Monday, 8 September 2025

• CLASSIC WHALE TOUR | 9:00, 13:00, 17:00
• PREMIUM WHALE TOUR |10:00
• PREMIUM WHALE TOUR |12:00, 14:00, 15:00

Report from Eldey: We headed out onto a sunny but chilly bay with a mild swell. We found an area with lots of activity at the surface, with huge flocks of Northern fulmars and Northern gannets plunge diving all around us. We kept our eyes open in this area and spotted our first 3 minke whales amidst this feast. They sneakily disappeared very quickly, so we continued on, hoping to spot some more signs ahead. We soon spotted the blow of a humpback whale, and headed over to get a better look. This individual was quite calm, spending some time near the surface before going for some longer, deep dives. We stayed as long we could before we had to turn back and make our way towards the harbour, spotting another 3 minke whales and 3 pods of 5-6 and 2 of 2-3 harbour porpoises on the way home.

- Ricardo

Report from Eldey: The weather cleared up during the afternoon, allowing us to depart into the bay with a wonderful view of the mountains surrounding Faxaflói Bay and also the gorgeous Snæfellsjökull glacier. The sea was choppy, but the waves did not stop us from searching for wildlife. Our first sighting consisted of a minke whale, which surfaced ahead of our boat, but this sneaky (and agile) whale rapidly dived and disappeared. However, we soon got to our 2nd sighting, which consisted of 2 humpback whales, which were calmly resting on the surfaced. We left the area, after spending some time with the humpbacks, but stopped again only a few minute later. This happened because we had another minke whale surfacing quite close to our ship's left side. This was then followed by many more minke whales. Throughout the tour we probably saw around seven individuals. Our depth sounder indicated the presence of a large fish school in the area, so the minkes were likely feeding there. To finish the tour in grand, we went to a nearby area, where we were seeing blows coming out of the sea's surface. When we got there, we found 2 more humpbacks, which were behaving very relaxed and even showed us their beautiful tails, before going for deep dives. We then started our journey back to Reykjavik, this time with a smoother sea.

- Frida Skarfors

Report from Eldey: With a bit of wind and drizzle, we bundled up and headed out into the bay. It was not too long before we spotted the back of one minke whale. This minke was a very determined feeder and so we continued onward. We then spotted the blow of one humpback whale! This individual gave us quite the show, as they came very close to check us out. They then started to really show off by doing a lot of peduncle throwing and tail slapping!!! Just when we thought it could not get any more exciting, this individual rolled in its back and started pectoral slapping!! There was even another solitary humpback whale in the distance, and another minke whale popping up periodically. After multiple surface sequences, and an impressive fluke, we spotted some splashes in the distance and checked them out. As we got closer we realized it was a pod of eight white-beaked dolphins and two were jumping! There was then a what appeared to be a competition between the two dolphins jumping and they came really close. The entire pod was very curious and they came to check us out. It was truly an amazing experience as they were surrounding us. After a special viewing, unfortunately it was time to wave our cetaceans goodbye and head back to port. What a fantastic way to end the day!

-Samantha Smith

Northern fulmar, greater and lesser black-backed gull, Northern gannet, razorbill, black-legged kittiwake