I was standing on the salt-lashed deck of a former fishing boat and nursing a cup of hot chocolate when the first humpback whale heaved itself out of the steely coloured water. This fjord, explained the woman in charge, is called Eyjafjörður, and it is the largest in Iceland. Before the vessel slipped its mooring, she had demonstrated how, as the whales breached—three, maybe four, if we were really lucky—she would shout out numbers between one and 12, indicating where they would be on a clock face (a shrill ‘12 o’clock’ meant we had to look to the prow; ‘6 o’clock’, the stern). We saw more than 20 humpbacks that day, so many that the woman gave up shouting out the imaginary time, and a lone, slender minke whale.
You’ll find the monstrous, dagger-shaped fjord in the sparsely-populated north of the country; and the town from which the whale-watching boat departs, an hour's drive from Deplar Farm, best described as an adrenaline junkie’s paradise. The hotel—which really doesn’t feel like a hotel at all—is part of the Eleven Experience group, a clutch of properties, referred to as lodges, in wild and remote places all over Earth. Deplar is arguably their most famous—and with good reason. A former sheep farm, it now shelters deep-pocketed travellers, with a desire to adventure off the beaten track, underneath its grassy roof.
Whale watching is available all year round—this, after all, is often referred to as ‘the whale watching capital of the world’, though it peaks in the summer—but Deplar is also renowned for its heli-skiing. Horseback riding, surfing underneath the midnight sun, snowshoeing, and ice fishing are also all available. On a kayak, swaddled in neoprene, I sat silently, buoyed by the so-gentle-it-was-almost-sinister ebb and flow of the Arctic Ocean, as seals slipped through the kelp forests somewhere beneath me, occasionally surfacing to take a peek.
Everyone at Deplar is partnered up with a sort of adventure butler who, after an introductory call that takes place before you’ve even packed your bags, puts together a carefully curated itinerary of activities. They accompany you each day, carrying supplies, equipment, and, most importantly, packed lunches, imparting pearls of practical wisdom and guiding you through this hostile and breathtaking landscape. It’s no easy feat to welcome visitors of all abilities, keep track of what everyone is doing and where everyone is going, and not make it feel a bit like a school leaver’s Outward Bound trip. But Deplar succeeds and then some. I’d never snowshoed before, but I never felt like I was ever out of my depth or holding anyone up. Days after I’d returned to London, I realised that I’d been encouraged to step outside of my comfort zone without even noticing. The feeling was a sort of euphoric high I didn’t know I needed.
This premier retreat from reality is also just a really great, five-star hotel with a 5,000 square foot spa and 13 sumptuous, hygge-inspired bedrooms, some of which have mezzanine levels and hammocks strung from the ceilings. There is zero signage around the building because it operates more as a house than a hotel, and guests, who eat communally around a gargantuan wooden table, bookended by floor-to-ceiling windows, don’t lock their doors (in fact, I’m not even sure if there are any keys…). Everyone gathers in the gabled living room and bar before and after dinner, to play games, listen to music (there’s a proper band set-up to one side, plus an off-site, private music and recording studio), and wait, sort of patiently, for the Northern Lights to appear. The empty valley—save for another neighbouring farm from which the hotel’s kitchen sources goat’s cheese—is in a prime viewing spot, unspoiled by light pollution. The colours tend to be faint at first, pale green glimmers that threaten to disappear if you blink, but soon build to an unforgettable and skittish display of greens and pinks and blues and reds. If you’re very fortunate, they’ll show up as you lounge in the geothermally-heated indoor-outdoor swimming pool.
The standard of food is Deplar’s only weak point—though it’s worth remembering that little-to-no no fresh produce grows in Iceland. The homemade bread is heavy, and the dishes are underseasoned. However, the upside is that it all makes for good fuel to power you through another day of exploits.
Fast Facts
Location: Fljót Valley, Iceland
Rating: Five-Star
The vibe: Part sheep farm, part playground for thrill-seekers, Deplar Farm is equal parts adrenaline rush and five-star comfort.
Room count: 13
Starting Rate: From approx. $3,000 per night, all-inclusive (activities, meals, guides)
Dining: Farm-to-table communal dining with Icelandic influences; shared wooden table framed by valley views
Amenities: 5,000-square-foot spa, geothermal indoor–outdoor pool, private Northern Lights viewing, music studio, adventure butlers, heli-skiing access, whale watching, kayaking, horseback riding
What’s nearby: Whale watching in Eyjafjörður fjord, horseback riding across lava fields, Icelandic goat farms for local cheese, snowshoeing, and ice fishing
Closest Airport: Akureyri Airport (domestic, 1.5 hours), or Keflavík International Airport (approx. 5-hour drive + transfer)
