The Most Remote Islands in the World: Unique Places that Fascinated Great Explorers

Talking about the most remote islands in the world refers to those isolated territories at sea, whose nearest land masses are hundreds or thousands of kilometers away. Some of them are as special as Tristan da Cunha, considered the most remote inhabited island on Earth. This British Overseas Territory is located in the South Atlantic, but unlike other more isolated islands, it has a neighbor just 320 kilometers away: Gough Island.

Something similar happens with Easter Island, which, although also considered remote, has another archipelago, Salas y Gómez, 320 kilometers away. Discovered by legendary explorers, many of these islands are uninhabited, but they are home to exceptional flora and fauna, from penguins to polar bears, albatrosses, terns...

It is one of the Minor Outlying Islands of the United States and is located in the North Pacific, 1,328 kilometers southwest of Honolulu, Hawaii.

This subantarctic island belonging to Norway is considered the most remote in the world because its distance to the nearest land mass, Queen Maud Land, is 1,639 kilometers.

Located in the southern Indian Ocean, this subantarctic archipelago is part of the French Southern Territories. The nearest territory is the South African Prince Edward Islands, 1,050 kilometers away.

This coral atoll of Japan is located 1,848 kilometers southeast of Tokyo. Personnel from the Japan Meteorological Agency, military, and coast guard perform temporary service shifts on the island.

Also in the South Atlantic is this Brazilian archipelago, specifically 1,200 kilometers east of the city of Vitória, the capital of Espírito Santo.

800 kilometers away is the closest territory to this Australian Pacific archipelago consisting of three islands. Norfolk Island covers an area of 36 km².

Together with Saint Helena and Tristan da Cunha, Ascension Island is part of one of the British Overseas Territories in the South Atlantic. It is 1,100 kilometers from the nearest land mass.

These five islands in the South Pacific are also British. The one that names the archipelago, Pitcairn, is inhabited and was the refuge of the famous mutineers from the British ship HMS Bounty in 1790.

Once called the Desolation Islands by the famous Captain Cook, they are one of the French Overseas territories. They encompass about 300 islets inhabited by seals, albatrosses, terns, and penguins.