Iceland holds a special place in the world of puffin watching—it’s home to roughly 60% of the Atlantic puffin population during breeding season. These charming seabirds with their distinctive orange beaks and tuxedo-like plumage return to Iceland’s coastal cliffs every summer, creating one of the country’s most beloved wildlife spectacles.
Whether you’re planning a trip around the Ring Road or venturing into remote corners of the island, you’ll find incredible opportunities to watch these birds waddle, fish, and raise their young. The puffin season runs from late April through early September, though peak viewing happens between May and mid-August.
Here is a list of 15 outstanding locations where you can see puffins during your Icelandic adventure.
Westman Islands (Heimaey)
The Westman Islands host the largest puffin colony in Europe, with almost half of Iceland’s puffins nesting there. Heimaey, the main island, offers the Stórhöfði puffin lookout where you’ll witness thousands of birds in action—they’re in the sky, on the ground, everywhere between.
The viewing platform sits on grassy hills absolutely filled with nesting puffins. Getting there requires a ferry ride, yet the sheer number of puffins makes it worth every minute of travel time.
Látrabjarg Cliffs
These sea cliffs stretch over fourteen kilometers and rise more than four hundred meters above the Atlantic, creating one of Iceland’s most dramatic coastal landscapes. The westernmost point of Iceland hosts millions of seabirds, including substantial puffin colonies that return each summer.
What makes Látrabjarg remarkable is how comfortable the puffins are with human presence—they’ll often let you sit within a few meters while they go about their fishing and nesting routines, seemingly unbothered by the attention.
Dyrhólaey Peninsula
This rocky promontory near Vík features a natural arch carved by centuries of wave action, and it hosts thousands of nesting puffins on its cliffs. You can approach the arch both from the beach and from atop the cliffs, and both directions reveal the vast puffin colony.
The area also offers stunning views across black sand beaches to the Reynisdrangar sea stacks. Access to the upper viewing area near the lighthouse gets restricted during peak breeding season (May 8 to June 25), though you can still visit during early morning and evening hours.
Borgarfjörður Eystri
About 10,000 pairs of puffins nest at the Hafnarhólmi colony behind the fishing harbor, making this eastern Iceland village a puffin-watching paradise. Well-maintained walkways and viewing platforms let you observe puffins from just a couple meters away without disturbing their burrows—it’s genuinely one of the best setups for close encounters.
The infrastructure here is particularly family-friendly, with sturdy railings and even a birdwatching hide complete with chairs and windows for protection from wind and rain. The drive from Egilsstaðir takes about an hour and fifteen minutes on secondary roads.
Tjörnes Peninsula
This stubby peninsula in northern Iceland sits just west of Húsavík and combines geological wonders with excellent birdwatching opportunities. Puffins tend to nest on the eastern side of the peninsula, with Voladalstorfa near the lighthouse and Hringsbjarg cliff being popular viewing spots.
The viewing platform at Hringsbjarg provides safe observation points, although you’ll need to watch your step in areas without railings. As a bonus, the peninsula’s location near Húsavík means you might spot whales offshore while scanning for puffins—double the wildlife action.
Ingólfshöfði
This tidal island or headland in southeast Iceland requires joining a guided expedition from the mainland by tractor. The unusual access method—riding across sand dunes in a tractor-pulled cart—adds adventure to the whole experience.
The trip takes a few hours and suits those comfortable with longer walks, yet the reward is a quieter, more intimate puffin viewing experience with far fewer crowds than more accessible locations. The headland falls within Vatnajökull National Park, surrounded by stunning glacial landscapes that make the journey even more memorable.
Lundey and Akurey Islands
Right in Reykjavík’s backyard, these two islands in Faxaflói Bay become summer nesting grounds for thousands of puffins each year. Boat tours from Reykjavík’s Old Harbor will take you close to the islands, which have been visited by tour operators for seventeen years.
The tours provide binoculars for better views and offer sheltered areas if weather turns problematic—which it often does in Iceland. This option works perfectly for visitors with limited time who still want a puffin encounter.
You can do the entire trip in a couple hours without leaving the capital area.
Grímsey Island
This island sits off Iceland’s northern coast as the only part of the country technically located in the Arctic Circle. Fewer than 100 people live on Grímsey, yet more than 60 species of cliff-nesting birds call it home during breeding season—the contrast is striking.
One of Iceland’s largest puffin colonies nests here, though the far northern location means birds leave earlier in summer than at southern sites. You can reach Grímsey by flight from Reykjavík or ferry from Akureyri.
Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach
While better known for its dramatic basalt columns and powerful waves, Reynisfjara also hosts a puffin colony nearby that’s worth seeking out. The birds here keep a slightly different schedule than other colonies—they arrive later in spring and depart earlier in fall.
In August you might see baby puffins taking their first flights out of the nest, swooping over the beach before splashing into the sea. This location requires more patience and luck than sites with larger colonies.
Still, it combines puffin watching with one of Iceland’s most photographed landscapes.
Papey Island
This small island off the east coast near Djúpivogur hosts a significant puffin population during summer months. Daily boat tours run from Djúpivogur harbor, taking you to an island landscape shaped by basalt formations and seabird activity.
The boat ride itself offers chances to spot other marine wildlife, and the island’s relative remoteness means fewer tourists compared to south coast locations. Djúpivogur sits deep in the east fjords, making this a good option for travelers exploring that scenic region.
Flatey Island
Located in Breiðafjörður Bay between the Snæfellsnes Peninsula and the Westfjords, Flatey becomes accessible during summer months via the Baldur ferry from Stykkishólmur. The island offers a peaceful escape popular with both Icelanders and visitors, combining puffin viewing with the chance to explore a charming seasonal settlement.
The surrounding bay contains numerous smaller islands that also host nesting seabirds, creating excellent opportunities for spotting puffins both on land and bobbing in the water.
Elliðaey Island
This abandoned island in the Westman Islands archipelago features dramatic basalt-column cliffs rising straight from the ocean. The island was abandoned in the 1950s and nowadays the seabirds call it home.
Most boat tours around the Westman Islands include stops near Elliðaey, giving you views of one of the main puffin nesting grounds in the bay. The combination of vertical cliffs and large seabird populations creates an impressive sight, especially when hundreds of puffins fill the air simultaneously.
Rauðinúpur Cape
This remote cape at the north-westernmost point of Iceland forms part of ‘The Birding Trail’ in the northeast. The remote location and excellent viewing opportunities make it worth the journey for dedicated bird enthusiasts.
Getting here requires commitment—you’ll be far from major towns and tourist routes—but that remoteness ensures an uncrowded experience. The cape’s position jutting into the ocean creates ideal habitat for puffins and numerous other seabird species.
Hafnarhólmi (Snæfellsnes)
A large puffin colony nests on this small island near the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, with boats running regularly from Stykkishólmur. The area features a specially designed viewing spot that provides close encounters with the birds without disturbing their nesting activities.
Nearby islands including Þórishólmur and Steinaklettar also offer puffin-spotting opportunities, making boat tours in this region particularly rewarding for bird enthusiasts. The Snæfellsnes location means you can combine puffin watching with exploration of that peninsula’s diverse attractions.
Drangey Island
This uninhabited island in northern Iceland features steep sea cliffs and requires an adventurous hike to the summit, often involving ropes, chains, and a ladder. The physical challenge filters out casual visitors, ensuring an intimate and uncrowded setting for those who make the climb.
Thousands of puffins nest on Drangey’s steep cliffs during breeding season, rewarding hikers with exceptional viewing opportunities. Tours to Drangey are limited, so advance booking is essential if you want this more adventurous puffin experience.
The puffin watching experience
Seeing puffins in their natural habitat creates memories that stick with you long after leaving Iceland. These birds spend most of their year at sea, making their summer return to Icelandic shores a special seasonal event that draws wildlife enthusiasts from around the world.
Whether you catch them at accessible spots near the Ring Road or venture to remote cliffs in the Westfjords, each location offers its own combination of scenery and wildlife encounters. The key is respecting viewing guidelines—staying on marked paths, keeping quiet, and giving these vulnerable seabirds the space they need to successfully raise the next generation.
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