Search hotels in Norfolk Island, Australia

A very relaxed friendly place to visit. Interesting history and historic sites. Lovely scenery. All easily accessible. Maybe not the place for those seeking a highly active or adrenaline charged holiday Bounty museum was a great collection of the stories related to the island. Wonderful restaurants. Good shopping - mostly within walking distance (essentially one long strip). Groceries are variable in availability and price, due to transport issues, but good size supermarket and a number of smaller outlets. Travelled in November - temperature lovely, just hit a humid patch, so a little uncomfortable mid afternoon.

The sense of history pervades the island, and you soon get the feeling of how remote and isolated Norfolk is. With only 2200 permanent residents, it has a great friendly feel to it, including the custom of waving to every passing car. There are a number of superb restaurants and tours which can fill a week easily. Surprisingly there are a number of shops worth visiting with competitive pricing vs. Sydney or Brisbane. Hiring a car is a must. The island roads are full of potholes (even the potholes have potholes!) and speed is limited to 30 to 50 kph. The island is absolutely spectacular - wonderful beaches, cliffs, and historic landmarks. Norfolk's place in history with Captain Cook, Bligh, the Bounty, and a brutal penal colony set the backdrop to a memorable visit. The golf course is only 9 holes (played twice off separate tees for 18) is magnificent. The fish fry night is not to be missed - best fish I have ever eaten. The Bounty Museum is worth a few hours of browsing with an amazingly eclectic collection of memorabilia. One word of warning. The tourism is dominated by very senior Australians - possibly an average age of 75. We only met one young couple in the entire week. But everyone is so laid back and friendly it hardly mattered. And a word for Brisbane International Airport - you need to lift your game. Abysmal organisation, 1 hour 45 to check in and clear immigration, about the same on return with about 1,000 people lined up for customs. It bookended what was otherwise a great week. Heaven help us when the Olympics arrive! Overall, Norfolk Island is great place, relaxing, historic, memorable.

Be prepared for things to be expensive given that everything needs to be brought in either by boat or plane. Pay attention when the shops open and close as times and days vary. Olive Cafe was great and also enjoyed the Helm Cafe.