By our fourth day in the Faroe Islands, we had already seen some incredible scenery, from the dramatic cliffs of Saksun and Tjørnuvík to Múlafossur and the landscapes around Gásadalur. But there was still one part of the islands that we really wanted to explore: the north.
Our fourth day took us from our accommodation at 4 Langanes in Strendur towards the Northern Islands, with a route that included Klakkur, Svartidalurfoss, Viðareiði and Kunoy before finishing the day in Klaksvík.
As with the rest of our trip, we were travelling in our 9-seater van, which made it much easier for our group of eight to explore at our own pace. And, as we had already learned by this point, travelling around the Faroe Islands is as much about the journey between the places as it is about the individual attractions.
Our first stop: Klakkur and Hálsur
Our first stop was Klakkur, one of the best-known viewpoints above Klaksvík. There is a popular hiking route from Klaksvík to the summit of Klakkur. The official route is around 9 km and takes approximately 2 hours 35 minutes, with the trail reaching around 410 metres. One of the useful things about the route is that you can actually drive along the gravel road towards Hálsur, where there is parking, rather than having to start the walk from the centre of Klaksvík. The road can be uneven, so it is worth taking it slowly.
We did not hike to the summit of Klakkur. Instead, we drove up towards the Klakkur trailhead at Hálsur and stopped to take photographs and enjoy the scenery.
For us, this was another good example of why having a vehicle was so useful in the Faroe Islands. We could explore the area without committing several hours to a hike, which meant we had enough time to see several other places during the day.
Even without doing the full hike, the drive towards Hálsur was worthwhile. The landscape opens up around you, with mountains, fjords and views towards the surrounding islands. From Klakkur itself, the views extend towards Klaksvík, Kalsoy, Kunoy and the surrounding Northern Islands.
The road is rough in places, so I would definitely recommend driving carefully, particularly if you have a larger rental vehicle like we did.
Svartidalurfoss
After our stop around Klakkur and Hálsur, we continued our journey towards the northern part of the Faroe Islands. One of our stops along the way was Svartidalurfoss, another of the waterfalls we had marked on our route.
This was not about spending hours at one particular attraction. Instead, it was another opportunity to stop, get out of the van and take in the landscape around us. That is something I really enjoyed about driving around the Faroe Islands. There are so many moments when you simply want to stop because the scenery in front of you looks incredible.
By this stage of the trip, we had also become used to the fact that the weather can completely change the appearance of the landscape. One minute the mountains could be clear, and shortly afterwards they could disappear behind clouds or mist. It made every viewpoint feel slightly different.
Viðareiði: One of the Most Beautiful Villages in the Faroe Islands
From there, we continued towards Viðareiði, one of the highlights of our fourth day.
Viðareiði is the northernmost village in the Faroe Islands and is surrounded by enormous mountains. The village sits in a dramatic valley, with Villingardalsfjall, rising to 844 metres, to the north and Malinsfjall, at 751 metres, to the south. And this is exactly what makes Viðareiði so impressive.
The village itself is relatively small, but the mountains surrounding it make it feel much more dramatic than its size would suggest. Everywhere you look there is another mountain slope, valley or stretch of water.
We spent some time simply taking in the views and photographing the village and its surroundings. We also drove to the western outlook of Viðareiði, which gave us another perspective over this spectacular part of the island.
One of the things I particularly liked about Viðareiði was how different it felt from some of the more familiar places we had visited earlier in the trip. There were no big attractions or long list of things that we had to tick off. It was really about being there and enjoying the scenery.
Viðareiði also has a fascinating history. It was historically an important centre for the Northern Islands and is first mentioned in written records dating from around 1350 to 1400. The village is also known for its distinctive stone walls, which were built from stones gathered from the surrounding land.
If you are interested in hiking, Viðareiði is also the starting point for the challenging route towards Villingardalsfjall and, further on, the dramatic cliffs of Enniberg. The official tourism site recommends that visitors tackle the Enniberg area with a professional guide because of the difficult terrain.
We didn’t do this hike. With only four full days in the Faroe Islands, and with so much of the islands still to see, we preferred to keep our day focused on exploring by road.
Kunoy Waterfall
From Viðareiði, we continued our drive towards Kunoy, another of the Northern Islands.
The scenery on this part of the journey was exactly what we had come to expect from the Faroe Islands: steep mountains rising dramatically from the water, tiny settlements tucked into the landscape and roads winding through scenery that seemed almost too perfect to be real. Our stop here was Kunoy Waterfall.
Day 1: [The Most Scenic Drive in the Faroe Islands: Saksun, Tjørnuvík & Gjógv]
It was another relatively short stop, but it fitted perfectly into our road trip. Rather than spending the whole day hiking, we were able to see different corners of the Northern Islands and experience how varied the scenery could be within a relatively small area.
Kunoy itself is particularly striking because of its mountainous landscape. The island is overlooked by several very high peaks, and even from the surrounding roads you get a real sense of how rugged this part of the Faroe Islands is.
Finishing the Day in Klaksvík
After exploring Kunoy, we made our way to Klaksvík, which was our final major stop of the day.
We deliberately left Klaksvík until the end of our route rather than visiting it earlier. This worked well because it gave us somewhere interesting to finish the day after exploring the more remote scenery of the Northern Islands.
Klaksvík is the second-largest town in the Faroe Islands and is an important centre for the Northern Islands. It sits between steep mountains, with the sea and surrounding islands creating an impressive setting.
After spending much of the day surrounded by small villages and open landscapes, arriving in Klaksvík felt noticeably different. It is still small compared with a typical European town, but there is much more activity here, with shops, services, homes and the harbour all set against the mountains.
We spent some time exploring and taking photographs before eventually starting our journey back towards Strendur.
Back to Strendur
By the time we left Klaksvík, we had been on the road for most of the day. Our route took us back towards our accommodation in Strendur, where we were staying. It was another full day, but one that gave us a completely different perspective on the Faroe Islands.
What I liked most about Day 4 was that it was not dominated by one major attraction. Instead, it was the combination of the mountain roads, viewpoints, waterfalls, villages and changing scenery that made the day memorable.
And once again, having our own van made a huge difference. We could stop whenever we wanted, spend as much or as little time as we liked at each place, and adapt the day according to the weather.
Was Day 4 Worth It?
Absolutely.
For me, this was a fitting final full day in the Faroe Islands because it combined so many of the things that had made the trip special: dramatic mountains, tiny villages, waterfalls, winding roads and huge panoramic views.
Viðareiði was probably one of the biggest highlights of the day. The setting of the village, surrounded by enormous mountains, is exactly the kind of scenery I had imagined before coming to the Faroe Islands.
The Northern Islands also showed us another side of the country. While places such as Gásadalur, Múlafossur and Saksun are understandably popular, there is something very special about driving further north and simply seeing where the road takes you.
After four days of exploring, we had covered a surprisingly large part of the Faroe Islands. We had seen waterfalls, beaches, cliffs, fjords, villages, mountains and historic sites, and had experienced the islands in sunshine, cloud, wind and everything in between.
And perhaps that is the biggest lesson from our trip: don’t try to make your Faroe Islands itinerary too rigid. The weather can change quickly, roads can take longer than expected and a viewpoint that looked ordinary on your map can suddenly turn into one of the best stops of the entire day.
For us, the decision to swap Days 3 and 4 because of the weather worked perfectly. It meant we could make the most of the conditions rather than simply following a fixed itinerary.
And with that, our final full day of exploring the Faroe Islands came to an end.
Want to see the full itinerary? Read our complete guide to 4 Days in the Faroe Islands: Our Epic Self-Drive Adventure and see how we planned our four days around the weather.
