Whale watching season has ended in Húsavík, and by all accounts record-breaking numbers of tourists took part.
Vísir reports that the season has formally ended today, but there were still groups of tourists travelling north to visit the town famed for abundant population of whales in the bay. Hörður Sigurbjarnarson, the managing director of Norðursigling, and Stefán Guðmundsson of Gentle Giants told reporters that during the peak of the season, they were sailing over a thousand tourists each day. The two companies have a combined fleet of eight ships.
This naturally had a residual effect on surrounding businesses – increased staff was necessary for Norðursigling’s restaurant, and the whale museum saw an increase in attendance to 27,000 guests; a 30% increase from the previous year.
Whale watching season will commence in Húsavík again in mid-April. In the meantime, Norðursigling is planning on increasing their fleet.