Beluga Whale Sanctuary-visitor Centre General Admission

Small area to view belugas felt crammed and there was quickly a line forming behind us But still was amazing to be so close to them and they were very social which made up for it

While an interesting educational experience and it was cool to see the belugas and puffins, it is hard to justify the cost for the experience. Even going at a slow pace, you will be done in about 20 minutes. There just isn’t enough to see and do to justify the price. The silver lining is that the money does go to the care and conservation for the animals.

The Beluga and Puffin Sanctuary was our first stop on the island and the main reason for our visit. Although the belugas are not yet in their permanent home, we had the ability to see them in their temporary tank in the visitor center. We enjoyed a very informative tour of the facility, led by an animated guide! Best of all, he recommended a great spot for puffin viewing on the island. He asked if we were staying the night, and offered us boxes to help rescue wayward pufflings! (When they leave their nests in August, some get confused by the city lights and head inland instead of out to sea, so townspeople help get them where they belong.) Unfortunately, we were only there for the day, but when we got to the puffin viewing location, we saw several locals release pufflings they had rescued the previous night! Truly a highlight of our trip.

Coming here was the only part of our Iceland trip I regret. It is WAY too expensive for what it is: a 10 minute walk through of some puffins and whales in pretty small spaces and some additional aquariums. Definitely not worth your time or money, especially when there are countless amazing experiences available in Iceland.

Tried to get a refund as we were in Vik and the ferry across to the island was canceled due to bad weather and high winds. I explained thus to the company, but wanted me to reschedule, not possible as we were going back to Reykjavik and flying home the next day. I read the ferry notice that was sent to those who bought tickets. She voukd care less.

Visiting the sanctuary was a highlight of our trip to Iceland! Not only did we get to delight in watching the puffins zip around their tank and being fed, the belugas had been brought into their observation tank for the winter. From what we understood, they spend the summer in the protected bay and are brought in for greater protection over the colder periods. We learnt a lot and were happy to be supporting such a great initiative. All animals seemed to be extremely well cared for.

A bit disappointing and quite sad. The Puffin sanctuary is small and limited in scope. Though it is wonderful to see then, their containment space is lacking and sad. The Baluga Whales are equally in a small, contained space. They were 'rescued' and provided an actual cove in the ocean, but are being kept in a 'fish tank' of sorts. Again, wonderful to see them, but it is a sad way to keep these beautiful creatures. The Aquarium is small and doesn't offer a lot, but what they do offer is interesting to look at an read.

Don’t go to this. Not only is it a ridiculously expensive ‘donation’ to get in, but you’ll leave as unhappy as the beluga whales being held captive here. There are a few exhibits of starfish and sea anemone that you’d expect from any Sea Life centre, and some extremely sad looking puffins (they never do well in captivity, losing all their colour from their beak and feet) and s single Guillemot in a tiny enclosure that’s hard to see in to. There’s a lot of information on how the beluga whales got to Iceland from China in 2019, and beaming photos of John Bishop, but little on why after 6 years, they are still in an indoor tank or why the outdoor ‘sea pen’ has failed. Now Little Grey & Little White do repeated laps around their restricted space and you can peer in through the filthy glass of a ‘animal welfare observation window’. Handily, the centre has decided to keep all the lights on in the corridor where the window is, so there’s a better chance of seeing just your own reflection. The whole thing takes less than 15 minutes and lacks any of the charm of the old natural history museum that preceded it. Don’t think that this is a ‘sanctuary’ of any sort, or that Little Grey and Little White have been rescued. Instead, they’ve just been moved from one tank to another and Sea Life (Merlin) are just after your cash.

The tour was £20 a head and tells the story of how the money is for charity and is used to save the beluga whales from a life in captivity. A story is told about how whales aren’t supposed to live in captivity and that it is horrible for an animal. Around the corner from this is the two whales living in captivity in a pool with a window that you can observe them. Seems a lot like an aquarium to me not a sanctuary.

What a great tour to learn so much about the beluga whales little white and little gray! These guys are really lucky to have such a dedicated team working to get them back into the ocean!

Very disappointing. We had some time to fill between other activities on the island. For the cost (about $100US for a family of 4) we spend MAYBE 20 minutes there. There were no puffins, some tanks with small coral, starfish and other sea plants. And then a sad, small window to see the 2 beluga whales swim by. It was hard to see much because the window is in a hallway and very hard to have more than 5-6 people looking at once. It mentions that they have a large area to live in the bay- but from talking to locals. That doesn’t happen anymore and doesn’t sound like there is much of a plan to move them there. Yes, the money supports the “sanctuary” but it really just feels like a money grab to support to pretty gift-shop and not actually better the lives of these whales in their possession.

Small, well organized sanctuary. several puffins in stages of recovery, workers are extremely kind and helpful. The two belugas were playing with a ball when I was there, apparently In Response to a young girl giggling and laughing at their antics. They seemed to be playing to her…I was lucky to be up close at the same time. these whales are inquisitive and enjoy interaction.

Well. They need to pull up their pants. We've been there twice. We were very happy with our first time. The belugas were wonderful, and still are. Our first time there were staff there, who explained to us that the beluga whales' sanctuary was being repaired, so they were temporarily housed there in this tiny pool. However, it is now apparent that the sanctuary is not being repaired, or for whatever other reasons, this tiny pool is the belugas' permanent home. All the signs, etc, however, indicate that they actually live in the sanctuary in the sea, so we feel lied to. I would have asked a staff member about this, but there was nobody except the ticket sales person. The small beluga window is in a hallway, and there is room for just a handful of people. First time we came there, you could get right up to the window, which meant a lot more people could view the whales. There was also a bench for those with trouble standing, and there was a guide stationed there, taking questions and explaining. This time the window has been roped off, leaving just space for a few people behind the rope. The lights in the hallway are full on, which means that you mostly see yourself and the other visitors in the window. And no staff to be seen anywhere outside ticket sales. There is also this very silly sentence ON the window, ANIMAL WELFARE OBSERVATION WINDOW, both in Icelandic and English. It takes up about a quarter of the window. I suppose it is there to really punch it in that the animals are not on display - which they of course are, they are this place's only attraction. Combined with the light in the hallway, this meant that these two long, big sentences were cast on the animal's bodies each time they passed by to be viewed through the hazy fog of all the people's mirror images. The beluga whales would come against the window and let their bodies hammer the glass, then turn around and "bite" at the window. I don't know beluga behavior well enough to know if this is playfulness or trauma, but they did not behave like this a couple of years ago when we first came. The puffin hospital is very cute, when it is open. You can see the puffins swim. But it's a tiny tiny area. There really is nothing else of interest there, and it's extremely expensive for a tiny place, although the money does go towards supporting the sanctuary. I would feel better about paying this huge amount for very little if this actually felt like a sanctuary.

Very disappointing and a waste of $45USD for two seniors. No puffins there at all, despite the fact that there are signs outside saying Puffin Rescue Center. Only one small window to view the Beluga whales. After you pay and enter through the door, only then do you find out there are no puffins there and their habitat is under construction. Do the Puffin and Volcano tour with Ebbi instead - it was fantastic!

We booked the behind the scenes tour and, while our guides were absolutely delightful, there was nothing behind the scenes about our tour. We saw everything you could see with regular admission, plus the inside of a freezer. We got a bit more colour commentary on specific fish, etc. but didn’t get to see them working with the whales as expected. All we saw of the whales was through the same dingy viewing window as everyone else. I also don’t feel like we learned anything about the whales that we didn’t already know from visiting the website and/or reading the signs. Possibly the puffins would have improved the experience and given more behind the scenes access, but unfortunately the exhibit was closed for renovations. Bad timing on our part. Overall, I respect what they’re doing here, and don’t mind paying the regular admittance but I wouldn’t bother with the behind the scenes fee.

Don't waste your money or time stopping here - entry totaled over U.S. $100 for 2 adults & 2 senior citizens (and 1 free child), which is the same total amount as the much superior volcano museum on the island (more broadly, we do appreciate that many things in Iceland are free entry for kids age 5 and under!) We knew from their website that that puffin portion is closed due to renovation but thought it still worth a stop to see the 2 belugas. While we are all for donating to animal sanctuaries, considering how little remains to be seen and with no interactions with staff to learn about local animals etc., by no means should they still be charging this much per person to enter (framed as a "donation" but we were not given an option as to the amount - it appears it is in fact a minimum fixed amount). We proceeded down a long hall so empty we thought we'd accidentally entered through the back since apart from kids drawings hung on the wall there was literally nothing to see. The atmosphere was of an empty hall in 'Severance'. Once we finally turned a corner there is a small viewing window of the tank where 2 belugas swim in what appears to be tiny quarters, but it's hard to tell since the viewing area is so small. Continuing on, there is a table with plain paper and markers for kids to draw (which we could do literally anywhere) then past that no more than a half dozen small exhibits of rocks and fish. Stopping at all things took up total of no more more than 15 minutes. There was no staff talking about any of the animals, no one past the front desk area taking your money and selling stuffed belugas in the $40 price range. Skip this stop and spend your time on the island going to see puffins in their natural habitat (worth it to self drive around southern trip, stop at puffin viewing area enclosed from sharp wind, and to the volcano edge with church gifted from Norway) and don't miss the impressive volcano museum which takes you through the lived experience of locals. If you have kids with you be sure to spend time at the delightful public playground in front of the harbor. Overall the island is great for a day trip and this sanctuary stop was the only disappointment.

We visited the sanctuary off the cuff, and weren't disappointed. The puffin habitat was being refurbished, but we were informed this by the very friendly and helpful guy in the giftshop. Passing through to the aquarium, we got to see the baluga whales who were so abviously content and enjoy showing off for their public. (We were later informed that they love children and are even more flirtatious when they are around!) The rest of the aquarium was also very interesting, but play second fiddle to the whales.

So awful - the advertising refers to the whales in a sea enclosure and that they have been re homed from an aquarium in China. This is not the case as they have been simply moved to another tank and have been there without access to the open water for 4 years, smoke and mirrors from the scam that is sea life

We purchased tickets online for the following day. According to the website, the sanctuary was open 1000-1700. When we arrived at 1515, the sanctuary was closed. A sign on the door stated different operating hours from 1100-1600. One employee was still inside and opened the door for us, informing us that the sanctuary closed early that day for a staff meeting. We were not able to use our tickets and i had some very upset children on the ferry ride back who just wanted to see a puffin.

Disappointing granted the money goes to fund the hospital-this should not be ranked number 3. The puffin area holds seven puffins is at an elevated level so watching them is difficult. The area with the two orcas is small holds less than six people. The water is extremely cloudy making seeing them difficult to see. Would save my money and skip this for something better

Visiting this sea life center was important since supporting their efforts and mission is important. However, having this as a professional exhibition and aquarium, one would expect that the different interactive and digital parts would work. Also that the highlights besides the two whales would be put more effort into, such as the Puffins and its rescue center. It was a 10 min walk through of the whole visitor center and hadn’t we supported a good cause we would have felt ripped off. I hope this becomes better in the future.

Ripoff! (And I don’t say that lightly.) This place does not have enough actual content on display to qualify as an attraction, much less justify its entry fee. Roughly $55 for two adult to see a few puffins, very small aquariums, and some stuffed fish without labels. Some rooms were empty apart from a few factoids on the wall about 2 rescued beluga whales, which weren’t available to see! At the exit, my wife and I looked at each other incredulously saying, “No- this can’t be all there is!” But that was all there was. If you come here, know you are making a donation much more than seeing anything of interest.

I loved the Belugas. But everything else was a sham. Nobody told us anything about the animals. There was one employee near the Beluga tank who talked to the same couple so long that we just walked off. We tried to ask some questions but got very quick answers and a dismissal. They’ll tell you it’s 30 minutes at least. We tried to take out time and it still only took 15. I learned more about the whales on a tour with Ebbi (puffins and volcano tour). I highly recommend that tour. On the positive side, I think the money supports the Belugas. One of them apparently has agoraphobia. Guess where I learned that: on Ebbi’s tour. 😂

This is a very small place but they work hard to educate you with the limited funds they have. They mainly take care of two whales who have large free reign in the harbor and come and go as they please. I recommend this for parents with small kids who need a break from the cold and something to do. There is a small aquarium of sorts, and the whales love to “play” with kids through the glass. Donate if you can, they need the money and it’s for a good cause!

Amazing place, i could spent hours there watching the birds and the belugas if my kids had the patiences. Will definitely visit again. Kids also loved it 😊

Lots of information about the local species. The beluga were in for monitoring, so we're able to watch them play. Great value for money.

I would skip this unless you need to kill time because of bad weather (which is why we went). The museum is very small and very basic. It was nice to support their puffin sanctuary work, however, so it did feel like a nice thing to do.

An excellent experience and also worthwhile as all payments go towards the upkeep of puffins and whales. Entry is US$6.00 per person and gives a greats opportunity to view the puffins at very close quarters (through glass) as they splash and frolic in the water. Also watch the Beluga Whales as they learn to rehabilitate into sea water. Although a small area at present they do get the opportunity to get into the sea in a restricted area and will eventually be released.

Today’s boat cruise and visit to the centre was disappointing. While it was unfortunate that one of the whales was ill and both were at the centre/aquarium for care, why did we need to pay more just to go on a boat to see where they normally live when it was visible from the shore?? Interaction with the whales through the wall of the tank?definitely not what I was expecting when I planned the trip from Australia

The sanctuary is much smaller and scaled down than I expected but my family and I still had a lovely time! We learned a lot about the conservation efforts being made to protect the native wildlife and saw the whales in-house. The staff was also kind enough to let us wander a bit after close since I forgot to check the open hours before arriving and we got in just a few minutes before they locked the door. Definitely a fun see when you're in the area!

It was cool to see the two whales close up where they came right up to the window. This is a very small place but you learn how the whales got there and the highlight of course was seeing them!

It was fine. Kid friendly for sure but I wouldn’t suggest it for those without kids. The reviews with getting to interact with puffins are from years ago with a particular puffin who is since decreased. We did get to see rescued puffins behind glass and the two beluga swimming which was the highlight.

This small nonprofit has some neat wildlife including puffins up close and personal. The highlight was the two beluga whales were in house and very active in their habitat. We watched them for quite a while.

We were on a cruise stop and our guide told us about the sanctuary. It was not well marked so we had to ask for directions, but it is on the main street where we tendered from our ship. The site is small, you will only need 10 minutes tops to see everything. There is a small gift shop.

We loved this little gem! And we were lucky enough to see the beluga whales when we visited. They were in for some rehab and they were so cute. And th puffins up close were so funny and adorable. i didn't mind the cost because the money goes to rehabbing the puffins and whales. Glad we went!

What an amazing experience to see Little Grey and Little White and to know that they are being cared for in such a brilliant way. The girl at reception was amazing and very helpful (she had only just been there a week after moving from Reykjavik). There is also a puffin hospital there to look after any injured or sick puffins. Keep up the great work guys!

We visited both the sanctuary and took the boat to see Little Grey & Little White. Initially the puffins were rather still and perhaps asleep, but having seen more of the aquarium, we returned to the puffins to see all of them walking and swimming, which was an interesting experience. The rest of the aquarium was informative, although we feel some more information labels in some of the preserved specimen cases, would have been helpful. We both enjoyed the boat trip and the weather was clear and sunny by 1pm, and the informative commentary provided by Mike, to see the puffin island and the whales. Especially seeing the ropes that we were told were used by locals to transfer their sheep, to the island for grazing. Seeing both of the Beluga whales was truly magical and made the trip for us. This experience was not cheap but worth it for its unique experience.

Really amazing place and people. Do the boat ride and see the whales in their new home in the bay! The puffins in the aquarium are worth it alone though.

Seeing the rescued puffins and Beluga Whales at the Sea Life Trust Visitor’s Center was very cool. The rest of the aquarium is small, but it is well done with good signage. The whales were very active, and so fun to see up close.

It was very nice to see the belugas through the window and after a while we discovered that they saw us too. Then we'd spin around and jump and they'd do it really crazy and squeak with pleasure. I've never seen that before. Also the puffins were mega cute. The staff of the Centre were very helpful and answered all questions.

Ein sehr schöner Überblick über die Seefauna rund um Isländische Insel und die Wesrmännerinseln. Die Darstellung der Puffins war sehr schön. Diese Vögel sind sehr putzig.

High price for what is presented in it. We saw 3 shearwaters, 1 duck and the 2 belugas. Many texts and explanations around shearwaters and beluga - Interesting. The space reserved for animals (except beluga) is small in my opinion.

NO ACCUSATION TO THE CARERS BUT TO THE VISITORS! A prime example of why aquariums should be banned. Everyone knows what happens in Sea Life or Sea world. The aquarium is very small. Not even price-performance ratio right. The puffins live on a much too small area. The Belugas are doing much worse. Although there would be a real pool in the sea, despite all this, these poor animals have been sitting in a dirty pool that is far too small for years. You can tell how badly the animals are doing and that the aquarium uses them for presentation to make a lot of money! Please do not support this sad place

Small self-guided tour that takes you past collected puffins, some aquariums and Belugas. Don't expect a big zoo! It certainly isn't. Especially the Belugas make the experience beautiful. There is nowhere clearly indicated when you find them inside, or when they are in their beautiful outdoor basin. They work with your gifts and income from the visits. Definitely worth supporting.

Nice center with Puffins and fishing. Other marine life to be seen In the center is also the observation pool for the belugas. We didn't know this, but they turned out to be inside and seeing that up close was beautiful. They normally stay in an outdoor pool in the bay of the island.

Small but nice! Very small indeed. But I and my 7 year old son liked it very much. Overall, the small trip to the Westman Islands was very worthwhile.

We went to the aquarium to see for ourselves. It's relatively small and the price is quite high, probably going for food for the belugas. Although the tank of these animals is larger than it seems, it is still naturally too small and not open air. The outdoor pool is currently not used according to the statement, as it needs to be renovated. Later we learned from a local that the pool is more or less new, which is also due to another reasoning that the water outside is not clean enough (open-air pool is near the port) the animals will probably NEVER enjoy life more at least in the open air. The animals probably already show aggressive tendencies towards trainers (attack) and visitors. Maybe they had it better in Shanghai in a basin with at least daylight?? Too bad a well-intentioned idea would turn into something like this. Time approach for the visit approx. 15 minutes