My fabulous Faroe Islands holiday was a dream come true. Here's why Faroe Islands travel is so enchanting.

I was fortunate to have spent nine extraordinary days photographing throughout most of the Faroe Islands.

Having said that there’s so many amazing sites to behold and incredible hikes on the Faroes that another trip is never far from my mind.

Faroe Islands Travel

But not all trips start with bang. My own Faroe Islands travel adventure started quite slowly with a few nights in the nations capital, Tórshavn.

It’s interesting to wander the narrow laneways of Tinganes, the small and old part of town situated by the water.

Tinganes is where the local Viking parliament met for the first time in AD 825.

With a population of around 20,000 it’s fair to think of Tórshavn as something in between a large town and a small city.

It’s peaceful and easy going, which is great. Tórshavn also boasts great restaurants and an excellent local music scene.

But it’s not a particularly picturesque capital which explains why I found photography opportunities in Tórshavn to be quite limited.

However, Tórshavn is the place from which some of the other islands in the archipelago are reached.

The lovely island of Nolsoy, situated just 4 km from the capital, is only a short 33 minute ferry ride away.

I spent a few hours on Nólsoy and wished I’d made arrangements to spend the night. There’s a popular hike on the island and the local pub offers great food and live music.

But Nólsoy is also a great place to observe and photography birds with populations of the following avian species.

• European storm petrels (50,000 pairs)

• Atlantic puffins (30,000 pairs)

• Black guillemots (100 pairs)

As you can see the European storm petrel and Atlantic puffin populations on Nólsoy are significant.

One of the amazing things about Faroe Islands travel is that any destination on any of the islands, that are linked to each other by bridge or underwater tunnel, can be reached in probably no more than 1 ½ hours.

What’s more getting in and out of the capital, Tórshavn, is usually a quick and easy procedure by car.

In saying that, I did find it tricky to navigate my way into the tourist area around Tinganes on my first attempt.

What’s more, as I arrived on the Faroese national holiday of Saint Olaf’s Day, there was no parking allowed near my hotel and I had to hump my bags and camera gear around a kilometer from the Ferry carpark.

But it was only a minor inconvenience and, soon enough, my baggage was stored in my room and I was ready to get out and explore the lovely little houses and public buildings in Tinganes.

If you only have a few days for your Faroe Islands holiday then I’d consider a hire car, which you can pick up at the airport upon your arrival, to be a must.

With easy access to the island of Nólsoy I’d say that Tórshavn, particularly around Tinganes, is a good option for one of those days.

The Lovely St. Olafs Day Festival, Tórshavn

I did manage to arrive in the Faroe Islands during the Ólavsøka Festival.

Literally translated as Saint Olaf’s Wake the festival is held in memory of the former Norwegian King, and that country’s patron saint, Olaf the Holy who died in battle on 29 July 1010 AD.

St. Olafs Day is celebrated as an important national holiday and involves several days of celebrations in the Faroe Islands.

I missed out on the afternoon parade, which was a shame as it would have provided me with great opportunities to photograph Faroese folk dressed up in their national costume.

However, as you can see, I did get to attend and photograph thousands of locals singing on the edge of the old town of Tinganes later that evening.

After a few slow, restful days spent in and around the capital, including a fun trip to the nearby island of Nólsoy, I headed off to explore as much of the Faroe Islands as I could.

Things to Do In The Faroe Islands

There are lots of great hiking and sailing adventures and lots of things to do in the Faroe Islands. Some of the most popular highlights include:

• Hike the island of Mykines and photograph Atlantic puffins on route

• Photograph the awe-inspiring Múlafossur waterfall near the village of Gasadalur

• Stay for a day or two in the picturesque village of Gjogv (pronounced Jegv)

• A boat tour to the amazing Vestmanna bird cliffs and grottos

• Hike to Kallurin Lighthouse on the island of Kalsoy

• Hike to the visually incredible lake of Sørvágsvatn

• Dine at KOKS Restaurant, the first Michelin-starred restaurant in the Faroe Islands

I found the islands of Sandoy and Suduroy to be great fun. In particular Sandoy, were I stayed for two nights, was wonderful with lots of beautiful scenery and adventures.

The Múlafossur waterfall near the lovely village of Gasadalur was a definite highlight. I photographed it twice, on the first and last days of my Faroe Islands holiday.

Gjogv: The Faroe Islands Most Beautiful Village

I had two overnight stays in the village of Gjógv, said to be the most beautiful village in the Faroe Islands.

Located on the northeast of the island of Eysturoy, Gjogv is a beautiful seaside village with lots of opportunities for the enthusiastic photographer.

An added bonus of my visit was the lovely Gjáargardur Guesthouse, where I stayed during both visits to Gjógv.

The accommodations there were quite modest, but more than sufficient.

The food, however, was excellent and the staff and owner at Gjáargardur Guesthouse were really wonderful folks whom I found to be both kind and very helpful.

I’II most certainly be looking to say there again on my next Faroe Islands holiday.

The Village Of Saksun Is Amazing

I loved my visit to the village of Saksun on the northwest of the island of Streymoy.

Situated a short distance from the sea I undertook the fun hike down to the coast and, after returning to the village, got busy making photos of the lovely church and surrounds.

I was fortunate to have visited Saksun on a beautiful, sunny day. It was windy, which is a problem for detail oriented landscape photography, but it was probably my favorite day spent in the Faroes.

I only wish I’d been able to stay in Saksun overnight as I would have loved to photograph the village and the surrounding landscape at sunset and either side of sunrise. 

The Wild Beauty Of Vidareidi

It was important to me, on this first visit to the Faroe Islands, to be able to visit as many of the islands as possible.

There are 18 islands, 17 of which are inhabited.

During my 9 day Faroe Islands adventure I managed to explore 9 of those glorious islands, 3 of which had to be reached by ferry.

Near the end of my trip I traveled to the northwest of the Faroes to stay and dine at the highly regarded Elizabeth’s Restaurant in the village of Vidareidi on the island of Vidoy.

The owner, Elizabeth, is a lovely person and I very much enjoyed my stay there.

Vidareidi is windswept and the most northern village in all the Faroe Islands.

There was around one inch of rain over the 24 hour period I was on the island and I arrived at Elizabeth’s just as the wind really picked up.

It was a gale and lasted all through the next day. 

Overnight and through the following day the winds grew to what was officially described as near hurricane proportions.

That made my photography adventures the next day to be challenging, in the extreme. The rains were heavy and the winds were gale force in strength.

I did get bounced around in the wind quite a bit and, at one stage, it took half a dozen attempts before I could close the door on my little hire car.

Getting in and out of that car proved to be difficult on that particular day.

I had to be very careful to hold onto the door to prevent it from blowing off its hinges while, at the same time, trying to reduce the pounding my body was receiving as the door bashed up against me.

But neither the rain nor the wind held me back and I drove all day stopping to make photos and to undertake a few short walks, when it seemed safe to do so.

Kunoy Island - Trees And Magic In The Rain

On the way to Vidareidi I visited the village of Kunoy on the island of the same name.

A short walk from the village of Kunoy took me to this wonderful river flowing along the edge of a lovely wood.

The Faroes is a beautiful, green country. Nonetheless, it was somewhat of a revelation to see so many trees given the Faroes is such a windswept country.

I consider the walk and photography I did in this tiny forested area on Kunoy island, in the rain, to be one of the highlights of my trip.

My Faroe Islands Travel Will Continue

My only true disappointment during my first Faroe Islands travel adventure was that I was unable to visit the island of Mykines.

Unfortunately, despite staying nearby for the last few days of my journey, I was unable to secure a seat on the Ferry to and from the island.

As it was the weather began to change and became totally unsuitable for that particularly adventure.

What a shame! Still, I do want to return to the Faroe Islands and Mykines will be right at the top of my schedule next time around.

Unless you’re based in western Europe, or the east coast of southern Canada or the USA, travel to the Faroe Islands does require a commitment.

From Australia, where I’m currently based, it’s a major endeavor.

While I could easily spend four or more weeks there, the best approach, for the enthusiastic landscape photographer, seems to be to include the Faroes into an itinerary that includes Iceland and/or Greenland.

The Shetland Islands would be another interesting option to add to your itinerary.

All these places are within range of the Faroe Islands. A couple months spent exploring all these locations would be a dream come true.

That’s an expensive and time consuming option.

However, as the Faroe Islands are such a long way from Australia, it makes sense to add at least one of these other destinations to your Faroe Islands holiday.

However I end up doing it, I definitely plan to return to the Faroe Islands within the not too distant future.

From experience I can expect sublime beauty; decent, hard working people; fantastic photography opportunities; great hikes; and, almost certainly, a fair share of inclement weather.

Glenn Guy, Travel Photography Guru