Australia’s Macquarie Island ranked the world’s third most remote and beautiful place in the world
Surprising Australian island ranked as the third most remote and most beautiful place in the world
- Pristine Macquarie Island number three on the travel list
- Rugged island located between Australia, NZ and Antarctica
A little-known Australian island has been named one of the most beautiful and remote places on Earth by a popular travel site.
Macquarie Island – located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean midway between Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica – was number three on the Big 7 Travel list.
The island, home to huge colonies of penguins and seals, has been politically part of Tasmania since 1900 and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.
During the breeding season, the entire population of king penguins in the world descend on Macquarie Island
Dog trainer Steve Austin (left) and a colleague walk on Macquarie Island with two working springer spaniels trained to find rabbits as part of conservation efforts
The island is a pristine paradise for penguins, seals and seabirds
The Australian Antarctic Division has had a base on the island since 1948, which is inhabited by between 20 and 40 people at a time, the only people on the island, including scientists, researchers, cooks, cleaners and doctors.
No planes land on the island and the only way to get there is by sea, although there is a helipad used solely for short trips between the island and large ships docking off the coast.
Visitors are allowed on the rugged 34km by 5km island, but spaces are very limited, with only a few educational tourist trips each year, and only in the summer.
But the remoteness and absence of other people is one of the main draws that those who venture to the island love.
It is also the only place on the planet where the Earth’s mantle is visible above the ocean waters.
The island is located halfway between Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica
The Australian Antarctic Division has a permanent base on the island with some 20 to 40 people
The island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the only place where the Earth’s mantle is visible above the ocean
In recent years, successful conservation efforts have focused on eradicating invasive rabbits, rodents, and cats introduced by explorers and eradicating local flora and fauna.
The conservation drive is a far cry from early human history when Tasmania and New Zealand fought over who would own the island so they could hunt the penguin population for oil.
This was stopped when the island was declared a nature reserve under Tasmanian law in 1933.
Other remote paradises that made the Big 7 list include Blue Eye in Albania, White Desert Whichaway Camp in Antarctica and Anegada in the British Virgin Islands.
An elephant seal relaxes in front of a group of king penguins
BIG 7 TRAVEL LIST OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND REMOTE PLACES ON THE PLANET
1. Blue Eye, Albania
Blue Eye in Albania was named by the travel site as the most remote and beautiful place in the world
2. White Desert Whichaway Camp, Antarctica
3. Macquarie Island, Australia
4. Laya, Bhutan
Laya in Bhutan made number 4, the country borders Nepal
5. Pinnacles of Gunung, Mulu National Park, Borneo
6. Sandibe Okavango, Botswana
7. Pitcairn Island, British Overseas Territory
8. Anegada, British Virgin Islands
9. Ivvavik National Park, Canada
10. Marble Caves, Patagonia, Chile
The rest of the list can be viewed here.