Horse riding and whale watching combo from Reykjavík
Two combos pair a horse ride with a whale tour for €239 or €253. Book one only if you want one full day; separate tickets are more flexible.
The short version
- Whales & Horses (Special Tours) costs €239 for about 5.5 hours; the Sea Horse combo (Elding) costs €253 for 8.5 hours and includes a light lunch.
- The Special Tours combo is non-refundable once booked; the Elding combo is free to cancel until 24 hours before.
- Minimum age is 8 for Whales & Horses and 7 for Sea Horse.
- A shared two-hour lava ride on its own is about €115, so the combo adds a boat trip for roughly €124.
A horse ride and a whale tour fit into one day from Reykjavík, and two operators sell them as a single ticket: Whales & Horses for €239 and Sea Horse for €253. They save you planning, not much money. Book one if you want a full day with no gaps and no driving. If you want freedom over the order or the date, buy the two pieces separately.
The two combos
The Whales & Horses combo (from €239, 5.5 hours) is the shorter day. You ride with Íshestar in the morning, with a 10:00 departure from their stables, about 20 minutes from the city centre. Hotel pick-up from 09:00 is optional. After the ride you go back to the Old Harbour for a 13:00 sailing in Faxaflói Bay. Minimum age is 8. It is non-refundable once booked.
The Sea Horse combo (from €253, 8.5 hours) is longer and more comfortable. A minibus takes you to Eldhestar in Hveragerði, about 35 minutes away, for a ride of one and a half to two hours, with a light lunch included. You are then driven back to Reykjavík for the Elding whale tour, at 13:00 from September to May, or 15:00 from June to August. Minimum age is 7. You can cancel free until 24 hours before.
Compare with buying separately
The Lava Tour from Íshestar (from €115, 2 hours) and the Red Lava ride from Sólhestar (from €119, 2.5 hours) are the stand-alone rides. Add a classic whale tour (from about €82 in our whale guide) and the total lands close to the combos. For that, you choose the stable and the day, and you can swap the boat if the sea is rough.
Our whale watching month-by-month guide will help you pick a month. Our horse riding near Reykjavík guide compares stables.
The day itself
The risk with a combo is the second half. If the whale tour cancels for weather, you still did the morning ride. Ask the operator what happens to the ticket. Check the rebooking terms before you pay. Special Tours says “no refund once booked”, so plan with a spare day in the trip.
Dress for both. Warm layers for the stable, waterproofs for the boat. Operators supply overalls for the boat, and the stables lend helmets and rain gear.
A different combo: caving and horses
If you want land only, Horse Riding & Caving (from €242, 7 hours) pairs the Raufarhólshellir lava tunnel with a ride from Íshestar, with pick-up included. Minimum age is 7. It suits families who want something underground and something gentle on the same day.
Our honest take
If you have one free day and two animals on your list, the Elding Sea Horse combo is the better version. It has lunch, free cancellation and a longer, calmer ride. The €14 extra over Whales & Horses is worth it for the flexible terms alone.
If your trip has more than a day to spare, skip both and book separately. You get to pick the stable, the boat and the weather window. Nobody can promise whales on a given sailing, so a combo that locks the day in is a risk.
The best case for a combo is a short stay, a family with children of seven or eight, and no rental car. For everyone else, the standalone tickets win.
