Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2017 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
5.9km²
Area
19km
Coastline
421m
Highest point
Eggjarrók
25
People
10°C
Warmest sea
August
620km
To the mainland
When to go to Hestur
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in August (10 °C) and coolest in February (7 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island of the Faroe Islands
Hestur is an island in Faroe Islands. It covers 5.9 km², with 19 km of coastline. Its highest point, Eggjarrók, rises to 421 m. About 25 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 620 km away.
Getting there
- Vágar Airport (FAE)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 23 km in a straight lineCar hire at FAE airport (Vágar)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesGamlarætt - Hestur
- 620 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Hestur.
- 1lighthouses
- 1ferry terminalsHestur
- 4named peaksEggjarók, Múlin, Navirnar and 1 more
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 180 m above the sea. 54 % of it is below 200 m.
- 17 %0–50 m
- 36 %50–200 m
- 46 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 7 |
| Night low (°C) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 |
| Sea (°C) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 123 | 96 | 95 | 76 | 72 | 68 | 82 | 96 | 110 | 118 | 117 | 130 |
| Wet days | 22 | 20 | 21 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 23 |
| Sun h/day | 0.0 | 0.8 | 2.5 | 4.4 | 5.8 | 5.8 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 36 | 35 | 33 | 30 | 26 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 28 | 32 | 34 | 36 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −0.2 | +0.2 | −0.1 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.8 | +0.6 |
| 2021 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +0.7 | +0.3 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.3 |
| 2022 | −0.1 | −0.5 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.2 | −0.2 | −0.1 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.5 |
| 2023 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.3 | ±0.0 |
| 2024 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +0.7 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.5 | +0.2 |
| 2025 | ±0.0 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +1.1 | +1.3 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +1.3 | +1.5 | +1.2 | +0.7 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.




Nearby
More islands nearby.
Streymoy
Sandoy
Koltur
Vágar
Eysturoy
Nólsoy
Borðoy
SkúvoyAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q208327) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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