Faroe Islands receive high praise from our tourists

Tourists are highly satisfied with their travel experiences in the Faroe Islands as a whole, and a large majority agree that the Faroe Islands are an exciting travel destination and intend to return. It is also interesting to note that some of those who have visited Iceland, Norway, and the Faroe Islands say that of these three countries, the Faroe Islands are currently the best place to visit because they find Faroese people welcoming and helpful and the nature especially magnificent.

This is according to a tourist survey conducted by Gallup for Visit Faroe Islands in 2022. The last major survey was in 2018, so we can compare some key figures from both surveys. Overall, there is not a big difference, and the numbers are still high and positive.

On a scale of 1 to 5, tourists were asked to rate the following main areas:

Value for money

4.3 2018:

Satisfaction with the experience

4.7

Unbelievable, unspoiled and unexploited

Recommendation to visit the Faroe Islands

4.7

Why Tourists Choose To Travel To The Faroe Islands

The main reason for most tourists to visit the Faroe Islands was nature, wildlife, and the environment as a whole (62.7%), while 15.3% came to visit family and acquaintances, 6.2% said the Faroe Islands were their dream travel destination. Other reasons mentioned were cultural events, business, or due to history and archaeology. When asked if there were too many tourists in the Faroe Islands, most (87.7%, compared to 85.3% in 2018) answered "no", while 12.3% answered "yes". Of those who answered "yes", 20.5% said that there were too many tourists in Mykines. Other places that were also mentioned in this context were Tórshavn (19.2%), Gjógv (19.2%), Saksun (12.3%), and Tjørnuvík (9.6%).

Where Do The Tourists Come From

Most of the tourists in the survey were from Denmark (23.2%), while 10.4% were from France. Then came tourists from the USA/Canada (10.4%), Germany (6.1%), Italy (5.9%), the Netherlands (4.9%), and the United Kingdom (4%).

Value For Money

A large majority of the tourists (79%) believed that they got value for money. However, a small minority of the tourists were very clear about how they felt that this was not true for them. They specifically mentioned that the prices in the Faroe Islands are too high. Several also say that the price for hiking in the mountains is too inconsistent, as they pay different prices for more or less the same type of hikes, without getting any real service for the money, as no guide or other services are included in the price. Some tourists prefer to pay a one-time fee or a proportional fee when they arrive in the country. Others prefer the option to pay for one, two, or more tours, for example, when they arrive in the country.

Other

The majority of the tourists surveyed said that the best experience was the Faroese nature (56.5%), while 18.3% said hiking tours and also 7.7% said that the Faroese people were the best experience.

Most of the surveyed had no negative experiences on their trip (51.6%) and 76% would recommend a trip to the Faroe Islands. However, some had some negative things to mention about the trip. 13.4% said that the prices were too high, 11.4% mentioned too few restaurants outside the capital, while 7.2% had negative experiences with the national bus and ferry operators. 6.6% mentioned a lack of information and signage for tourists as a whole. Specifically, they mentioned signage related to road conditions, hiking trails, cafes, restaurants, shopping, cultural events, and other activities, etc.

Tourist Survey

The survey was conducted from July 22nd to August 22nd, 2022. 595 tourists agreed to participate in the survey. Most of the interviews (80.2%) took place in the Tax Free area at the airport in Vágar, while 19.8% of the interviews were conducted at the dock in Tórshavn. The entire Gallup survey can be read on the Visit Faroe Islands website.