GG6 Puffins Exclusive

by Gentle Giants · Puffins · North Iceland

4.60· 2,289 Google reviews of the operator

Eco-certified

from €65 per person

No published departures in the coming months — ask us

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1 / 5

Duration
1 hour
Difficulty
Moderate
Season
May – Sep
Starts in
Husavik - høfn
Pickup
Meet at the start point
Starts at
Gentle Giants Ticket Center
Hafnarstétt 7, Húsavík
Guide
Guided in English
Departs
08:00, 08:35, 09:00, 10:00 …
Minimum age
8
Cancellation
Free until 24 hours before

About this experience

In this Puffins Exclusive express tour, we will take you to Puffin Island (Lundey) on a RIB boat to see one of the largest puffin colonies in Iceland. This island is only 4,5 nautical miles from Húsavík harbour and with our fast RIBs we will take you there in only a few minutes.

Puffin Island reaches 34 m above sea level, and is around 200 m in length and 100 m wide. During the breeding season thousands of puffins can be found there, close to the rich feeding grounds in the sea around. The island is privately owned by farmers nearby and we will take you there for a close look. On this tour you will get the possibility to encounter the "Clowns of the Ocean" close up.

Description from the operator, Gentle Giants. Prices and availability in the booking panel are live.

Included

A specialized guide
Warm safety overalls (obligatory), and rain jackets if needed

Good to know

We offer warm extra clothing on board our boats. We still highly recommend that passengers bring their own warm and waterproof clothes, footwear and protective bags for cameras, as it can be cold and wet out at sea.

Tours are made upon request. The tour on RIB speedboats is not allowed for passengers with heart- or back problems or pregnant women. Minimum age is 8 years and minimum height 130 cm.

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. Here is exactly what happens to your booking.

1Gentle Giants 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 →

Who this is not for

Children under 8 cannot join this one.
Not available in winter; the operator runs it roughly May to September.

Read off the operator's own conditions. If none of it applies to you, this is a good one.

Why we list it

Gentle Giants 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 Gentle Giants

Read all 2,289 reviews on Google →

Operator rating 4.6/5 from Google — these are reviews of the company, not this specific tour. Shown as Google returns them, unedited.

Pat NAWONG
★★★★★ · 3 months ago
Whales with the rainbow was The best part of my trip in Iceland. I 100% recommend everybody who is visiting the northern part of the Iceland. I’m so impressed with the team. They are very nice and kind. I will do it again next time in Iceland. Worth it 😍✨
Paige Evans
★★★★★ · 3 months ago
Our whale watching tour with Gentle Giants in Húsavík was one of the absolute highlights of our trip to Iceland! The crew (Jelmer the "tall Dutch guy" and Capt Sarah) were knowledgeable, friendly, and genuinely passionate about the incredible marine life in the area. They made sure everyone had a great view while sharing fascinating information about the whales and the surrounding ecosystem. We were incredibly fortunate to see multiple humpback whales along with a very friendly minke whale in their natural habitat. Watching these magnificent animals surface, dive, and feed against the stunning backdrop of Iceland's coastline was an unforgettable experience. We also LOVED seeing all the Puffins at Puffin Island!! Everything was well organized from start to finish, and the crew's excitement made the experience even more special. If you're visiting Húsavík, Gentle Giants is an absolute must-do. We would highly recommend this tour to anyone looking for an unforgettable wildlife adventure in Iceland!
Dan Hearn
★★★★ · a month ago
We went on an afternoon whale watching trip in a RIB. The weather was cool but we were supplied with suits that kept out most of the cold. We had a great time skimming across the water. We saw quite a few Puffins (very 😎 cool) but sadly no whales. Hey, it's not Disney where they can just queue the wildlife.
Michael Trautz
★★★★★ · 5 months ago
We did the GG2 Big Whale Safari & Puffins Tour yesterday. One thing in advance, this is not a criticism, but an informative review! I am ambitious in wildlife photography and had two cameras with me. You sit on the Zodiaks thickly dressed like on a kind of saddle and are thus very limited in freedom of movement. If you want to take good pictures, you should absolutely sit outside and if possible in front so that no one sits in front of you. Otherwise, you are quite limited to photograph. In the middle row almost impossible to photograph sensibly! As I said, only to be understood as info! It was all good! It's just a very touristy excursion, but you know that in advance. Nevertheless, we saw everything and some good pics were created. In this respect, there is full marks from me! Greetings Mitch

Reviews from Google · updated 21 Oct 2026

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.

Puffins — questions people ask

When can you see puffins in Iceland?

Mid-April to mid-August. Puffins arrive at the nesting cliffs in April, hatch chicks in June and leave for the open sea by late August. July is the safest month for numbers and for chicks being fed. Outside this window there are none on land, and a tour sold as a puffin tour in October is a boat ride. Reykjavík puffin boats usually run May to August; check the tour page for the exact dates each year.

Can you see puffins from Reykjavík?

Yes. Two small islands in Faxaflói, Akurey and Lundey, hold puffin colonies ten to fifteen minutes by boat from the Old Harbour. One-hour trips like Elding's classic puffin watching (/experience/1299/) circle the islands slowly; you do not land. Bring binoculars, because the boats keep a respectful distance and puffins are small. It is the easiest puffin option in Iceland and a good fit for children or a spare hour before dinner.

Where is the best place to see puffins up close?

On land, at a cliff, not from a boat. Látrabjarg in the Westfjords, Borgarfjörður eystri in the east and Dyrhólaey on the South Coast let you sit a few metres from birds that ignore you. Vestmannaeyjar has the largest colonies. Reykjavík boat trips are convenient but distant. If you are travelling the Ring Road in June or July, the puffin tour from Seyðisfjörður (/experience/973294/) gets you to the eastern cliffs with a guide.

Are puffin boat tours good for kids?

Yes, mostly. They are short, an hour or so, and stay in the sheltered bay, so seasickness is rarer than on a three-hour whale trip. Children usually enjoy the boat as much as the birds. The downside is distance: puffins look like specks without binoculars, so ask if the boat has some to borrow. Combined whale-and-puffin trips (/experience/1569/) run six hours, which is long for under-eights.

Hotels

Where to stay for this tour

From the cheapest to the top end of what is near Húsavík, from our hotel partners. Rooms are booked on our hotels site.

All hotels in North Iceland →

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Pairs well with

Add any of these to this tour and 3 % comes off both at checkout — about €5 on the cheapest pair. One basket, one payment, however many operators they come from.