Puffin Watching Tour

General information

Destination	Category
Reykjavik, Iceland	Sightseeing Tours

Program details

Plunge yourself into the world of the adorable puffin, the most colourful, charismatic and entertaining little seabird north of the equator and star of this boat trip off the Icelandic coast. Nature-lovers are in for a special treat, because apart from the large breeding colonies of puffins there will be plenty of other interesting species to see.

The cheeky puffin has attracted locals' and tourists' attention around Iceland for many years. Perhaps this is not surprising given their striking appearance and their quaintly comical waddling gait. Their most obvious characteristic during the breeding season is their brightly coloured bills which, added to their piebald plumage, have given rise to nicknames such as ‘clown of the ocean’ and ‘sea parrot’.

Iceland has the largest Atlantic Puffin colony in the world and close to Reykjavík there are two colonies, the island of Akurey, with its 12,000 pairs of birds, and the island of Lundey with its 10,000 pairs. The first puffins come ashore in April after a long winter on the sea and return again in August after their chicks have hatched and fledged.

On our puffin watching boat trips we sail to either Akurey or Lundey. In order not to disturb the breeding puffins we are not allowed onto the islands, but we get as close as possible: how close depends on the tide and wind conditions. Luckily the puffins tend to stay put for a while and are consequently easy to photograph. In addition to puffins other birds such as eider ducks, arctic terns, geese, guillemots and cormorants are a common sight.

Ornithologists and nature-lovers in general have a real treat in store with this journey to view a spectacular puffin colony.

Meeting/pick-up point: Reykjavik Old Harbour, No.5 Ægisgarður. Collection from accommodation also available.
Duration: Three to three and a half hours.
Start/opening time: Between 8.45am-9.15am or between 14.15pm-14.45pm
Languages: Guided tour in English with other languages such as German, Spanish and French available on request.