Norðoyastevna

During the first weekend in June, Klaksvík is in a festive mood—decorated with colourful lights and flags—and the people are cheerful.

Norðoyastevna was held for the first time in 1936. When they had to choose a weekend for the town festival, the most obvious choice was in early June, when the ships were home.The town festival soon became the high point of the cultural life in the Northern Islands. One of the festival’s special events is the midnight gathering, where people come together in Vágstún to hear speeches, watch beautiful fireworks and sing together.Stalls with all kind of goods are located by the football field, live music enhancing the mood. A variety of exhibitions are open around town and the local theatre invites you to a cabaret.A parade of scouts and athletes lead by a brass band march through town to Vágstún, where speeches are held.Norðoyastevna is not what it used to be. In the past people from all over the Faroes looked forward to join the town festival in Klaksvík. Today, festivals are nearly every weekend during the summer, and people have to chose where to spend their precious time.However, Norðoyastevna is still a significant event in the summer calendar. It marks the start of the national rowing competition, where rowers in traditional Faroese wooden boats compete. It is an astonishing sight to experience the crowd’s excitement as the colourful boats slice through sea to the rhythm of the skippers’ movements.