Our whale watching tour was originally meant to happen on the day after we arrived in Iceland but there was a storm and all whale watching tours were cancelled everywhere.
This storm held out for several days and we rescheduled a few times but the guys at Special Tours were so nice and helpful on the phone and trust me, it makes a huge difference.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
First things first, make a booking with Special Tours. They’re pretty much the top people you can go within Iceland and they’re so helpful and so friendly, too.
Adults: ISK 10-15,000
Teenagers: Half the adult price
Children: ISK 0
WHAT TO TAKE WITH YOU?
You don’t need warm clothing here. You’ll be provided with a warm suit. Though for kids, it might make sense to pack something warm for them. There is an indoor bit as well so you don’t really have to worry about being cold.
Take your camera and make sure you have it in sports mode. If ever there was a time to use that mode on your camera, this is it.
Take your sunglasses with you. Sounds counter-intuitive for winter but that reflection on the water is
DEPARTURE TIMES
9 am, 10 am, 1 pm and 2 pm (all year round) with extra times during summer at 5 pm and 8 pm (due to longer daylight hours).
It takes about 3/3.5 hours in total; though tours can overrun so don’t plan anything right after.
THINGS TO KNOW
Look out for seagulls, they usually gather around where whales can be seen
Dolphins are less shy than whales so chances are that you’d get to see some
Killer whales scare off other whales so if they’ve been spotted recently other whales might move a bit further away from the area
To see the whales, boats go out to each day (earlier in the day) to check out where they might be spotted. There is no fancy equipment involved as this would be detrimental to the ecosystem which is not what whale watching is about.
Look out for spurts of water, too.
THE PICTURES!!!
When we left to go whale watching, we chose to sit outside to maximise our chances of seeing the whales.
It makes very little difference as you will get told as soon as one is spotted and there are viewing decks upstairs and downstairs.
We didn’t have as much luck with the whales though we did manage to spot a couple of minke whales! I tried taking a photo but missed them… or so I thought!
I had a look later when I got home and after zooming in, I realised I had caught it on camera!
Check out the photo below! Not the best quality after zooming in but better than nowt! 😉
It’s gotta be said though, the dolphins stole the show!
First, we saw a couple and everyone was so excited as they kept coming out of the water.
Then a couple became 3, 4 and in total, there were about 8 or 9 of them bobbing in and out!
They even swam towards us and under the boat.
They were everywhere and I secretly think they were showing off and loving the attention.
Needless to say, I ended up taking quite a few photos!!!
Finally, we headed back to shore, thoroughly satisfied having had an amazing afternoon with Special Tours who I can’t recommend enough! 🙂
If you wanna see whales, dolphins and even puffins. These are the people to go to.
They’re located on the harbour in Reykjavik so you can pop by in person or make a reservation online to ensure you have your tickets in advance.
Read more: Best things to do in Iceland
Check Out The Very Best Of Great Britain!
