Borgarfjörður Eystri: Iceland’s Best Puffin Viewing, Without the Boat Trip

Most accessible puffin colonies in Iceland require a ferry or a Zodiac and a degree of distance that makes photography frustrating. Borgarfjörður Eystri, a small fjord village in East Iceland, has a viewing platform built directly over a colony of approximately 10,000 Atlantic puffin pairs, at eye level with the nesting burrows. You walk from the car park in five minutes and you are standing two metres from puffins who have no particular concern about your presence. It is, for puffin viewing specifically, the best situation in Iceland.

The village sits at the end of Route 94, 75 kilometres north of Egilsstaðir and about 1.15 hours by car. Route 94 was paved in full as of 2023, so the approach no longer requires a four-wheel drive. The road winds through dramatic basalt mountain terrain before descending into the fjord; the last few kilometres have views that alone justify the drive.

The Puffins

Atlantic puffins arrive at the colony in late April or early May, breed through June and July, and depart by mid-August. June and July are the peak weeks: the birds are most active, most visible at the nesting platforms, and most likely to be performing the wing-flapping and bill-wrestling behaviour that makes them worth watching for an extended time. The boardwalk viewing system means you do not disturb them; they also have no idea what you are. The closest birds are genuinely close.

The Village and the Elf Church

The village itself has around 90 permanent residents. Alfaborg, the large rock formation on the edge of town, is traditionally considered the home of the Queen of Icelandic Elves - a claim that East Icelanders treat with varying degrees of irony, but which gives the village an odd notoriety. The small church overlooking the harbour, Lindarbakkakirkja, is locally important and worth a brief stop.

Hiking

Borgarfjörður Eystri has over 27 marked trails ranging from short coastal walks to multi-day mountain routes. The Stórurð trail (approximately 10 km, 4-5 hours) leads to a dramatic landscape of enormous car-sized boulders deposited by glacial action at the foot of a striking cirque - one of the more unusual geological environments in Iceland and well worth a full day. The trail requires reasonable fitness and proper footwear; the terrain is rough.

The Brúnavík trail reaches an isolated beach with seal haul-outs and sea stack views in about 2-3 hours one way. The surrounding mountains - Dyrfjöll in particular, with its distinctive twin peaks - are visible from most trails and provide orientation throughout the hiking network.

Getting There and Staying

From Egilsstaðir, Route 94 runs northwest to the fjord. Egilsstaðir has a domestic airport with connections to Reykjavik and an Icelandic Ring Road connection. The drive to Borgarfjörður Eystri is 75 km.

Accommodation in the village is small-scale: guesthouses and farm stays. Book ahead for July and August when the puffin crowds arrive. The village café serves Icelandic lamb and Arctic char. Bring cash; card facilities in the village are limited. And fuel up in Egilsstaðir before heading out - the village has no petrol station.