Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands

THE OFFSHORE ISLANDS ARE WORLDS APART

The very special Offshore Islands of Australia are far from average.

The pace of life is very different on Lord Howe Island. Located 700 kilometres north east of Sydney and directly east of Port Macquarie, this tiny island measures just 1,455 hectares.

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It was discovered in February 1788 when Lieutenant Henry Lidgbird Ball, master of HMS Supply, sighted the island on the way from the fledgling Sydney colony to Norfolk Island. Settlement began in 1834 and it survived throughout the 19th century as a provisioning spot for whaling ships. In 1882, Lord Howe was declared a Botanic Reserve.

Its immense natural beauty and fragile ecology has long been recognised, and in 1982 it was listed as a World Heritage site, one of the few islands in the world to gain such status. More than two-thirds of the island is covered in forests, Banyan trees and the trademark Kentia palms.

Tourism is limited to just 400 visitors at a time, with activities including bushwalking, birdwatching, fishing, scuba diving and surfing.

By contrast, Norfolk Island has had quite a tumultuous history. Located 1,610 kilometres east of Sydney and due south of New Caledonia, it was established as a penal settlement in 1788, which lasted until 1814. Another attempt at a penal colony occurred in 1825 and lasted until 1854.

In 1856, descendants of the Bounty mutineers were granted permission to resettle from Pitcairn Island. In 1914, Norfolk came under the jurisdiction of the Australian government. In 1979, the island gained its own nine-member government.

There are many tours that stress the island’s history, with many visitors taking in the numerous soft adventure activities – such as canoeing, mountain biking, horse riding and snorkelling.

Norfolk is serviced by direct air links with Sydney, Brisbane and Auckland. A GST and tax-free haven, it is also a popular shopping destination, with products from around the world at very competitive prices.