World’s best and most remote travel destinations
According to the Polynesian Tourism Bureau, the Marquesa Islands in the South Pacific are the “most remote place in the world,” due to their vast distance from any other body of land. The only way to get there and back is via the Aranui 5, a cargo ship that accepts passengers and visits the islands every few weeks. Formerly savage headhunters known for eating their enemies, the Marquesan warriors make the fierce Maoris of New Zealand look like pussycats. The islands have also been described as the most beautiful in the world with their towering cliffs and steep mountains.
Very few people have ever visited these 7 little islands, and even fewer ever seen a glimpse of Poumaka Tower, a tooth-like pinnacle that stabs 3,000 feet into the sky on the most remote island of Ua Pou and makes the statues on Easter Island look like pin pricks. Go have a look while you are down there. Myself, “been there, done that,” but I am pleased to share a photo.
Very few people have ever heard about Upper Dolpo, the last vestige of pure Tibetan culture left in the world. The almost mythical Land of Dolpo is actually located in northwest Nepal. Given that you have to climb over several 18,000-foot peaks across the Himalayas to get there and back, and the 700-km trek can only be done after the snowmelt in spring and before the summer monsoon or just before the winter snows (there are no roads, bridges, stores or medical help in the world’s highest inhabited villages) it’s easier simply to log on to my documentary illustrating my own trek. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xizQC4LYbQo
Speaking of the South Seas, the Galapagos Islands are a fun visit if you can find the funds to go there. It’s so far off the beaten track (you need to fly there from Ecuador) that the islands weren’t discovered until a few centuries ago. Since there was never any human habitation, the creatures there developed no fear of humans. If you ever wanted to get up close and personal with a blue-footed booby bird and have a face to face chat, this is the place for you.
It’s not unusual to see seals and iguanas wandering around the streets of the small town of Puerto Ayora, the sea lions think they own the beaches, and pelicans help supervise the fishmongers at their shop at the docks on the fine art of cutting fish.
On the other end of the Pacific in the far north, you might want to explore the Haida Gwaii islands, which are also very hard to get to. Most people live in villages on Graham Island in the north of the island group, but it’s the many islands of Gwaii Hanaas National Park in the south you want to explore. Trouble is, its’ very difficult to do so thanks to high winds, harsh tides and powerful currents. If you are not a world class yachtsman or kayaker you might want to take a zodiac exploration (Moresby Explorers) but expect to get very cold and wet.
For another remote northern exploration you might want to try Labrador, aka “the Big Land” as the locals call it. You take a ferry from faraway Newfoundland across the Strait of Belle Isle, better known as Iceberg Alley. Even in late summer you will see giant icebergs floating by.
The only tourism accommodations in Labrador are found in the abandoned fishing outports, some of which have been renovated and offer rustic accommodations. Battle Harbour joins the list of “most remote villages in the world” where you can expect a blizzard even in the middle of summer.
If you like icebergs, you can get up close and personal with many of these lovely floating diamonds anywhere off the Labrador coast. Just remember that 90 percent of the iceberg is hidden under water, so don’t get too close.
Staying in the far north, the fjords of Norway are rated the number one tourist attraction in the world, if you can afford to book a room on a ferry that explores the fjords. Hidden behind the village of Flaam at the very far end of the world’s longest fjord (the 200-kilometre long Sognefjord) is perhaps the most beautiful valley in the entire world. Don’t tell anyone about it or they will want to go there. Don’t tell them either that a six-pack of beer in Norway costs $130 USD.
Looking for warmer destinations? Acadiana is the proper name for the swamps of Louisiana where they keep all the alligators. Five minutes on a swamp boat and you will be completely lost in this “floating world” of strange and weird animals, a birdwatcher’s paradise. Watch out for the gators. Yes, they bite. Gators are also very tasty deep-fried, but make sure its you eating gator wings and not the other way around.
If you like water destinations, the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland, Australia is a fine destination to explore, although it certainly is a long journey down to Down Under. Stick your head under water in the Reef and you are in a whole new world. The Daintree Rainforest of Queensland (no, not all of OZ is desert) is also a fabulous destination complete with weird animals like the tree kangaroos, platypuses, saltwater crocodiles and the fearsome cassowary, a giant vicious bird the size of an ostrich that kills people by kicking them with its one giant toe. Be aware that salties kill more people than any other creature in the world. I will wait here for you.
I have a long list of many other wild and remote destinations I have visited all around the world, and one day soon I will finish writing my photobook On the Edge of the Middle of Nowhere; A lifetime of travels to wild, dangerous and remote places in search of adventure. Meantime, enjoy the photos posted here, bring your camera on your next trip to the middle of nowhere and remember to always keep your arms and legs well inside the boat.
Outside Magazine
https://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/destinations/most-remote-places-on-earth/
Rough Guide
https://www.roughguides.com/articles/gloriously-remote-places/
Afar Magazine
https://www.afar.com/magazine/the-most-remote-places-on-earth-to-travel-to