faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there fro

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gloomyandy
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faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there fro

Post by gloomyandy »

Hi,
I've been toying with a visit to the Faroe Islands, but getting there with a fully loaded touring bike looks like it might be a bit of an adventure in itself! Has anyone made this trip from the UK recently? What route did you go? How was it? Don't really fancy flying with a bike so would rather avoid planes if possible!

Thanks

Andy
grani
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

I'll start by saying that I have a conflict of interest as I am originally from the Faroe Islands :)

Hopefully someone else might be able to help you with some specific advice but I can try to give you some.

The main ferry to the Faroe Islands goes from Hirtshals in Denmark and from Iceland (http://www.smyrilline.com/). Unfortunately the Harwich-Esbjerg ferry stopped running last year which means you cant get to Denmark to get onto the Faroe Islands ferry. I guess the alternative would be to go by ferry/train via the Netherlands to Hirtshals and shouldn't be too bad.

An alternative that I have used is to ship things ahead using these guys (http://eimskip.is/fo/Pages/default.aspx). They have a cargo ship sailing from Grimsby and might be able to help you out. I once got a motorbike shipped and they let me ride it onto the cargo ship and secure it. I then flew to the Faroe Islands and collected the bike at their warehouse.

Anyway, I am more than happy to help you out if you want advice or any other help on your trip. I might be able to sort you out some accommodation if you need it.
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foxyrider
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by foxyrider »

Forgive my ignorance, is there much riding to be done on the Faroes?
Convention? what's that then?
Airnimal Chameleon touring, Orbit Pro hack, Orbit Photon audax, Focus Mares AX tour, Peugeot Carbon sportive, Owen Blower vintage race - all running Tulio's finest!
grani
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Joined: 25 Mar 2014, 8:10am

Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

The Faroes are of course small but most of the islands are now connected by road. There are definitely some amazing scenic routes and I think 1 week of riding would see you cover most of the important bits. The weather is unpredictable and it is generally quite hilly so I would build a bit of flexibility into the schedule.

I would try to combine the riding with other sight seeing, hiking and possibly boat trips around the bird cliffs.

A lot of people combine a trip to the Faroes with a trip to Iceland as there is a ferry to Iceland from Torshavn.
gloomyandy
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by gloomyandy »

I have a thing about islands, have toured Iceland/Shetland/Orkney (and most of the islands off the North West coast of Scotland), so Faroe looked like a fun place to go (I also like ferries!). Still very early stages of planning. Pity you can't get a ferry from the UK...
grani
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

Yeah it is a real shame. There used to be a ferry to the Faroes from Shetland and Aberdeen.

If you change your mind about flying then I think there will be direct flights between from Edinburgh starting this summer (www.atlantic.fo).

With regards to ferries in the Faroes there are a few odd ones going to tiny islands with hardly any people. They are a great experience.

There a couple of larger ones that go to the southern islands that I would recommend as either day trips or possibly overnight stays.
manybikes
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by manybikes »

An interesting query. I have often thought it to be a place to visit but not necessarily with a bike. I thought you could once get there via the Shetlands but so many ferry routes have now gone.
I for one would find interesting any update on your successes or otherwise.
grani
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

If you want a alternative way of getting to the Faroes you can go to Scrabster (Thurso) in Scotland and you might be able to hitch a ride on a fishing boat from the Faroes. They sometimes go in there to land a catch and might be persuaded to take a passenger. I would however try to do a bit of research first.

When I was working on a boat we regularly went to Scrabster and we would not have refused a passenger.
grani
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

I have just found out that Eimskip also has a cargo ship sailing from Scrabster to the Faroes. Those ships used to take a couple of passengers so it would be worthwhile to ask.
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troutmask
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by troutmask »

http://www.beaconrcc.org.uk/hubub/2014/ ... -forecast/
This is an article I wrote for CTC magazine some years ago following a four week stay camping by bike. Great place.
gloomyandy
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by gloomyandy »

Thanks for the link will be reading it later!

Have just been digging around the Eimskip web site. Hmm 328 Euros to ship a bike (not sure if that is just one way or not), this could get expensive!
http://eimskip.is/EN/import/information ... d%20US.pdf
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troutmask
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by troutmask »

It is very sad that Smyril no longer run from Scabster. When I went that had just put a new platform in to receive the ferry. It must be said it didn't actually work properly and cars were trapped on the ferry for an hour before a makeshift ramp could be built. Seems they stopped visiting Scabster the next year.
Maybe CalMac didn't like being reminded what a decent ferry looks like (:
iviehoff
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by iviehoff »

grani wrote:I have just found out that Eimskip also has a cargo ship sailing from Scrabster to the Faroes. Those ships used to take a couple of passengers so it would be worthwhile to ask.

Eimskip won't take passengers any more. They published a notice on their website to that effect a few years ago.
iviehoff
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by iviehoff »

grani wrote:If you change your mind about flying then I think there will be direct flights between from Edinburgh starting this summer (http://www.atlantic.fo).

Atlantic have tried running various services to Britain over the years. They ran a flight to Aberdeen for a while. Then they ran flights to Gatwick and to Stansted for a while. Now they are going to try Edinburgh. You can see the current destination options here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A1gar_Airport Whenever I've checked in the past, they were very expensive. The Faroes are not part of the EU, and thus I suspect free and open competition in air transport does not apply there.
grani
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Re: faroe islands anyone toured there, how did you get there

Post by grani »

iviehoff wrote:
grani wrote:If you change your mind about flying then I think there will be direct flights between from Edinburgh starting this summer (http://www.atlantic.fo).

Atlantic have tried running various services to Britain over the years. They ran a flight to Aberdeen for a while. Then they ran flights to Gatwick and to Stansted for a while. Now they are going to try Edinburgh. You can see the current destination options here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A1gar_Airport Whenever I've checked in the past, they were very expensive. The Faroes are not part of the EU, and thus I suspect free and open competition in air transport does not apply there.


True.

The problem is not so much the EU and regulation but rather the lack of passengers. Only 50.000 people live there.

Maersk, DAT and FaroeJet are a few of the airlines that have tried to run routes to the Faroes but none of them could manage to make a profit. The lack of competition is certainly not because of regulation as both the government and the airport have been trying to persuade other airlines to fly to the Faroes for many years now. The airport has also been completely upgraded to make it suitable for more widely used aircraft.

The government is now even contemplating whether to subsidize air travel to get the prices down.
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