Whale Watching Original

by Whale Watching Hauganes · Whale watching · North Iceland

4.70· 1,254 Google reviews of the operator

Fine on your own

from €93.23 per person

Next departure: Thu 22 Oct

Book Thu 22 Oct · €93.23 Other dates

Whale Watching Original — Whale Watching Hauganes

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6 photos from Whale Watching Hauganes . Tap any one for the full-size original.

Duration
2 hours and 30 minutes
Difficulty
Easy
Season
All year
Starts in
Hauganes
Pickup
Meet at the start point
Starts at
Whale Watching
Hafnargata 2, Hauganes
Guide
Guided in English
Departs
08:00, 08:15, 08:30, 09:00 …
Cancellation
Free until 24 hours before

About this experience

This is a 2,5 to 3 -hour whale watching tour 25 minutes north of Akureyri in Hauganes. A comfortable tour with the oldest whale watching tour operator in Iceland where you will be observing the fantastic scenery, bird life, and the diverse range of whale species in Eyjafjordur. In 2022 we saw humpback whales in 99% of our tours.

Description from the operator, Whale Watching Hauganes . Prices and availability in the booking panel are live.

Included

All taxes, fees and handling charges
Light refreshments
Local guide
Live commentary on board

Not included

Souvenir (available to purchase)
Hotel pickup and drop-off

Good to know

Warm clothes, closed shoes (not sandals).

Children must be accompanied by an adult
No public transportation nearby
Infants must not sit on laps
Infant seats unavailable
Wheelchair accessible
Not wheelchair accessible
• Your tickets will be held at the local operator office for collection on the day of the tour, no earlier than one hour before departure time

Cancellation for this tour

Free cancellation until 24 hours before departure; no refund after that. If the operator cancels for weather or safety, you get a full refund or a new date.

If the weather cancels this tour

Iceland's weather is real. What usually stops this one is sea state — the skipper decides an hour or two before departure; in winter this happens often. Here is exactly what happens to your booking.

1Whale Watching Hauganes decides, and tells us. Operators cancel when it is unsafe or pointless, and we back that call every time — we do not ask them to run anyway.
2We contact you by email, and by phone if your tour is the same or next day. You choose: another date if there is one you can make, or a full refund. There is no fee and nothing to argue.
3The refund goes back to the card you paid with, through Stripe, usually visible within a few working days. If this tour was one of several in your booking, the others are untouched.

What you do not get is the day back. If this is the only free day in your plan, put a spare day next to it — the planner leaves days free with the rest-day option. And if you want out because the forecast looks bad, that is your own cancellation: free until 1 day before departure, the operator's policy after that.

Questions on the day: [email protected] · +354 497 1373. How cancellations work in Iceland →

Why this one and not the cheaper one?

The nearest cheaper Classic Whale Watching from Dalvík from Arctic Sea Tours is €80 — €13 less. Here is every difference we can actually measure.

	Whale Watching Hauganes · €93	Arctic Sea Tours · €80
How long it runs	2.5 hours	3 hours
How hard it is	Easy	Very easy

On everything we can measure, the Arctic Sea Tours tour is the better buy. The €13 is not buying anything we can point to, so unless you want this operator in particular, take the cheaper one.

Why we list it

Whale Watching Hauganes is one of 204 operators we work with — chosen for reliability, honest descriptions and how they treat guests when weather changes plans. We don't list everything; we list what we'd book ourselves. The six checks every operator passes →

What travellers say about Whale Watching Hauganes

Read all 1,254 reviews on Google →

Operator rating 4.7/5 from Google — these are reviews of the company, not this specific tour. Shown as Google returns them, unedited.

Tim Orel
★★★★★ · 2 months ago
Well organized tour company to go watch whales. Two ships to share spotting information and we saw three Humpback whales close up and two or three Minke whales from a distance. The information narrative had good stuff about the whales identification as well. They also had hot cocoa and coffee and some cookies after the whale excitement died down.
Ave Summerfield
★★★★★ · 3 months ago
Wow! Just had the most amazing afternoon with these guys! Lovely boat, fantastic staff and just overall an not to be missed experience! We got to see 2 humpbacks whales, which was amazing! The captain knew all the best spots and there was just so much to see! We was travelling with a 2 & 4 year old was no problem at all, was every easy to keep them safe and they got to enjoy a hot chocolate and a lovely cinnamon biscuit! Thank you, we had the best time!
Julia L
★★★★★ · 6 months ago
Amazing Tour for whale watching. We booked really spontaneously, because we had to cancel the tour we booked first due to a snow storm. They were super nice and helpful, cancellation was possible until a day before the trip. Two days later we made it to the north and had a great time. Before the tour everyone received a warm overall. The tour guide was very nice, we saw a humpback whale. The provided hot chocolate/ hot coffee made the trip perfect!
Dominic Chung
★★★★★ · 9 months ago
The whales here seem wonderfully unafraid of people, often surfacing so close to the boat that you feel you could almost reach. Before you head out, the crew bundle you up in thick, insulated flotation suit that keeps you warm and safe throughout the trip. On board, you can wrap your hands around a cup of hot chocolate and nibble on freshly baked homemade cookies as you watch these giants glide past.

Reviews from Google · updated 21 Oct 2026

Read before you book

Can you see whales in Iceland in winter? Month by monthYes, you can see whales in Iceland in January and November. Which harbours sail in which months, how the free retry ticket works, and honest sighting odds.
Húsavík or Eyjafjörður for whale watching?Whale watching from Húsavík's Skjálfandi Bay versus boats leaving Akureyri or Dalvík on Eyjafjörður — which bay to book from and why.

Reviews from our travellers

Only people who booked this tour through us can write here. We publish every review in full — good or bad.

Reviews arrive the day after each trip — none yet for this one. After your tour we send one email asking how it was, and what you write goes here, unedited.

Whale watching — questions people ask

When is the best time for whale watching in Iceland?

April to October, with June to August the most reliable. Humpbacks and minke whales feed in Faxaflói off Reykjavík and in the northern fjords all summer, and white-beaked dolphins and harbour porpoises turn up on most trips. Winter boats still sail from Reykjavík, but sightings drop and the sea is rougher. If whales are the point of your trip, come in summer and book an early departure; seas are usually calmer in the morning.

Can you see whales from Reykjavík in December?

Sometimes. Boats run from the Old Harbour all year, and winter trips do find whales, mostly humpbacks and the occasional orca. But December means short daylight, cold wind and a higher chance the operator cancels for weather. Sightings are noticeably less frequent than in summer. If you are here in winter, go anyway, but treat it as a sea trip with a chance of whales rather than a whale trip. Most operators offer a free second trip if nothing shows.

Is Húsavík or Reykjavík better for whale watching?

Húsavík, if you can get there. Skjálfandi Bay in the north sees humpbacks close to shore from May to September, and the small family-run boats like Friends of Moby Dick (/experience/752602/) keep group sizes down. Reykjavík is more convenient: boats leave the Old Harbour five minutes from most hotels and run all year. Akureyri and Dalvík in Eyjafjörður are also strong. If you are only in Reykjavík, go from Reykjavík and do not feel short-changed.

Will I get seasick on a whale watching tour?

You might. Faxaflói is open sea and the boats roll, especially in wind. Take a tablet an hour before departure, stay on deck in fresh air and watch the horizon rather than your phone. Morning trips tend to be calmer than afternoon ones. If you know you suffer badly, a two-hour RIB trip (/experience/155331/) is faster and bumpier but shorter, or pick a northern fjord like Eyjafjörður, which is more sheltered than the bay off Reykjavík.

Hotels

Where to stay for this tour

Places to stay near Dalvík, from our hotel partners. Rooms are booked on our hotels site.

All hotels in North Iceland →

One checkout, any number of operators
Rankings are not for sale
203 operators vetted, and not all of them accepted
If it falls short, we fix it

from

€93.23 per person

Whale Watching Hauganes 's own price. 3% off the whole trip when you book two or more tours together, in one checkout.

Your date

The next departure we can see — change it if this tour is for another day.

Pick a date to check departures.

Departs08:0008:1508:3009:0009:3010:0010:3011:0011:3012:0012:3013:0013:3014:0014:3015:0015:3016:0017:00

Dalvík: light 08:31–17:26, 8 h 55 min of daylight.

✓ Free cancellation until 24 hours before
✓ Instant confirmation by email
✓ If Whale Watching Hauganes cancels for weather or safety: a full refund, or another date
✓ Card — Apple Pay or Google Pay where your device offers it — through Stripe; the charge is made in Icelandic krónur
✓ Price promise: Whale Watching Hauganes 's own price, or we refund the difference
✓ One checkout, even with tours from several operators
✓ Vetted operator — the six checks every operator passes

Pairs well with

Add any of these to this tour and 3 % comes off both at checkout — about €6 on the cheapest pair. One basket, one payment, however many operators they come from.