjavik, Iceland

From $93.79

Select Date and Travelers

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

3 hours 50 minutes (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Realize your dream of spotting wild whales in their natural environment on a 2.5- or 3-5-hour shore excursion around Faxaflói Bay from Reykjavik Port. Opt to enjoy either a 2.5-hour high speed cruise or a relaxed 3.5-hour cruise and then embark on an exhilarating whale-watching adventure. Enjoy illuminating commentary from an expert guide as you scour the sea for an incredible array of wildlife; look out for minke whales, white-beaked dolphins, porpoises and humpback whales as you cruise the beautiful area. Return to your cruise ship well in advance of its departure time on this enriching excursion.

Whale-watching shore excursion to Faxaflói Bay from Reykjavik Port
See Icelandic marine life up close, like porpoises, white-beaked dolphins and humpback whales
Learn about the different species of whales that frequent the waters around Faxaflói Bay
Warm up with waterproof coveralls on the boat, if you wish
Covered by Viator’s worry-free policy: guaranteed on-time return to your ship

What's Included

Free ticket to try again if nothing is seen on your tour
Use of thermal overalls - also available in children's sizes!
Free WiFi
Complimentary sea sickness tablets, if needed
NEW - Special Tours App (available in English, German, French, Spanish, and Chinese)

Gratuities
Food and drinks, unless specified

Meeting and Pickup

You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup

Meeting point

Geirsgata 11, 101 Reykjavík, Iceland
Skarfabakki Cruise Port if transfer selected, or the Special Tours Ticket Office in the Old Harbour if meeting directly.

Pickup point

Skarfabakki Harbour
544P+F35, 104 Reykjavík, Iceland

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Pickup details

Please be ready at the Skarfabakki Harbour 1 hour prior to your departure time if you have selected pick-up.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation

Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 189 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

39 reviews

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

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 39 reviews

Great trip, guide was...

David_S, Sep 2023

Great trip, guide was very knowledgeable with a good sense of humour. We where lucky as weather was lovely & sea was calm. Wish there would of been more whales around, but trip was very enjoyable and would recommend.

The tour was...

Kathleen_D, Sep 2022

The tour was well-organized, we boarded and left on time and there were warm, waterproof jackets available for those that were underdressed. It was easy to hear the guide throughout the boat with the installed speakers and she made a point to orient us to the position of the animals so we could all find them quickly no matter where we were. Dominiki was our guide and she had a lot of great information about the local whale and other cetacean species, local geography, and we felt like we learned a lot despite having taken other whale-watching tours in the past. The captain did a great job of making sure people on the port and starboard sides had a good view, and we were able to see so many species- minki whales, harbour porpoises, white-beaked dolphins. Would definitely recommend this tour, we were out on the water for the full promised 3hrs.

Great experience

Lesley_R, Jun 2022

Saw lots of Whales and the guide was knowledgeable. Took care to stay a distance from the whales whilst still giving us a memorable experience. The warm clothing and sea sickness tablets were welcome. Would definitely recommend.

Great cruise

Rosa_S, Jul 2021

We had a great time. The boat was nice, the tour guide was a very knowledgeable biologist and we were able to see some whales up close!

The cruise itself was fine. A nice...

Chuck, Aug 2017

The cruise itself was fine. A nice boat. Plenty of space to move around. On the down side, the boat was not really handicapped accessible. Many people were getting seasick along the way. And, oh yeah, there were no whales. We got an offer to go on another whale-watching cruise in the futurebut will we ever return to Iceland to take them up on the offer?

I doubt whether many of these trips...

Dennis_S, Sep 2016

I doubt whether many of these trips actually discover whales and mine did not. But it did not matter because for 3 1/2 hours I was on the same body of water that Vikings once sailed. The ship was just fine. If you needed a snack or hot coffee, you had a snack bar. If you wanted to jump into thermal overalls, there was plenty to go around. If you wanted to stay warm inside, there was plenty of viewing room inside. We ran into several groups of dolphins, but to me, to be there in Iceland, sailing far out and away from Reykjavik, that was all I needed to thoroughly enjoy this tour. I highly recommend.

It's a must do when in Reykjavik...

Stella P, May 2016

It's a must do when in Reykjavik. The thing is you have to be in the front of the boat to see anything. The water was a bit too bumpy and even with the seasickness pill it's still a bit rough to move around the boat. I was behind and to go all the way to the front without throwing up was too tough, sadly. Luckily, because not everyone saw whales, they gave us a new ticket to collect whenever we're back in Reykjavik.

A rather disappointing trip as we...

Margaret F, Feb 2016

A rather disappointing trip as we didn't see any mammals apart from birds. They do not guarantee that you will see anything so we were well prepared not to see anything. The staff were very helpful and gave us all a free voucher for another trip, which compensated for the lack of viewing and wildlife. At least we had a boat trip of around three hours

Unfortunately we missed the tour...

Ian P, Jan 2016

Unfortunately we missed the tour because of a long transfer from the airport to the hotel.

Nice boat, helpful crew, lovely...

Frank W, Oct 2015

Nice boat, helpful crew, lovely guide, but limited viewings-none of minke whale apparently spotted, dolphins only

Didn't see the whales however nice trip...

Sonya G, Jan 2015

Didn't see the whales however nice trip and gorgeous tour guide with amazing sense of humour

Time indication for pick up as...

Guenther H, Sep 2014

Time indication for pick up as inaccurate. We were told pick up noon, meant was however between noon and 12.45. We had to call once again to clarify. Crew did excellent in spite of the rough sea. Actually date was bad for whale watching as most big whales were already gone. We did only see a little bit of a mink whale.

We only saw a tip of whale's spine...

Craig B, Jul 2014

We only saw a tip of whale's spine. We did enjoy our tour guide and boat ride but you could see other passengers getting frustrated and queezy. The boat kept driving in circles chasing down a whale that barely surfaced once. I recommend showing a real status of the tour. I was expecting to see what you advertise with this whale leaping out of the water. This did not meet our expectations.

it was a nice trip on the boat from...

Prabhu M, Feb 2014

it was a nice trip on the boat from reykjavik harbour, but spotting a whale is down to your luck, its not 100% or even 50% sure you will see a whale in that 2 hours trip...if you dont get to see a whale tour operator will give you another voucher to try, but that does not guarantee either, so it's more of searching whale, if you find it you are lucky otherwise just a boat trip to the shore..

great trip got to see some minky and...

mark r, Oct 2013

great trip got to see some minky and dolphins,my expectations were to high thought i would see a whale like in the trip photo,use their warm gear its brill we were like toast all day

had a great time did not see any...

j_b, Oct 2013

had a great time did not see any whales but did see dolphins. the trip was very good , we were picked up on time no problems.

Brilliant, the weather was kind to...

Teresa_S, Oct 2013

Brilliant, the weather was kind to us and we saw two Minky Whales and also Dolphins, wrap up warm as it does get cold but a lovely trip.

quite disappointing. we saw a grand...

Suzanne_c, Sep 2013

quite disappointing. we saw a grand total of four (4) dolphins! Weather was rainy,damp and cold..the cover-alls were much appreciated. The boat had a full 'crew' of young people hoping to see whales,many of these folks became sick as the ship tossed and turned in the rough waters. There was no offer of a beverage as is listed in your tour bio. Finally we were informed that they used no sonar-radar devices to spot the whales merely relying on human sightings. I've been on several whale watch cruises before and thought this was a standard used by all boats offering this tour.

Paper work needed more details for...

Patricia L, Sep 2013

Paper work needed more details for the meeting arrangements. The van that picked us up had the wrong card on display so we were left checking every vehicle that arrived. We did not really see any whales, a brief glimpse of a minky whale. The boat was good and high speed with warm wet proof suits available. Good value and worth doing but viators need to improve the collection instructions and arrangements with the operators.

No vale la pena ni repetiría

Enrique_A, Oct 2022

Poco avistamiento de ballenas Creo que no vale la pena lo que se paga y el esfuerzo de ir en el barco tanto tiempo