Volontourism helps to clean and maintain the Faroe Islands

Closed for maintenance, open for voluntourism

Over the last weekend of April 2019, the Faroe Islands closed for maintenance and opened for voluntourism. They invited 100 volunteers from all over the world to come and help restore and maintain selected sites, working alongside locals. In return for their volunteer work, the voluntourists were offered free board and lodging.

The maintenance projects were selected based on local communities wishes. Behind the Closed for Maintenance campaign and initiative was the wish to develop tourism responsibly, preserving and protecting the islands and ensuring a sustainable path moving forward.

In 2020, Faroe Islands opened up registration for a new round of Closed for Maintenance and within 24 hours, 5.886 voluntourists from 95 different countries signed up to get one of the 100 available places.

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, Closed for Maintenance 2020 was postponed until 2021.