Faroe Islands open for travelers again on June 15th

The Faroe Islands opened the borders for travellers from June 15 and will open further June 27. Travellers from most countries in Europe are allowed to visit Faroe Islands.

Since the Covid-19 crisis started all non-essential travel to the Faroe Islands has been banned. The Nordic archipelago opened up again from June 15th and will open even more from 27 June.

The Prime Minister Bárður á Steig Nielsen announced the reopening at a press conference in the capital Tórshavn on May 29 and in a press release on June 18.

Travel from Europe to Faroe Islands

Travellers visiting the Faroe Islands in summer can enjoy cute puffins. Photo by Victoria Ostapova also know as @vialma on Instagram.

As of June 27 the Faroe Islands will open up for travellers from a wide range of countries in Europe. You can travel to the Faroe Islands from these countries:

• Austria
• Belgium
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Czech Republic
• Cyprus
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Italy
• Latvia
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• luxembourg
• Malta
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Poland
• Romania
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Switzerland
• Spain

If you want to visit the Faroe Islands from other countries, you are advised to self-quarantine for 14 days. It is not a requirement, though, so you can explore the unbelievable landscapes in the Faroe Islands just upon landing if you feel so.

From rest of the world to the Faroe Islands

Turf-roofed cottages on Streymoy island in the Faroe Islands. Photo by Victoria Ostapova also know as @vialma on Instagram.

Your best bet when heading to the Faroe Islands from outside Europe is to stop over in Iceland as the Icelanders are welcoming guests to their country. As of June 15 there are three weekly flights with the national airline company Atlantic Airways from Keflavík airport in Iceland to Vagar airport in the Faroe Islands.

You can take the flight from Iceland to the Faroe Islands and vice versa on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The flight time between Iceland and the Faroe Islands is 01h30m.

There are two airline companies flying to the Faroe Islands. Scandinavian Airlines will reopen the Faroe Islands as a flight destination from 16 June. The airline company will have several weekly flights from Copenhagen to the Faroe Islands. Atlantic Airways will have daily flights from Copenhagen to Vagar airport besides the three weekly flights from Keflavík in Iceland to the Faroe Islands. Vagar airport is the only airport in the Faroe Islands.

Despite an initial spike in imported cases, no new cases have been reported for over a month and the country has been covid-19 free since the beginning of May. The Faroe Islands have avoided covid-19 related casualties.

Testing upon arrival

As of 27 June 2020, all people travelling to the Faroe Islands from Europe and beyond must be tested for COVID-19. Everyone can be tested at the airport and you will have the result within hours. 

Travl before and after Covid-19

Hotel Brandan opened in July 2020 as the Faroe Islands is becoming a hot travel destination in the cold north. Photo by Ólavur Frederiksen. 

A tourism boom had been expected in the Faroe Islands in 2020. Parts of the new James Bond movie have been shot on the islands and new flight routes to London and New York were expected to open in the year.

The hotel capacity has doubled this summer with two new hotels, including a Hilton hotel in the capital on Streymoy island. Expectations were high that 2020 would be a record breaking year for tourism in the Faroe Islands.

Instead 2020 is now expected to be a quiet year, and as such maybe just the perfect time for travelers to experience this relatively untouched destination.