Reykjavík Whales & Imagine Peace Tower
by Elding Adventure at Sea · Whale watching · Reykjavík
- Fine on your own
- Eco-certified
- Self-guided
from €204.08 per person
Next departure: Fri 23 Oct
1 / 6
Duration
5 hours
Difficulty
Very easy
Season
All year
Starts in
Reykjavík
Pickup
Hotel pickup available at extra cost, or meet at the start point
Starts at
Ægisgarður 5c, Reykjavík
Departs
13:00
Cancellation
Free until 24 hours before
Meeting point, in Elding Adventure at Sea's words: Please arrive at Elding's ticket office around 12:45.
About this experience
This tour combines two interesting sights. After exploring the wonders of the whales and seabirds it's ideal to stop by in the harbour area and have a lovely dinner before heading out to Viðey island looking at the beam of light representing world peace.
Whales & Imagine Peace Tower
Whale Watching in the afternoon and an evening Imagine Peace Tower tour on Viðey island.
You start the day with a whale watching tour at 13:00 in the afternoon. After exploring and learning more about the wonders of the whales and seabirds Faxaflói offers you return to the harbour (approx. 3-5 hrs later), having some time to walk around the immediate area or enjoy a lovely meal in the harbour.
At 20:00 the ferry over to Viðey island where the Imagine Peace tour is situated, departs. The tour sets off from the Old Harbour in downtown Reykjavik and sails towards the magical world of Videy Island, a 20-minute boat ride away, where we take a guided walk to the Imagine Peace Tour and learn about this magnificent work of art as well as the history and nature of the island. The view of Reykjavik by night is also not to be missed. If you’re lucky, the northern lights might even appear overhead.
Pickup / Drop off service available for additional fee.
Description from the operator, Elding Adventure at Sea. Prices and availability in the booking panel are live.
Included
- Use of warm overalls
- Crampons (if needed)
- Excellent guidance
Good to know
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.
- 1Elding Adventure at Sea 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 Sailing with Giants: Whale Watching from Reykjavik from Your Friend in Reykjavik is €79 — €125 less. Here is every difference we can actually measure.
| Elding Adventure at Sea · €204 | Your Friend in Reykjavik · €79 | |
|---|---|---|
| How long it runs | 5 hours | 3.5 hours |
| How hard it is | Very easy | Easy |
The €125 buys you 1.5 more hours out. Whether that is worth it is your call — but that is what the difference is.
Sold out on your date?
Seats come back — a cancellation, or the operator adding a vehicle. Tell us the date and we will check once a day and email you if one opens. One email, then we delete the address; nothing else is ever sent to it.
Why we list it
Elding Adventure at Sea 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 Elding Adventure at Sea
Read all 2,419 reviews on Google →Operator rating 4.5/5 from Google — these are reviews of the company, not this specific tour. Shown as Google returns them, unedited.
★★★★★ · 2 months ago
We had an incredible sunset whale watching trip. From the beginning, every member of staff was attentive and helpful. Our guide shared lots of info on the wildlife we spotted - birds and whales. We were blessed with beautiful weather and the boat wasn't busy so we had room to move around and spot wildlife. Lots of tips on how to spot whales were shared. We saw a minke whale and then in the distance the sprays from several humpbacks.We made our way towards these and then stayed with one for ages - it was magical! The captain was very generous with time - because our encounter was quite far out, our trip was over 3.5 hours, we were not rushed back because time was running out! We saw lots of different bird species too. The sunset was stunning and we were able to enjoy this on the way back and also get some beautiful pictures of Reykjavik as we approached. We were also impressed with the way Elding respect the wildlife. Our 9 year old learned so much about whale spotting and ga been putting it to use on our cruise - spotting minkes and humpbacks from the ship! Thank you so much, Elding, for a truly memorable and magical evening!
★★★★★ · a month ago
Great experience! Information on what and where very clear on the website and the ground staff very nice and friendly when one went for the tickets. The crew were helpful, fun and full of information on the whales but also other wildlife that could be seen. They were really persistent in ensuring we actually did see a whale, and we ended up being quite far out of the port with the total cruise time around 3.5 hrs instead of the envisioned 2.5 hrs. We were most grateful for their efforts!!! It was much appreciated that after the tour itself we received an e-mail with photos the crew had taken of our particular cruise. Highly recommended!
★★★★★ · a month ago
Our whale watching tour was so special. I will start with the whales: we definitely saw them! We found a couple of humpbacks busy feeding and out guide did a great job of pointing them out and describing the behaviors we were seeing. It was truly amazing. The crew has the skills and experience to find what’s in the area. Additionally, they provided us with pictures of the whales and a journal entry about our voyage. We heard from someone else on the boat that if you go out and do not see any wildlife, they will provide you with a voucher to come out again another time (this family was on their re-do but your mileage may vary as I didn’t hear or read about this.) But of course, one cannot control the outcome, and still I would recommend this trip. It was such a fun way to see the city of Reykjavik and the surrounding mountains. We had a beautiful day with a bit of wind and they provided motion-sickness tablets for free, but remaining outside I did not experience much malaise. I also want to say that the company was very accommodating. We had booked a morning tour that we couldn’t get to due to travel disruptions and they were very willing to honor our reservation at a later time slot.
★★★★★ · 2 months ago
Booking excursions through Elding was seamless, and I really appreciated their ecological focus. I first took their free ferry to Viðey with my Reykjavík City Pass, then enjoyed the experience so much that I booked both their classic whale watching and puffin tours. Everything felt easy and well organized, from the cold weather gear to the books, wildlife guides, and knowledgeable experts who narrated the tours and answered questions along the way. These excursions gave me some of my favorite memories of Iceland while getting to learn. about the wildlife and explore Faxaflói Bay. Highly recommend!
Reviews from Google · updated 21 Oct 2026
Read before you book
- Viðey island from Reykjavík: worth half a day?Yes in summer, on a dry day, if you like a quiet walk: a short ferry, an old stone house, art and open grass. In winter the ferry runs weekends only.
- What to do on your arrival afternoon in ReykjavíkFood walk, whale watching or bed on the afternoon you land — which one survives a red-eye, which one wastes the day, and the combo we'd actually book.
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
From the cheapest to the top end of what is near Reykjavík, from our hotel partners. Rooms are booked on our hotels site.
from 16.181 kr.Lowest price
Guesthouse · Reykjavík
Old Town Reykjavík
under 1 km away · a night for two, indicative
from 41.790 kr.Mid-range
Hotel · Reykjavík
Radisson Blu 1919 Hotel
under 1 km away · a night for two, indicative
from 60.840 kr.Top end
Hotel · Reykjavik
Hótel Holt
under 1 km away · a night for two, indicative
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
Pairs well with
Add any of these to this tour and 3 % comes off both at checkout — about €8 on the cheapest pair. One basket, one payment, however many operators they come from.
Elding Adventure at Sea
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153% above the €139 typical for whale watching tours
from age 7 · meet at the start point
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- Gear included
- Family friendly
- Free cancellation 24 h
Elding Adventure at Sea
Whale Watching from Reykjavík & Akureyri
32% above the €139 typical for whale watching tours
meet at the start point
6 h · from Reykjavík
- Family friendly
- Free cancellation 24 h
Special Tours
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30% above the €139 typical for whale watching tours
pickup at extra cost
6 h · from Reykjavík
- Family friendly
- Free cancellation 24 h
- Book same day
Iceland Discover
Puffins & Reykjavík Bay Sailing
50% below the €110 typical for puffin tours
meet at the start point
1 h 30 · from Reykjavík
- No free cancellation
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Reykjavik Sailors
Whale Watching & Northern lights Combo Cruise from Reykjavik
21% above the €139 typical for whale watching tours
pickup at extra cost
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- Family friendly
- Free cancellation 24 h
VAREN Iceland
Keflavik Area Hotels to or from Reykjavik Cruise Port: Private Transfer by Sedan or Van
pickup included
45 min · from Reykjavík
- Family friendly
- Free cancellation 24 h
- Book the night before