The seas around Iceland encourage whales of many species to visit, making this area excellent for whale watching. The northern port of Husavik is very popular and there are many whale sightings from the Reykjavik port. However, this is still a less frequented region for whale watching tours with the tours run by local fishermen.

In 1995, the old oak ship “Knorrinn” took the first whale watching tourists out to sea for whale watching in Skjalfandi Bay. This excursion gained popularity and there are now six of these restored old oak boats operating whale watching cruises in the area. with two of them traditional schooners. In addition to minke whales, there are humpback whales that are often seen frolicking in these waters. Other whales seen in Iceland are sperm whales, northern bottlenose, pilot, narwhal and beluga.

Unfortunately for whales, commercial whaling started back in 2006 with a quota of nine fin and thirty minke whales per year. In 2007, the Institute of Ocean Biology recommended the capture of four hundred minke whales!

Iceland is a most interesting country to visit. In winter there are northern lights and in summer whales and the midnight sun. Many volcanoes, waterfalls, and geysers that spew steam from the ground are also different sights for you to experience and photograph as souvenirs of your trip.

The “Great Geyser” of Iceland is the originator of the name geysers. Natural geysers are a phenomenon of volcanic heat boiling groundwater and the pressure finds a crack in the ground to ‘let off steam’. Over time, a particular geyser will slowly end and start somewhere else in the area. Food wrapped in muslin and covered with soil will cook on the ground during the course of the day.

A tour from Reykjavik to see the Hengil volcano takes you close to it. You learn about the natural energy that volcanoes emit and have the opportunity to visit a geothermal power plant and cross the volcanic zone. This is a tour that operates all year round.

Near the town of Hveragerdi, due to an underground volcanic chamber, there are many hot springs. Visiting the Hveravellir geothermal pool is a special experience. The boiling water is sky blue with many steaming ‘fumaroles’.

To see the Northern Lights, it is best to be in the field away from other lights. They are also a very special event when seen on whale watching trips – the open skies over the ocean make them even more spectacular. They usually only blink for a few minutes, sometimes they are easy to see and other times they are very faint, but they certainly hold your interest.