Puffin Watching and Gufufoss Waterfall Tour from Seydisfjordur
Description
Our Puffin and Waterfall Shore Excursion from Seyðisfjörður highlights both the wildlife and the natural beauty of this remote eastern region. Enjoy an up-close encounter with nesting Atlantic Puffins, explore quaint Icelandic fishing villages, and witness the stark beauty of Gúfufoss waterfall. All in just 5 hours. Borgarfjörður-Eystri is a remote coastal village. Life here centers around the harbour and see. Hafnarhólmi is a small and easily accessible islet connected to the mainland by a man made harbour. Its cliffs are widely held to be one of the worlds premier puffin-watching paradises. Next explore the charms of this cute little village. Lindarbakki turf house is an example of how Icelanders lived as late as the early 20th century. In pristine condition, one sees how Icelanders used thick turf walls to insulate their homes from the harsh climate. Finally we visit Gufufoss, a remote waterfall whose waters cascade down a rugged cliffside, filling the air with a fine mist.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Hafnarhólmi is a small islet by the harbour of the small fishing village, Borgarfjordur-Eystri. This rocky outcrop is home to one of the world´d biggest Altantic Puffin colonies. Every summer, nesting couple return here to raise their pufflings. Hafnarhólmi, is very accessible, allowing everyone to get an up close glimpse of this wondeful species.
While visiting the quaint village of Bakkagerði in Borgarfjordur-Eystri, you can find this pristine example of the classic Icelandic turf house. The thick turf walls, and grass lined roof provided essential insulation against the elements in times past. Many Icelanders continued to live in house like this into the early 20th century.
For those that wish to do an easy hike while in the village of Bakkagerði could hike Alfaborg, or elf rock, which is a monument on a hill overlooking Borgarfjordur-Eystri. This stop was held to be the home of the elf-queen of Iceland. Learn more about Icelandic folklore and beliefs. Even if you don´t hold much stock with folkloric tales, one can´t help but admire the dramatic views oen can enjoy from this hillside viewing point.
Gufufoss is a small waterfall which cascades gently down a rugged cliffside. Due to it´s appearance, it is sometimes compared to its larger cousin in the south, Skógafoss. The falls throws off a gentle mist, which accounts for its name - Gufu means steams in Icelandic.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- The tour duration of 5 hours includes driving time
Reviews(199)
This was an awesome excursion to see the puffins! I am still speechless from the tour a couple days ago. The pictures are phenomenal! We were very close to the puffins and they literally were flying so close to us we could feel the wind from their flight. I admit I was concerned we were going to miss them because our cruise was late in the season but we were truly blessed. After the puffins we made a pitstop and had some delicious sweet bread? Pastry. Not sure of the proper terminology but the people that provided it were very welcoming, informative and gave us samples of a delicious snack. There was coffee but we're not coffee drinkers so we had delicious Iceland water. The scenery in the area was beautiful. And all of this was before the waterfall LOL. I'd do this trip again in a heartbeat. The only thing is you have to walk up steps to get to the puffins. If you have trouble with steps you will not be able to get to the puffins. Not a drawback for us but some people opted out of the walk up to the puffins because of the amount of steps.
The guide was fabulous and very knowledgeable. The other stops along the way were fantastic. But the highlight was absolutely the puffins. We saw 1000s. It was our best day of the entire trip. Don’t miss this tour.
Very nice and comfortable tour. Not too much walking, get to enjoy the view, see puffins, learn a lot about iceland people and culture.
This was an excellent tour. However, beyond the tour operator control is the exact time of the Puffin migration in August. Check the Puffin availability for the time you book. We had a terrific tour and saw many Puffins up close despite being near the end of the season. We would book it again. Tour guide and bus driver were terrific.
Loved seeing so much of Iceland, such beauty. Was thrilled with the Puffins. As a favor to our tour guide I will omit rating her.
Saga was a very good guide. She offered us to change tours since it was at the end of puffin season and said we may not see many. Glad we stayed as there were hundreds of puffins that were very close to photograph.
The tour was fascinating; we saw a great many puffins and other seabirds. Our guide Saga gave us great information (with a personal touch) about the country and its people 👍. The stop at the elf town or the peat house could have been 10 to 15 minutes longer. The visit to Gufufoss finally rounded off the trip. It was one of the best tours we have taken in Iceland.
Great experience and our tour guide was awesome She was a local girl, very knowledgeable and truly loved what she was doing.
Our guide Saga and driver Arthur did an outstanding job showing us just how beautiful Eastern Iceland really is! We were so lucky to have a lovely day (weather wise), we got to see the puffins (100’s and unusual to see that many this late in August as many fledgelings have left the nest already) , and got to taste a wonderful Icelandic twisted donut and cup of coffee as a bonus! The scenery was just awe inspiring; mountains, waterfalls, free range sheep. The whole tour was just not to be missed. I’m so glad I found it. Booking was easy. Our tickets arrived in email, no problem. Would I do it again? Absolutely!
This was an amazing tour for me. I have always wanted to see the puffins and I was not disappointed. There were so many there on the day of my tour and they were so cute. The weather was great that day- no rain!
