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Tórshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands, may not be that big, but there is plenty to explore! Úti á Reyni on the Tinganes peninsula is one of the sights in Tórshavn that you really shouldn’t skip. This little neighborhood, also known as Reyn, is the oldest neighborhood in Tórshavn. It is a lovely place to wander through at your leisure. The black-tiled peat houses with grass roofs are densely packed here, making for winding streets, hidden passages and narrow alleys.
History of Reyn at Tinganes
Tinganes is the historic core of Tórshavn. As early as the 15th century, residential houses and warehouses were built on the Tinganes peninsula, where Norwegian settlers also established their parliament in the 9th century. For a long time this was the (trade) center and the most important place in the archipelago. In 1673, a city fire destroyed much of the buildings. New cottages were built against the few, spared houses. As a result, on the Tinganes peninsula you will find houses from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries.
Living in Reyn is in high demand
In general, the poorest people used to live in Reyn. Close together, little space around the houses and small living areas. Today that is different! Despite the fact that many cottages have living areas no larger than 25 square meters, Reyn has become a popular and highly sought-after neighborhood. A lot of money is paid to get a house here.
Traditional Faroese food in Heima í Havn
Want real traditional Faroese food? Then Heima í Havn is the place to be. Heima í Havn is a cluster of traditional peat houses on the outskirts of the Reyn neighborhood. Five restaurants can be found here: Ræst Fermented, Barbara Fish House, Mikkeller Tórshavn, Áarstova and ROKS. Here you will eat authentic dishes, dishes based on centuries-old Faroese customs. Beautiful, isn’t it?
Føroya Landsstýri, Tinganes
At the tip of the Tinganes peninsula, the color of the buildings changes; the black gives way to red. On this spot are former warehouses. These warehouses house the parliament of the Faroe Islands: Føroya Landsstýri. In most countries you can’t even really get close to parliament buildings, but in Tórshavn you can wander and photograph here endlessly.
Tinganes is said to be one of the oldest parliamentary meeting places in the world, along with Tynwald Hill on the Isle of Man and Þingvellir in Iceland. It was here, around the year 900, that the Viking parliament first met every summer to discuss matters of national importance.
From this spot you have a beautiful view of the small harbor but also of the large harbor and, of course, of Tórshavn itself. Is the weather nice? Then be sure to take a seat on the flat rocks here and enjoy the view. With a bit of luck you will see beautiful ships enter the harbor, but anyway it is nice to watch the goings on in the harbor.
