08 Jun 2026 - 15 Jun 2026 (8 days)
EUR3,995 2 SPACES AVAILABLE
Tour Leader: Robert Williams
Tour Price (Per person): EUR3,995 (USD4,632 * GBP3,486 * AUD6,689)
Single Supplement: EUR1,180 (USD1,368 * GBP1,030 * AUD1,976)
Lying far out into the North Atlantic Ocean, the volcanic island of Iceland is the land between two continents; a land of fire and ice with its Viking heritage. While Iceland doesn’t have a long list of breeding birds, those that do occur are in many cases abundant, with globally important populations of waders, wildfowl and seabirds. In fact, its towering cliffs are among the largest seabird colonies on the planet, with five species of breeding auk, including Atlantic Puffin and Thick-billed Murre (Brünnich’s Guillemot), while the numerous lakes and wetlands are teeming with an array of divers, ducks and waders, such as Harlequin Duck, Barrow’s Goldeneye, Red‐necked Phalarope and Purple Sandpiper. Top of many people’s wish list is the world’s mightiest falcon, Gyr Falcon, and Iceland has a healthy population of this supreme predator. As a backdrop to all this there is also the country itself, with its volcanoes, lava fields, glaciers, spouting geysers, mud pools, dramatic coasts and black sand beaches making for spectacular and other-worldly scenery at every turn!
Atlantic Puffin; Thick-billed Murre (Brünnich’s Guillemot); Harlequin & Long-tailed Ducks; Barrow’s Goldeneyes; Red‐necked & Red Phalaropes; Purple Sandpiper; Gyr Falcon; Common Loon (Great Norther Diver); Whooper Swan; Snow Bunting; Razorbill; Black-legged Kittiwake; Glaucous & Iceland Gulls; Rock Ptarmigan; Pink-footed Goose; European Golden Plover; Red-breasted Merganser; Horned (Slavonian) Grebe and Short-eared Owl.
White‐beaked Dolphin; Minke, Killer, Humpback or even Blue Whales; Arctic Fox.
tundra, coast, pelagic, lagoons, wetlands, lakes, volcanic landscapes, rivers
day time temperatures average between 16 - 20ºC, while coastal wind and evenings are cooler
6 with 1 Rockjumper leader
UNDEMANDING: This tour is ideal for birders and wildlife enthusiasts of all experience levels. It’s suitable for most mobility levels and offers a relaxed pace, ensuring an enjoyable experience for everyone.
Suitable for all birding / wildlife interest levels. Long hours due to limited darkness (at this time of year, daylight is almost 24hrs a day)
Comfortable
Undemanding. Most species provide good visuals in open conditions.
Lake Myvatn, Godafoss Waterfall, Gullfoss - the ‘Golden Waterfall’, Great Geysir and Strokkur Geysir, Þingvellir (Thingvellir) National Park, Reykjanes Peninsula
Reasonable. No dedicated hides.
Thanks Stephan for a fantastic tour. The stay at the Monastery was especially memorable.
Note that some of the comments I made regarding the Thailand extension apply to the main Thailand tour. I liked the sequence of sites visited; it ensured the Spoonbill Sandpiper was seen early on and then designed to minimize travel. Staying multiple nights at one site is always appreciated and seemed to be done as much as possible. The guides made special efforts to see bird species sought by the group; we saw more bird species than I expected. The drivers were excellent and also one of them, Jaime, was a good birder who helped the guides track down some species; it was an asset to have internet while in the vehicles. The drivers also produced an excellent video of the trip - a nice touch; they also did an excellent job with mid-morning breaks. I especially enjoyed visiting a hide all morning early on in the trip - it gave us a chance to see some elusive species but also several species very well. One morning was spent looking for a rare duck; I would have rather spent the time looking for a variety of Thai species. Quite a bit of birding was done along roads - it might have been better to bird trails etc. if they are available and afford good views of birds pointed out. Food was excellent (Uthai selected great dishes for the group) and accomodations were good. It was an enjoyable trip with rewarding looks at many of the bird species seen.
What a great experience! Everything was as you told us in the pre-departure literature, so we were well-prepared. Rob was an excellent tour leader. His vast experience in conservation, core knowledge of birds and bird behavior, and his enthusiasm was generously shared with the group. He modeled proper trail behavior and made sure that everyone “saw the bird”. The local guides were top-notch and took good care of the group. I also learned so much from the better birders in the group. Highly recommended!
I was extremely pleased with this tour. The local guide, Jason, was very helpful and Stephan was extremely knowledgeable and excellent at finding all the targets that we were looking for. I would travel anywhere at any time with him again.
Paul brought in his wealth of experience. He worked well with Ashoka to make sure nothing was lost in translation. One member sustained an injury on day 1, probably because he declined the extra help offered on a slightly slippery walk. Paul and Ashoka took charge of the situation immediately, made sure the rest of the group was comfortable while getting help. It was incredible that the injured person managed to complete the trip with a walker. Ashoka is a highly experienced local guide. He went out of the way to accommodate our birding and non-birding (request to try local food) requests. Both Paul and Ashoka were always calm and very pleasant, paying individual attention to every person and ensured we had a memorable experience.
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