Tourism in the Faroe Islands is a growing industry. The official tourist board is Visit Faroe Islands, which is overseen and organized by the Ministry of Environment, Industry and Trade.
Tourism in the islands accounted for 1.4% of the total GDP in 2015. [1] Tourism is much smaller than other industries like fishing, which has dominated the Faroese economy. [2]
Fishing has been the primary sector of the Faroese economy for much of the past decades. Fishing accounts for around 90 to 95 percent of exports. [3] However, the economy has begun to diversify.
In 2013, Visit Faroe Islands saw their marketing funds double. [4] In 2014, a new terminal was opened in Vágar Airport, in part due to the tourism increase. [5] Vágar Airport saw the number of passengers increase by 43 percent in the ten years prior to the opening of the new terminal, with expectations of more than 250,000 passengers in 2014. Because of this, the airport hoped that other airline operators would get involved and take advantage of the high amount of traffic between the Faroes and Europe. [5] [4]
Visit Faroe Islands started a campaign called "Closed for Maintenance, Open for Voluntourism" which saw a crew of applicants travel to the Faroe Islands and work with locals to preserve ten locations across the islands, as well as create and maintain hiking paths and set up signposting. The first crew traveled to the islands in April 2019. [6]
In late 2019, it was announced that Atlantic Airways was preparing to launch non-stop flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. [7]
Hilton opened a hotel in the Faroes in late 2020, becoming the first global hotel chain in the islands. [8] [9]
A study published in the Consortium Journal of Hospitality and Tourism found that over 45% of Faroese respondents believe tourism brings more benefits than problems to the country. The study also found that 95% of respondents would like to see more tourists in their communities. [10]
The Faroe Islands have been featured in international media, with companies like The Guardian, Lonely Planet, The Sunday Times, and The Financial Times recommending the islands in 2019. [11]
In 2007, National Geographic Traveler ranked the Faroe Islands 1st out of 111 island communities around the world. [12]
Overnight stays statistics, since 2013. [13] These statistics include overnight stays by people from the Faroe Islands.
| Overnight stays | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total |  108,653 |  197,886 | 185,360 | 176,798 | 161,224 | 151,751 | 139,250 | 132,265 |
| Hotel/hostel and guest-house | 94,940 | 166,452 | 153,113 | 144,626 | 128,731 | 118,885 | 105,468 | 100,173 |
| Bed and breakfast | 365 | 2,120 | 2,447 | 2,539 | 2,633 | 3,438 | 2,064 | 1,919 |
| House/apartment | 7,869 | 13,233 | 16,782 | 17,650 | 17,851 | 22,446 | 25,216 | 27,313 |
| Camping | 5,479 | 16,081 | 13,018 | 11,983 | 12,009 | 14,937 | 6,502 | 2,860 |
The early details of the history of the Faroe Islands are unclear. It is possible that Brendan, an Irish monk, sailed past the islands during his North Atlantic voyage in the 6th century. He saw an 'Island of Sheep' and a 'Paradise of Birds', which some say could be the Faroes with its dense bird population and sheep. This does suggest however that other sailors had got there before him, to bring the sheep. Norsemen settled the Faroe Islands in the 9th or 10th century. The islands were officially converted to Christianity around the year 1000, and became a part of the Kingdom of Norway in 1035. Norwegian rule on the islands continued until 1380, when the islands became part of the dual Denmark–Norway kingdom, under king Olaf II of Denmark.
The economy of the Faroe Islands was the 166th largest in the world in 2014, having a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.613 billion per annum. GDP increased from DKK 8 billion in 1999, to 21 billion in 2019. The vast majority of Faroese exports, around 90%, consists of fishery products.
The Faroe Islands is served by an internal transport system based on roads, ferries, and helicopters. As of the 1970s, the majority of the population centres of the Faroe Islands have been joined to a single road network, connected by bridges and tunnels.
Vágar Airport is the only airport in the Faroe Islands, and is located 1 NM east of the village of Sørvágur, on the island of Vágar. Due to the Faroe Islands' status as a self-governing territory, the airport is not subject to the rules of the European Union. It is the main operating base for Faroese national airline Atlantic Airways and, for a brief period during 2006, was also the base for the low-cost airline FaroeJet.
Klaksvík is the second largest town of the Faroe Islands behind Tórshavn. The town is located on Borðoy, which is one of the northernmost islands. It is the administrative centre of Klaksvík municipality.
Vágar is one of the 18 islands in the archipelago of the Faroe Islands and the most westerly of the large islands. With a size of 178 square kilometres, it ranks third in size, behind Streymoy and Eysturoy. Vágar region also comprises the island of Mykines.
Atlantic Airways is the national airline of the Faroe Islands, operating domestic helicopter services and international passenger services as well as search and rescue responsibilities from its base at Vágar Airport, on the Faroese island of Vágar. Most of its pilots are members of the Faroese Pilot Association. Its 2021 revenue was 410.2mm DKK.
Sørvágur is a village on the island of Vágar in the Faroe Islands.
Runavík is a comparatively urbanised village in Runavík Municipality, Faroe Islands. It lies on the south half of the isle of Eysturoy.
Sandavágur is a city on the south coast of the Faroese island of Vágar. The name Sandavágur means sandy bay and refers to the sandy beach which used to be much larger than present. From one point in Sandavágur you can get a view of all the southern islands in the Faroes. Sandavágur used to be a municipality until 1 January 2009, when it fused together with the neighbour village Miðvágur into the new Vágar municipality.
Mykines village is the only settlement on Mykines Island, the westernmost of the Faroe Islands. It is a little coastal village with bright houses with turf roofs, with an old turf-roofed stone Church dating from 1878, and a small stream flowing through the village.
The British occupation of the Faroe Islands during World War II, also known as Operation Valentine, was implemented immediately following the German invasion of Denmark and Norway. It was a small component of the roles of Nordic countries in World War II.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Faroe Islands:
The Faroe or Faeroe Islands, or simply the Faroes, are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. The official language of the country is Faroese, which is closely related to and partially mutually intelligible with Icelandic.
Eiði Municipality is a municipality of the Faroe Islands. It is part of the Eysturoy region, and consists of a northwesterly part of the Eysturoy island. The municipality borders Runavík Municipality to the east and Sunda Municipality to the south and east. The population of the municipality is 810 (2023). The mayor of the municipality is Rógvi Egilstoft, and the municipal council consists of seven members elected every four years.
Energy in the Faroe Islands is produced primarily from imported fossil fuels, with further contributions from hydro and wind power. Oil products are the main energy source, mainly consumed by fishing vessels and sea transport. Electricity is produced by oil, hydropower and wind farms, mainly by SEV, which is owned by all the municipalities of the Faroe Islands. The Faroe Islands are not connected by power lines with continental Europe, and thus the archipelago cannot import or export electricity.
KOKS is a restaurant located in Leynavatn, located 24 km north of Tórshavn and 23 km east of the airport in the Faroe Islands. It offers a 17-course tasting menu and won its first Michelin star in 2017. KOKS’ head chef is Poul Andrias Ziska, a 28-year-old chef and native of Tórshavn. The restaurant has nine chefs, each of whom is from a different country, and five waiters. The restaurant serves only 30 customers a night and has a scenic view over a lake. The Michelin star that KOKS won was the first to be awarded in the Faroes. In addition, they were named the second best restaurant in the Danish kingdom in the White Guide in 2017. The head chef, Ziska, was also awarded as the chef talent of the year, given to one up-and-coming chef under 30.
The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the Faroe Islands, an autonomous territory of Denmark, in March 2020. The confirmed infection rate was 1 case per 280 inhabitants, one of the highest rates in the world, but the archipelago also tested at a very high frequency, with the number of tests equaling c. 34 per cent of the population. As of 28 February 2022, there have been 34648 confirmed cases. Among these, 31 persons have died with COVID-19.
The incoming tourism has increased in relation to total GDP, from 1.2% in 2011 to 1.4% in 2015.
The fishing industry, which is distinctly diversified and constantly developing, has been the main source of income for the Faroe Islands since 1920. It has played to play a major part in the economy and continues to do so today
Fish and fish products account for between 90 and 95 percent of the total export value, and around 20 percent of the GDP and 15 percent of the labor force are employed by the fishing industry.