I’m Obsessed with the Faroe Islands; I Haven’t Even Been There
The self-governing Danish territory appears too good to be true
In April of 2018 I went to the Svalbard archipelago north of Norway. Since then, remote islands have become a small obsession of mine. The nature is more dramatic and untouched. The people are genuine and the languages are quite different from what is standard. The Faroe Islands check all of those boxes.
It could be the weather. It could be the small quaint towns scattered throughout the islands. It could be the raw nature in plain view wherever you look. It could be the minuscule amount of crowds due to its remote location. Whatever it is, I really want to go to the Faroe Islands when the COVID-19 outbreak ends in America, and of course, when other countries let Americans in.
For those who don’t know, the Faroe Islands is an archipelago situated in the Norwegian Sea to the north of the UK, and southeast of Iceland. Technically the islands aren’t their own country—they are a self governing territory of Denmark.
Both the geography and political status are highly reflected in the culture. Many people still have sheep on property (there are more sheep than people) and there are lots of traditional clothes as in any culture. Nearly all tourist activities are nature related and involve hiking to the coast or to other impressive vistas. The nature visible on the islands is some of the most appealing that I have ever seen. The language, Faroese, has many similarities to Danish and the other Scandinavian languages, but it is not mutually intelligible to any of them. Faroese is also unsupported by google translate and is rarely on any language learning app, so the number of people learning the language is few and far between.
Going to Svalbard was a life changing experience for me. Going to the Faroe Islands could top it given the warmer climate and abundance of hikes.
The Faroe Islands fall under the subpolar oceanic climate classification or Cfc (the highest recorded temperatures around the islands range between 68ºF and 72ºF. As someone who has spent many winter days on the slopes in Park City, Utah, cold weather is much appreciated by me. Moreover, the Faroe Islands even possesses a restaurant, Koks, with two Michelin stars. This restaurant alone has attracted tourists to the Faroe Islands.
If I were to go to the Faroe Islands, which hopefully is sometime soon, I will certainly make an effort to explore Tórshavn (Thor’s Harbor in English). In some ways, Tórshavn is very similar to the capital of mainland Denmark, Copenhagen, as they both have colorful buildings along the harbor. I can imagine myself getting lost among the small, some cobblestone, streets lining the city filled with boutique shops.
Outside of Tórshavn, travelers have plenty of choices of what to do. Like all Nordic countries and islands, the Faroes are very environmentally conscious and charge hefty fees to go on hikes (on average around $30) to account for a recent influx of tourists. Many small islands such as Mykines are popular with tourists and some require ferries to get to. Most people on the main islands that don’t require ferries rent a car and drive over the many bridges a tunnels across the islands (watch out for the expensive ~$15 tolls when using tunnels). That being said, the islands that do require ferries are far less busy and the overall lower number of people visiting versus neighboring countries like Iceland is a major reason why the Faroes are so attractive to me.
At the bottom of my desire to go to the Faroe Islands is, for the most part, my desire to actually travel and go places after being forced to stay at home for 4 months. More specifically, it is based around my desire to go somewhere with few people; in a post-COVID world this will feel like more of a necessity than a want. The Faroe Islands only has around 50,000 people, with around a quarter of them residing in Tórshavn. For me, the Faroe Islands appear to have it all—the weather, food, views, vibes, and people. I haven’t even been there yet and I am still obsessed.
