The Westman Islands might be my favorite place in Iceland. A 35 minute ferry ride gets you to the largest inhabited island in Iceland. You can learn about the volcano that quite literally reshaped this island in 1973. You can visit a museum that unearthed some of those houses that were buried in the eruption. (See all of those details here.) And, if your timing is very lucky during a September visit, you might get to try your hand at rescuing a baby puffin!
But sadly, the local aquarium (Sæheimar aquarium) closed down recently. Or maybe it really just merged with the new Sea Life Trust? Regardless, Sæheimar is closed and Sea Life is open. But Sea Life is very different, and much more expensive. Is it worth it?
Long term, I’m still not sure. But for the next few weeks? The answer is definitely yes.
There are two parts to the Sea Life Trust: The Puffin Rescue Center and the Beluga Whale Sanctuary. And there’s still an aquarium, so I guess three parts. Your admission gets you access to all three.
The puffins are fun, and clearly a highlight of the new … Museum? Aquarium? Center? I’m not sure what to call it. You could probably justify the cost if you watched the puffins frolic for a while.
But right now, there’s an even better reason. The two newly rescued Beluga whales are in the Sea Life Center. See a little more about the rescue in our July Iceland update. There’s a giant tank in the back and the belugas, named Little Gray and Little White, are there! And you can see them, at least if you’re at the back of the museum at 10:30, 11:30, 1:00, 2:30 or 4:00.
Pictures are not allowed of the whales, but here is a picture of a movie about the whales. Imagine the cute whales swimming around without the background. And much clearer!
You can also see some videos on the Sea Life Center’s web site.
At some point, perhaps in 3-5 weeks, the whales will be moved to their permanent home in a nearby cove. You’ll still be able to see them there, but I expect they will be much harder to spot. Until then, head to the Sea Life Center and check them out! You can find the building to the left (East) as you get off the ferry:
Tickets cost 3500 ISK for adults, and 2350 for kids 6-14. Kids 5 and under are free. And there’s a family pass for 10000 ISK, or about $80 US.
If you have time, you could also do the excellent tour from Eyja tours. The tour includes admission to the Sea Life Trust (and much much more).
Hi Eric,
I was just researching the company Sea Life for another project and your post came up. What a very interesting project. I’ll be following the story of these belugas. Hope you are well !
Tara
Hi Tara-
It’s so great to hear from you– thanks for reaching out! The whales really are a fantastic story. It will be bittersweet when they move to the cove– great for them, but I loved seeing them up close in the aquarium!