The idyllic Australian islands you’ve probably never heard of
Children waved eagerly beside the landing strip as our plane touched down on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands: a tiny speck of territory in the remote expanse of Indian Ocean between Australia and Sri Lanka, made up of two atolls comprising 27 coral islands. Only two of these islands are inhabited – Home Island and West Island – the latter of which is home to the only nine-hole golf course in the world that plays across an active international runway. Golfers tee-off in between the arrival of bi-weekly flights, when planes bring government workers, returning residents, and – very occasionally – a visitor or two.
The islands’ history reads like the plot of a Netflix miniseries. They were discovered by British sea captain William Keeling in 1609, but there was no permanent settlement here until one was established by Alexander Hare in 1826. Scottish trader John Clunies-Ross took over the copra industry shortly after, turning the islands into a family-run fiefdom for more than a century, until Australia took control in 1955. Today’s population is made up of about 600 Cocos Malay residents on Home Island, alongside Australian expats and workers on West Island, with a unique local culture that combines Australian, Malaysian and Indonesian influences.
The archipelago’s dual name is the result of a moniker in constant flux over the centuries – though it has been officially designated the Cocos (Keeling) Islands since 1955 – and like many of its Indian Ocean peers, is characterised by jade waters and pristine white sand beaches rimmed with dense palm groves.
From the airport, I took the 30-minute ferry across the lagoon to Home Island, where I checked into Oceania House – the former Clunies-Ross homestead, now a living museum and hotel run by Greg and Paula Carnell, former cellar master and beekeeper respectively at Somerset’s the Newt. Paula took me on a walking adventure south of Home Island – from Pulo Ampang Major to Pulu Kumbang during low tide – and I asked her what draws people here.
“Cocos is all about connecting,” she told me. “With the people, ocean, land, trees, birds, fish; everything here is unique – and the experience of being here really alters you forever. It leaves its mark.”
Intrigued, I set out to test her theory.
Despite the archipelago’s diminutive footprint, there’s plenty on offer for the few tourists who do visit (2023 saw barely 4,000 in total). Various companies offer fishing, surfing, canoe safaris, e-bike tours (led by Johnny, a sixth-generation Clunies-Ross descendant) and kite-surfing, and there are cultural tours, too, as well as local attractions such as The Big Barge Art Centre and the Wild Coconut Discovery Centre, where visitors learn how coconut chips and coconut ice cream are produced.
But it’s the lagoon’s 500 resident species of fish that tend to be the headline act – so I signed myself up for a snorkelling tour of the eastern atoll. The waters delivered almost immediately. At our first stop, the Nursery near Pulu Jabang island, no sooner had I submerged my head than a placid reef shark swam by, barely a yard away; then we explored the wreck of the Coal Barge (also known as the Phaeton), a ship which went down in shallow waters in 1889, now a sanctuary for triggerfish, yellowfin goatfish and sergeant major damselfish. We finished the day with a picnic on Direction Island’s Cossies Beach – considered one of Australia’s finest stretches of sand.
The next day, eager to see more of the lagoon, I joined a guided boat tour with skipper Pete and first mate Amy, heading for the “rip” at Direction Island, where a fast current rushes from the outer reef into the lagoon. It was an exhilarating snorkelling experience among vibrant reef fish, with white-tipped reef sharks darting around healthy coral and isolated “bommies” – an Aussie name for the places where waves break over a shallow reef. I was spellbound.
On my final day, I jumped in a hire car and ventured to Scout Park – at the southern end of West Island – and waded across a waterway to the secluded Pulu Maraya Island. Despite a strong current tugging at my reef shoes, I soon reached the famous snorkel drift, where below the surface, thousands of coral fish swam serenely between the shallows and the trench seabed. And then, suddenly, there were two huge turtles beside me – gliding along in companionable silence; unfazed. One turned and looked me directly in the eyes, then both drifted away as serenely as they had arrived. The Cocos (Keeling) Islands had left their mark.
Essentials
Rebecca Foreman was a guest of Tourism Australia (tourism.australia.com)
How to get there
Flights leave daily from London to Perth, connecting via a Middle Eastern (Emirates, Qatar Airways, Etihad), Asian (Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines) or Australian (Qantas) hub.
Virgin Australia (virginaustralia.com) flies to Cocos (Keeling) Islands from Perth’s international airport twice a week from £582 return. Ferries run regularly and tickets cost £1.30 one way.
Where to stay
Oceania House (cocoskeelingislands.com.au) has double rooms from £122 per night.
What to do
Cocosday (cocosislandsboatandfishing.com) has half-day boat tours from £156 per person, and motorised canoe safaris from £88 per person; Cocos Blue Charters (cocosblue.com.au) has boat tours from £104 per person; Phat Tours Cocos (facebook.com) has e-bike tours from £26 per person.
Need to know
• Women are asked to cover their shoulders and knees when visiting Home Island, out of respect for local Islamic customs
• Connectivity is available through Wi-Fi only, which is commonly provided by most accommodations
• Daily temperatures range between 23 and 33 degrees year-round. Tropical climate with a wet season from December to April, and a dry season from May to November
