08 Jun 2026 - 15 Jun 2026 (8 days)
EUR3,995 NO SPACES AVAILABLE
Tour Leader: Robert Williams
Tour Price (Per person): EUR3,995 (USD4,614 * GBP3,475 * AUD6,830)
Single Supplement: EUR1,180 (USD1,363 * GBP1,027 * AUD2,017)
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.
Great lead
We saw all 19 endemics as well as all of those where splits may be likely in the future. Dušan is a tireless guide. Never gives up for the best view. Our local guide, Alcides, has astonishing eyes and ears and knows every inch of his island! Cannot imagine a better local guide. Also, wish to put in a good word for our driver to and from the airport, Carlos. Please keep Carlos on board. Great trip. My shortest birding trip and, I learned, too short for me—could have stayed longer.
The guides continued their superb and tireless efforts to find bird species during the extension to the main tour.
Great trip
I was very pleased with the birding. I saw all 29 endemics and a total of 42 life birds. The leaders are great at finding, luring in and identifying birds. I appreciated that the focus was very much on the birding. The food and accommodations were excellent and appropriate. I wonder if we should have spent our last night near the coast but am not sure how that would have affected our birding success.