Tristan da Cunha is about as far as from anywhere as you can get.
On our voyage through the South Atlantic earlier this year, we visited several very out-of-the-way places – including South Georgia Island and the Falklands. But the remotest of all is Tristan da Cunha, a tiny outpost that is known as one of the most isolated settlements in the world. Home to about 230 hearty souls, Tristan (as the locals call it) lies about 2,800 kilometers west of South Africa and 3,500 kilometers east of South America.
The Tristan da Cunha archipelago consists of the main, inhabited island plus three others: Inaccessible, Nightingale, and Gough. All four are active volcanos; the most recent eruption happened in 1961 and forced all of the residents to evacuate to England (they later returned). We were able to go ashore on the main island of Tristan, and we also explored Inaccessible and Nightingale in the Zodiac inflatable boats.
Tristan is enchanting. We were deeply grateful that we got to step foot in a place that few other people, much less tourists, ever see.
Here’s everything that fascinated us about this magical place.
Tristan is Drop-Dead Gorgeous
We have visited plenty of volcanic islands, and they can be pretty stark – especially if there’s been a recent lava flow. But we weren’t prepared for Tristan’s breathtaking beauty. The main settlement, Edinburgh of the Seven Seas, sits at the base of a towering green mountain range. There’s a peaceful aura to this place that’s owed to its isolation and lack of many influences by the outside world. The village itself is neat as a pin, filled with flowers, friendly pups who all look curiously alike, tidy homes, and free-range chickens.
Humans are Relatively Recent Inhabitants
Tristan is the first non-European place we’ve visited in which no indigenous people predated the arrival of Europeans. The island group was first sighted in 1506 by Portuguese explorer Tristão da Cunha, who (naturally) named the islands after himself, although he never landed on any of them. Arguably the first humans to make footprints on Tristan were the crew of a Dutch East India Company ship in 1643. For the next couple of centuries, the islands would be visited by explorers, whalers, privateers, military vessels from several countries, and various other seafaring folk, but the first permanent settlers did not arrive until 1810.
Tristan was annexed and garrisoned by Great Britain in 1816 to thwart any attempts by the French to rescue the exiled Napoleon Bonaparte from St. Helena, another isolated island about 2,500 kilometers to the north. Today Tristan is part of a British Overseas Territory that includes St. Helena, which we also visited (blog post coming!), and Ascension Island.
In 1961, a massive eruption of Queen Mary’s Peak caused a lava flow that came perilously close to Edinburgh of the Seven Seas. All residents, about 260 at the time, were evacuated by the British government and settled in a decommissioned Royal Air Force camp near Calshot, Hampshire. Most of the families returned to Tristan in 1963 after receiving word that the settlement had survived. We understand why they were homesick!
Tristan Residents are Resilient and Proudly Self-Sufficient
Today, Tristan da Cunha is a thriving modern community with a school, a church, a post office, and a state-of-the-art hospital. The hospital is staffed by expatriate doctors and local nurses, and the locals are attended by visiting dentists and optometrists. Because Tristan offers the only medical facility in the middle of the South Atlantic, the hospital is often called upon by passing ships to treat ill or injured crew members.
The mixed heritage of the Tristan islanders is reflected on their friendly faces. Tristan residents descend from Europeans, Africans, Asians, and others who made their way to the island throughout its seafaring history. Most of the islanders provide for themselves by growing potatoes and other crops, raising cattle, and fishing – including a thriving industry harvesting and exporting the island’s famed rock lobsters.
All of Tristan’s permanent residents hold British Overseas Territories citizenship, but the community is primarily self-governed with its own constitution. The British government provides a resident administrator, a delightful chap named Philip Kendall. (Check out Philip’s Instagram – he has some gorgeous photos of Tristan.) Over the next couple of weeks, we’d get to know Philip and his wife Louise well, since they hopped a ride with us on our ship, Seaventure, back up towards the U.K. for a vacation.
Speaking of Lobster . . .
Tristan’s rock lobster industry is a huge source of pride for the islanders, because it makes the community economically self-sufficient. The Tristan Lobster, a species of spiny lobster found nowhere else, thrives in the cold and oxygen-rich waters around Tristan. These lobsters are prized for their pearly white meat and clean flavor, and they’re exported to premium seafood vendors all over the world.
As they’ve done for generations, islanders harvest the lobsters using traps from 12-man longboats. Keenly aware of the lobster’s rarity and unique habitat, lobster fishermen follow strict regulations for sustainable fishing.
Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands: Teeming With Life
The day after our shore visit to Edinburgh of the Seven Seas, Seaventure pulled up anchor and headed over to the nearby Inaccessible and Nightingale Islands. We hopped in the Zodiacs and spent a wonderful few hours exploring the shorelines of these uninhabited islands, both of which are protected wildlife reserves. Along with Gough Island, Inaccessible Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is home to the Inaccessible Island Rail, the world’s smallest flightless bird. With binoculars at the ready, our group tried hard but failed to spot a rail – they’re shy little critters.
A Few More Interesting Tristan Facts
Tristan da Cunha is a Marine Protection Zone. The sea around Tristan ranks among the most pristine and abundant on the planet, and residents are dedicated to keeping it that way. In 2020, islanders worked to get 687,247 square kilometres (265,348 square miles) of the waters surrounding the Tristan archipelago declared a Marine Protection Zone – the largest in the Atlantic and the fourth largest in the world. This prohibits all fishing in the zone, with the exception of the sustainable rock lobster industry. Here’s some great information about Tristan’s dedication to protecting its fragile marine environment.
You need a family connection to live on Tristan. Even so, no one is allowed to move to the island without the approval of every permanent resident. It’s not possible to buy real estate there; property is communally owned and managed. In the post office, we chatted with a young woman who had just made the move from the UK with her husband (she has a cousin who is a fourth-generation islander). She described how the island government assigned them a plot of land, and how the villagers were helping them build their home – a little like the old-time “barn raisings” that used to be common in the U.S. Neighbor helping neighbor – we could get on board with that!
Getting there. Well, this one’s tough. In most of our posts, we include a section on how to visit a certain destination. But it’s not easy to visit Tristan. Its volcanic terrain is too rocky for an airstrip, so the island is only accessible by sea. It’s a seven- day voyage from Cape Town, South Africa aboard one of the ships that bring cargo and mail to islanders. Plus, you need prior permission from the Tristan government to make the journey (there’s good info on the Tristan community website). A few cruise/expedition companies make Tristan part of their itinerary; that’s how we got there. As a result, the community has a nice tourism office providing plenty of information and guided tours for visitors.
Next Up: St. Helena, Napoleon’s Last Port of Call
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16 Comments
Wow, this is incredible! I’ve heard of Tristan da Cunha, due to just how remote and how difficult it is to visit. You certainly had the adventure of a lifetime getting here, and I’m sure this is a memorable one you’ll look back on fondly in the years to come. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Thanks, Rebecca! Every day, we feel gratitude that we were able to visit Tristan and other places like it on our voyage. It really was the trip of a lifetime!
Thank you John and Susan for such a wonderful write up of your visit to our beautiful island. It was a pleasure getting to know you both as we continued the adventure towards St Helena and beyond.
So great to hear from you, Philip and Louise! The pleasure was all ours – we really enjoyed spending time with you on Seaventure and later on Cape Verde. We hope our paths cross again someday. Our best to you both!
I’m super envious – and happy – you managed to visit these remote and spectacular places! I wonder how they treat cruisers on Tristan and if anyone is allowed and able to stop there in their own sailing boats. I’m glad the Brits kept the original name of the island group. Based on that name, I thought they were owned by Portugal or Brazil.
Thanks, Liesbet! Private yachts are allowed to visit Tristan as long as they have prior permission. I found this info on the Tristan website: https://www.tristandc.com/visitsships.php We didn’t see any when we were there, but it must be quite an arduous journey – not the usual route for folks crossing the Atlantic between Africa and South America. We also thought this would be a Portuguese-speaking island at first and were a little surprised when we found out it’s a British territory.
What an absolutely charming place. Reading the first few lines I completely expected a barren, harsh, cold island but it looks to be the complete opposite. How lucky for you to be able to see it! From the name I knew it had a connection to Portugal, but surprised to see it is in the British Commonwealth. What a great experience for you. Maggie
Thanks, Maggie! Tristan was also a big surprise to us, on so many levels. The peacefulness of the place is what stuck with me. (Gosh, with everything going on in the world, I’d sure love to be there right now!). Of course it’s not perfect and the weather can be pretty harsh (we got lucky with the weather when we were there). Still, Tristan’s a really special place and we feel so fortunate that we got to see it.
Oh wow, what an amazing place
Thanks, Hannah! Tristan IS amazing, on so many levels.
Fantastic! The name “Tristan da Cunha” has held a fascination for me since I was a kid collecting postage stamps – I had no idea where it was and I couldn’t work out why The Queen was pictured on them. Hopefully I’ll make it to their post office one day!
I wondered how many British kids grew up knowing about (and learning about) UK territories like Tristan. I guess it’s a little like Guam, Puerto Rico, and other US territories that we didn’t really learn about in school. (I also collected stamps and learned a lot about the world from them!) I’m sure you two will make it to the Tristan post office someday, and if so, we expect a postcard 🙂
Tristan da Cunha looks so stunning. I love how nice the weather was when you went because what I understand is in far-flung places like this, weather plays a major role not only in the local people’s lives, but also the experience of visitors. I wonder if in the past lobsters were also used as a means of trade, just like cigarettes and potatoes. By the way, I’m drooling over that photo of lobsters being grilled.
Thanks, Bama! We got really lucky with the weather on Tristan – it can be very wild and unpredictable, and the harbor is closed more often than not. Those lobsters probably were part of the local currency at one point. Whatever, they WERE so delicious!
Thank you, dear John and Susan, for taking the time to write such an informative article with so many helpful links to get more information about Tristan da Cunha.
I am publishing a philosophical magazine about solitary landscapes and your write-up has been very helpful to gather information about the most remote human-inhabited island. Hopefully Tristan will make it onto the pages of the next magazine issue, in some shape or form!
Sending warm regards your way.
You are so welcome, Ilka! Glad the post was helpful. I’d love to read that article – please let us know when it’s published!