This Island Now Has Self-guided Cars to Take You to Lesser-known Spots Instead of Tourist Traps

If you ever find yourself craving more from a trip—something real, something local, something beyond the guidebooks—don’t build your itinerary around the usual “must-see” spots. In fact, according to a 2024 McKinsey & Company report, around 80 percent of travelers visit just 10 percent of global attractions—leaving much of the world untouched and unexplored.

It’s no different in the Faroe Islands, a Danish archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean between Iceland and Norway. But in the Faroe Islands, they’re doing something interesting about it.

With the help of Google Maps, Visit Faroe Islands (the official tourism board) recently launched a fleet of rental cars with a built-in tour guide. When you rent one of these vehicles, you agree to follow an itinerary that leads to some of the islands’ quieter, lesser-known corners—from roadside eateries to tiny villages tucked in spectacular fjords. The idea is to avoid the crowds going to the next “must-see” site and instead encourage visitors to experience the islands’ lesser-touristed spots. When you rent the car, you agree to follow the car’s step-by-step directions, with no idea what the day’s destinations will be.

“Across the globe, tourists gather around the same iconic ‘hot spots’, driven by algorithms and social media that create a closed ecosystem where images from popular places attract even more people to those very locations. The result is overtourism—and predictable experiences,” Guðrið Højgaard, chief executive officer for Visit Faroe Islands, said in a press release obtained by Travel + Leisure. “Faroe Islands have experienced increasing pressure on selected sites themselves, and now we are trying to reverse the flow—quite literally.”

After booking with 62N car rental, a partner of Visit Faroe Islands, travelers scan a QR code to activate turn-by-turn directions that lead to the day’s sites. Along the way, local stories are shared. 

In addition to taking travelers to locally loved places, the itinerary helps disperse tourists, who traditionally all head to a destination’s “top three sites.” It is a first-of-its-kind approach to curbing overtourism, while giving travelers experiences they crave—those that are locally driven, authentic, and void of crowds.

“We set out to explore how technology and creativity could offer a new way for travelers to discover the Faroes—one that leads them into places they might never find on their own,” said Højgaard. “This is a more thoughtful kind of journey, designed to both protect what’s most beloved and reveal spots often overlooked. With this initiative, we hope to lead by example, demonstrating how destinations can embrace innovation to spread tourism more responsibly and meaningfully.” 

The 30 itineraries, which were curated from a locals’ perspectives, include activities like visiting a roadside fish-and-chip stand, a hike in the fjords, and a visit to historic sites set along Europe’s tallest sea cliffs. 

The Faroe Islands’ self-navigating cars can be booked on the Faroe Islands’ tourism site starting July 8. Rates start at around $103 a day and are no more expensive than a traditional rental car—even though they include the cost of the itinerary and audio guide.