VISITORS to the Faeroe Isles come to walk, fish, birdwatch or cycle the raw, rugged and beautiful landscapes. The majority of the 18 islands have mountainous interiors, edged by cliffs up to 200m (650ft) and populated by gulls, petrels and puffins.
Descending through clouds on approach to Vagar airport, we banked down a long inlet between two green, windswept islands studded with sheep and ponies, and homes topped with turf to minimise heat loss and the noise of rain beating down for 280 days of the year.
The islands are perpetually green because of their exposure — midway between Scotland and Iceland — to the North Atlantic climate which, even in high summer, struggles to reach anything above 13C (55F).
Now is the time to visit, as Atlantic Airways starts a twice-weekly run from Stansted on Thursdays and Sundays. Although the flight arrives after 10pm, it will still be light. At this time of year there isn’t really any night to speak of.
Most Britons have heard of the Faeroes, a dependency of Denmark, only from the shipping forecast, and the anonymity sits well with the 45,000 residents who, self-deprecatingly, say that they are descended from those Vikings too seasick to have made it all the way to Iceland. “That’s pretty much the way we like it,” laughs Oddmar Olsen as we chat at his kitchen table in the capital, Torshavn, while his wife Camilla welcomes tourists with an afternoon tea of fried cod and jam pancakes.
Advertisement
The old part of Torshavn, with its turf-topped, black-wood buildings, makes for an interesting afternoon’s wander, best done in the company of the jolly local guide Jørleif Kurberg (00 298 314049, £15 an hour), who speaks English with a gently lilting Scottish accent. If the weather turns, as it probably will, the National Museum (310700), the Museum of Natural History (352300, www.ngs.fo) or the Faroese Art Gallery (313579) open daily in summer.
WHAT ELSE
The scenery is perhaps best appreciated from the sea. Every Tuesday and Thursday the schooner Nordlysid (345900, £16) takes a three-hour cruise from Torshavn, round the tip of Streymoy island towards Hestur where the cliffs are home to thousands of guillemots and kittiwakes. There is also an evening trip to the island of Nolsoy, home to the world’s largest colony of storm petrels, with the ornithologist Jens-Kjeld Jensen (327064, £31).
On Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays, Atlantic Airways operates a helicopter to the northern islands. Take a trip via bus and ferry to Klaksvik on the island of Bordoy, then chopper back to Torshavn in the afternoon. A four-day “go anywhere” pass on the buses and ferries is £53 (www.ssl.fo), while one-way Klaksvik-Torshavn by helicopter is £19 (341010, www.atlantic.fo).
Advertisement
WHERE TO STAY
The 108-room Føroyar (317500, www.hotelforoyar.com, B&B from £97) is bright and airy, on a hill outside town with sweeping views down towards the centre. The hotel also manages a youth hostel 100m away (345900, www.farhostel.fo), where a dorm bed goes for £15. The Hafnia Hotel (313233, www.hafnia.fo) is centrally located in Torshavn. B&B doubles from £101.
FOOD AND FUN
Meat or fish and potatoes is pretty much what it boils down to. While the locals eat pilot whale, puffin or guillemot, tourists are not expected to share in such dishes. The Hafnia Hotel has a seafood buffet on Tuesdays and Thursdays for £20.
Rio Bravo (11 Torsgøta, 319767) and Merlot, just around the corner, both offer steaks for about £17. Café Natur (7 Aarvegur, 312625) has local beers and snacks, turning more pub-ish at night. At weekends it’s open until 4am, as is Verthusid on Niels Finsens gøta.
Advertisement
NEED TO KNOW
Discover the World (01737 214255, www.discover-the-world.co.uk) offers a three-night break based in Torshavn, including flights from Stansted and B&B, from £417pp.
Atlantic Airways (0870 4432372, www.atlantic.fo) flies twice weekly from Stansted until Aug 22, and twice weekly year-round from Aberdeen (online fares from £160 return).
Faeroe Islands Tourist Board: 00 298 316055, www.tourist.fo. Also see www.faroeislands.com.