Christmas Island

This island is so unique that 63% of it is National Park. A place where visitors can walk through the rainforest, come face to face with the island's crabs or spot one of the many species of rare birds. Explore the surrounding waters, with fringing coral reef that is home to a myriad of colourful tropical fish that can be seen in only metres of water while a short distance away the reef plunges dramatically into an abyss. Dolphins circumnavigate the island & whale sharks visit each year.

Understand The Geography

The Territory of Christmas Island is a small, non self-governing Territory of Australia located in the Indian Ocean, 2,360 km (1,466 miles) northwest of Perth in Western Australia and 500 km (310 miles) south of Jakarta, Indonesia.

It maintains about 1,600 residents who live in a number of towns on the northern tip of the island.

The island is a quadrilateral with hollowed sides, about 19 km (12 miles) in greatest length and 14.5 km (9 miles) in extreme breadth. The total land area is 135 km² (52.1 square miles), with 138.9 km (86.3 miles) of coastline.

The island is the flat summit of a submarine mountain more than 4,572 m (15,000 feet) high, the depth of the platform from which it rises being about 14,000 feet (4267 m) and its height above the sea being upwards of 305 m (1,000 feet).

Steep cliffs along much of the coast rise abruptly to a central plateau. Elevation ranges from sea level to 361 m (1,184 feet) at Murray Hill. The island is mainly tropical rainforest, of which 65% is National Park.

The narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard.

Climate Conditions

The climate is tropical, with heat and humidity moderated by trade winds.