For two days, a select few volunteers help the region recover from the impacts of overtourism
Guiltless travel can be hard to come by these days , what with the inevitable impact on climate change or overtourism or ethnic victimization , but the Faroe Islands are currently offering a handful of family a unique probability to take a trip that ’s not only guilt feelings free , but free barren ( flight notwithstanding ) . Volunteer practical app are now heart-to-heart for the Islands ’ yearly exertion to recoup from the region ’s recent influx of tourist — all intellectual nourishment and accommodations cover .
Over the past duet of years , travelers have flock to the Faroe Islands to hike the massive seacliffs , catch glimpse of lovely puffins , and take part in its nichemusical festival scene . Located between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic , the 18 islet have see a large uptick in tourism latterly , receiving130,000 tourists in 2023 , up from100,000 in 2022 . Some have even dub the area “ the new Iceland . ” And as flights to the remote islandshave become more approachable , the Faroe Islands have done something alone in this age of rearing overtourism : close its borders for two days every spring to recover from the impingement of tourists .
Only the islands ’ house physician and a special group of 80 international volunteers are allow to visit the island through their political platform calledClosed for Maintenance , which was first integrated in 2019 . During those two day , volunteers will regenerate pit walls , repair nerve pathway and track , craft bridges and benches , and more . Anyone over the age of 18 is let to apply to be a Tennessean , and the program does n’t postulate participants to have any specialized skills other than a canonic level of physical fitness . The restoration task helps make parts of the islands safer and more accessible for both tourists and its residents .
Eysturoy, Faroe Islands|PietFoto/Shutterstock
“ Beyond its clear preservation benefits , what truly drive this project forward is the unbelievable collaboration it fosters — a diverse mixture of masses from around the globe come together , side by side , to work toward a common goal , bridging ethnic and demographic differences , " aver Alda Magnusardóttir Egilstrøð , the undertaking manager for the Closed for Maintenance programme .
This eccentric of travel has a name : voluntourism . A mix of volunteering and touristry , the idea is all about travel to a newfangled place with the design of bettering it . It sounds like a best of both worlds scenario , but over the years , voluntourism has garnered critique . Often , say trips are unregulated or organized by away groups , not locals , and some palpate the practice encourages awhite savior complex , and ignore local culture . With its homegrown Closed for Maintenance program , however , the Faroe Islands are setting a new aspirational criterion for voluntourism .
volunteer with the program will stay in the Village they ’re help restore , with all accommodations and food provided by Visit Faroe Islands . While all volunteers must give for their own travel tag , Visit Faroe Islands will supply everyone with discount codification through the national air hose , Atlantic Airways . Those chosen will get an email from Visit Faroe Islands on January 22 going into detail on transportation and what to compact for the head trip , which will take place from May 1 to May 3 this twelvemonth . I , for one , am applying .
