Whale watching in Iceland 26Jan20

Whale watching on a luxury yacht from Reykjavik harbour. 

Success! We found some incredibly playful harbour porpoises  and glimpsed a harbour seal as well as loads of great cormorants, fulmars, gulls, eider ducks and guillemots. However we didn’t find any larger cetaceans like whales so we invited all of our customers to come back for free in the next three years.

We left Reykjavik harbour with a little cloud over head, but then the sun came out and being out on the water was the most beautiful place to be. The sea and the sky were bright blue, the mountains snow capped and the islands starting to look green again. We thought the sea might not be as calm as it was, so we gave everyone who wanted them seasickness tablets. However when we got out past the islands the water was really calm and it was a perfect place to be.

At first we saw lots of sea birds, especially cormorants, fulmars, gulls and guillemots as well as a couple of huge groups of eiders. We checked in the water around the feeding ones in case there were any whales or dolphins also feeding there, but no luck, so we continued out through them, and out into an area we know to be a rich feeding group. Despite the lack of birds we suddenly spotted a group of fins, and shortly after the yacht, Amelia Rose, was surrounded by a large pod of porpoises. Often we only see harbour porpoises in groups up to 3 but here we spotted at least 8 individuals.

They were extremely confident, playing around the boat but also riding the small swells coming across from whale fjord. They were a real joy to see and stayed with us for almost an hour. Everyone got great photos of this normally incredibly shy marine mammal.

Often porpoises are a sign that an area is rich and we may see other animals there too, so whilst the porpoises were so playful we made the most of it, yet kept our eyes open and in communication with the other vessels on the water in case a whale showed up. Sadly they didn’t and eventually we headed back in to Reykjavik harbour, happy to have seen the porpoises, but we also gave our customers free tickets to return as many times as they need to in three years to see our whales and dolphins in real life.

Many people come to see the wonderful wildlife here, but they also come to see the bewitching northern lights, and we take people out again on our lovely super yacht Amelia Rose. When you book a whale watching tour with us you get 50% off your northern lights tour!

Sea Trips Reykjavik sail every day from Reykjavík Old Harbour, Iceland. Our yacht Amelia Rose was built as a superyacht in 2003 and as such is extremely comfortable and stable, with three viewing decks, a bar, and plenty of comfortable seating. However the seas often change here, and people are affected differently by the movement of the oceans. As such we have seasickness tablets available for free at the bar. We also have warm blankets and ponchos around the yacht for your comfort, though the inside of the ship is extremely warm and snug.

For more information on our boats, our trips and any accessibility questions please email us at seatrips@seatrips.is  or read through our FAQs.