Puffin Express Tour to Storhofdi Cliffs in the Westman Islands

Join a private puffin express tour to Storhofdi Cliffs in Vestmannaeyjar, one of the best places in Iceland to see puffins up close. This quick, easy trip suits travelers who want to witness Iceland's puffin colonies without a long hike or a full day of sightseeing.

Booking this Westman Islands puffin tour means skipping the hour-long walk to the cliffs and reaching the puffins in minutes instead. The tour includes a private vehicle transfer to and from Storhofdi, so your small group travels alone rather than joining a crowd at the viewpoint.

Your driver-guide picks you up on Heimaey Island, a town of Vestmannaeyjar, and drives straight to Storhofdi, the southernmost point of the island and one of the windiest places on Earth. The archipelago formed from volcanic eruptions, the most recent in 1973, and the drive passes sweeping views of the harbor and sheer sea cliffs.

At Storhofdi, thousands of Atlantic puffins nest in burrows dug into the grassy cliff edges each summer. Iceland holds an estimated 8 to 10 million puffins, more than half of the world's Atlantic puffin population, and Vestmannaeyjar is home to one of the largest single colonies in the country.

Puffins are easy to recognize by their black and white feathers, orange legs, and the colorful beak they grow each breeding season. Pairs return to the same burrow every spring, often reusing tunnels dug into the grass along the cliff edge, and raise a single chick called a puffling.

Between fishing trips, puffins can carry several small fish crosswise in their beak at once, thanks to backward-facing spines on their tongue and palate that keep the catch from slipping. By August, most chicks are ready to leave the burrow for the open ocean, where they spend the winter alone before returning to breed.

Your guide explains these nesting and feeding habits, along with the other seabirds that share the cliffs, while you take in views of the surrounding islands and open ocean beyond Storhofdi.

The tour lasts just 45 minutes door to door, fitting easily around a longer day trip to Vestmannaeyjar or a stop before the ferry back to the mainland. There are no bathroom facilities along the route, and departures depend on weather, so dress warmly and wear proper walking shoes.

Spend a fast, memorable 45 minutes with the puffins of Storhofdi on this puffin express tour in the Westman Islands. Check availability now by choosing a date.