Whale Safari is the RIB arm of the Old Harbour. Twelve seats, two hours, 26 knots of cruising speed and a viewpoint about a meter above the water — a completely different trip from the three-hour cruisers moored twenty meters away, at almost double the price. It sells one product properly and sells it well; the question is only whether your group clears the height, weight and age limits.
What the company actually is
Founded in 2006 as Sea Safari, and, by its own account, the first company to put RIBs on the water for Icelandic whale watching and the first to run small-group tours. In 2015 it was bought by Torfi G. Yngvason and Rannveig Grétarsdóttir of Elding Adventure at Sea — Yngvason founded Arctic Adventures, Arctic Rafting, Reykjavík Sightseeing and Airport Direct; Grétarsdóttir is one of Elding's owners and its general manager.
That ownership is the most useful fact on this page. It is why the company can run year-round, why its ticket office sits next door to Elding's at Ægisgarður 5D, and why a blank RIB trip is redeemed on Elding's big boats rather than on another RIB seat. Treat the two as one group with two formats.
The fleet, and what two hours buys you
Four RIBs in Reykjavík, named Þruma — Icelandic for thunder. Þruma I, II and IV were built in Gdańsk in 2015 specifically for this operator: 10.5 m, twin 300 hp Suzuki outboards, a top speed of 55 knots, a cruising speed of 26, suspension seats and 360-degree views at sea level. Þruma III is a 12 m Techno Marine hull from 2007, without suspension seats, used mainly for puffin trips. Three more RIBs — Sólfar I, Sólfar II and Diplomat — work Eyjafjörður from Akureyri. The company says this is the largest RIB fleet in Iceland, and no rival on the harbor disputes it.
The Reykjavík tour follows a fixed shape: check in 30 minutes early, get into the flotation suit, a five-minute run to the puffin islands of Engey, Lundey and Akurey with ten to fifteen minutes on the birds in season, about an hour searching the bay between Reykjavík and Akranes, then a coastal run home past the Sun Voyager sculpture and the sea side of the Harpa concert hall.
The Akureyri operation
The northern half of the business is easy to miss and often the better trip. Three RIBs — Sólfar I, Sólfar II and Diplomat — work Eyjafjörður from the Downtown Pier, on a two-hour Premium format at the same 24,900 ISK, and Eyjafjörður is humpback water in a way Faxaflói is not. The group also runs the three-hour Classic boat tour from the same pier at 14,500 ISK, and a retry ticket earned in Reykjavík can be spent there.
If your route through Iceland takes in the north at all, spend the RIB money in Akureyri or Húsavík and take the cheaper big boat in the capital. The animals, not the boat, are the difference.
What it costs and what is guaranteed
Direct rates from whalesafari.is: 24,900 ISK for the two-hour RIB tour in either port, the same for the midnight-sun departures, 12,450 ISK for the one-hour Premium Puffin tour. The group's Classic boat tours — the fallback product — are 14,500 ISK, and the one-hour Classic puffin boat 8,300 ISK. Prices are checked regularly, including the GetYourGuide listings for the harbor's larger boats.
The operator's own RIB tours are not separately identifiable in the GetYourGuide feed for Reykjavík, so compare the harbor's listings and book the RIB direct if that is the boat you want:
Price check · GetYourGuide
Live prices, per person, checked regularly. Sorted from lowest.
| Tour | Price | Duration | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hauganes: Whale Watching North Iceland | $83.84 Lowest | 2.5 h | ★ 4.7 (262) | Check dates |
| From Dalvik: Arctic Whale Watching in Northern Iceland | $89.79 | 3 h | ★ 4.7 (461) | Check dates |
| Húsavík: Whale Watching Tour with Heated Indoor Seating | $92.03 | 3 h | ★ 4.6 (2,282) | Check dates |
| Húsavík: Traditional Whale Watching Tour | $95.40 | 3 h | ★ 4.6 (2,459) | Check dates |
| Húsavík: Whale Watching Tour with Guide | $96.52 | 3 h | ★ 4.5 (3,095) | Check dates |
| From Reykjavik: Whale Watching Tour | $98.76 | 3.5 h | ★ 4.2 (751) | Check dates |
Sighting guarantee
A blank RIB trip earns a free return ticket on the big Classic boats, valid two years and usable in either port. There is no refund.
- Published odds
- "This happens rarely (we have a success rate of around 95%)", per the operator's FAQ.
- The clause
- "We will give you a return ticket to use on the larger boats, the Classic Whale Watching, that is valid for two years and can be used in both Reykjavík and Akureyri."
- What it is not
- The replacement trip is on a different, slower product — not another RIB seat.
- Weather cancellation
- "If you have booked directly with us, we will give you a 100% refund of your money if we cancel your tour due to weather and you can not go on another date."
- Cancellation
- 24 hours for scheduled tours, 48 hours for private and special-event departures; after that a 100% cancellation fee.
Book through a platform and its window applies instead of this one.
The practical detail
There is no shelter and no toilet, so plan the two hours around that. Wear flat closed shoes — no heels, no sandals — and two or three warm layers under the suit in summer, three or four the rest of the year. The overalls have pockets sized for a phone; a larger camera goes on a neck strap and tucks under the suit while the boat is moving.
Free motion-sickness tablets and ginger sweets are available at the office, and staff will talk you out of sailing on a bad day rather than take the money. Pregnancy is allowed in the first trimester with a doctor's advice and not beyond three months. The boats are not wheelchair accessible, although the ticket office has an accessible toilet. Under-18s cannot sail alone without written permission from a parent, and under-14s cannot sail alone at all.
How it compares with the neighbors
Elding, the sister brand on the same pier, is the one to book if you want a heated saloon, a café and a child fare. Special Tours at Geirsgata has the largest ships in the harbor and one RIB of its own, Dagmar, also with suspension seats and also capped at twelve. For humpbacks rather than minkes, the northern bay is the stronger trip — see Gentle Giants in Húsavík. The Reykjavík page compares every pier in the city; the Iceland page sets out the season.
Our call
The two-hour RIB from the Old Harbour on a calm summer morning
Twelve seats at sea level, a puffin island five minutes out, an hour of actual searching and a run back past Harpa — the most photographs per hour of any Reykjavík format.
Skip it if Anything on a RIB if you are pregnant past three months, under 145 cm, or have a history of back or knee trouble. Take the Classic boat instead.
See Reykjavík whale toursQuestions people ask
Is Whale Safari the same company as Elding?
Not the same company, but the same owners. Whale Safari says it was bought in 2015 by Torfi G. Yngvason and Rannveig Grétarsdóttir of Elding Adventure at Sea, and the partnership is why a blank RIB trip is redeemed on Elding's larger Classic boats, in Reykjavík or Akureyri.
What does a RIB tour cost?
Per whalesafari.is, the two-hour Whales, Puffins & Reykjavík tour is 24,900 ISK, with the same price in Akureyri and the same price for the midnight-sun departures. There is no child rate: the boat only seats twelve, so every seat costs the same. The one-hour Premium Puffin tour is 12,450 ISK.
Why are there height and weight limits?
Because of the suspension seats. Every passenger has to be able to plant their feet on the deck while seated, so the crew can teach you to ride the waves. The limits are 10 years, 145 cm and 140 kg; there is a height marker in the ticket office and the crew will take you down to the boat to check if you are unsure.
What is on board?
Nothing. The RIBs are open boats with no toilet, no café and no shelter. You are given a flotation overall — compulsory under Icelandic law — plus goggles, gloves if any are left in the office, and all the safety equipment. Use the toilets at the ticket office before you change.
What will I see?
The operator lists minke whales, humpbacks, white-beaked dolphins and harbor porpoises as frequent, with orcas and fin whales a few times a year. Puffins are on the islands from roughly 20 April to 15 August, and the tour visits them in season — note the same operator page also gives the window as early May to the end of August, so treat the edges as soft.
Will I get wet?
Possibly. The overalls are water-resistant rather than waterproof, so the crew recommends waterproof layers underneath in rain, and waterproof shoes. On a calm dry day you should stay dry.
Is there hotel pickup?
Only for the Classic tours on the big boats. RIB passengers walk — the ticket office is within 15 minutes of anywhere in Reykjavík's 101 postcode, and the nearest paid car park is at Geirsgata 11.
Official sources
Updated September 17, 2026 · partner prices refreshed October 6, 2026
