The world is becoming a smaller place thanks to modern technology and travel. But in our cramped up life we seek places of solace to relax and enjoy nature at its best.
Despite modern modes of transportation that can jet people around the world in hours, there are places on the globe that are so remote they’re virtually unexplored.
These are the most serene, furthest-flung, hardest-to-get-to destinations whose sheer beauty makes them worth the trek.
Socotra Island
Described as “the most alien-looking place on Earth†Socotra in the Indian ocean is home to some extremely bizarre flora thanks to its intense isolation from the rest of the world. In spite of this, it’s actually inhabited by around 40,000 people, with no public transport (and two roads). The island does have an airport, however, with flights almost every day.
Socotra is a perfect destination for the adventurous and nature loving travellers. It takes pride in their eco-tourism and values their spectacular plant and wildlife that may sometimes be only found on this island. There are several campsites that allow tourists to barbeque on the beach with beautiful mountain views in the background. Tourists can choose to purchase camping tour packages which include a driver or guide that will show tourists around the beaches as well as provide meals during their stay.
Barrow, Alaska
No roads lead to Barrow, Alaska. To reach America’s northernmost city (pop. 4,500), you must fly or, sea ice permitting, take a ship. Famous for its lengthy polar night, the sun goes down in November and doesn’t rise again for approximately 2 months. The Inupiat Heritage Center offers visitors the opportunity to purchase arts and crafts such as baleen boats, etched baleen, carved ivory, masks, parkas and fur mittens. If you time your visit right, you may also get to witness the local men embark on their annual whale hunt.
Nauru
This tiny Micronesian island is the least visited country in the world. But it’s not for lack of beauty– Nauru boasts miles of untouched, white-sand beaches. For WWII buffs there are remnants of the Japanese occupation scattered around the island, and the enormous skeletal remains of mining infrastructure are truly remarkable.
Nauru is so small that it takes less than one hour to drive right around it. The airport runway cuts across three of the twenty km of road. The only traffic lights on the island are used to stop the traffic and allow the plane to cross the road to the terminal! This is a favorite souvenir snapshot taken by visitors.
Easter Island
Easter Island is one of the most isolated islands on Earth. Located in the Pacific Ocean, roughly 2000 miles off of the Chilean coast, its relatively small, covering only about 70 square miles and is inhabited by barely 4000 people. It is most famous for its enigmatic giant stone statues, built centuries ago, which reflect the history of the dramatic rise and fall of the most isolated Polynesian culture.
Due to its extreme geographic isolation, only the highly intrepid traveller can get to Easter Island. The biggest tourist attractions on Easter Island are the Moai. The Moai are standing upon ceremonial platforms called Ahu. One of the surprising facts is that occasionally a natural phenomenon, great waves, washes away all the sand from Ovahe that slowly returns along with waves. Last time this occurred was in 2012.
Kerguelen Islands
Also known as the “Desolation Islands†for their sheer distance from any kind of civilization, the Kerguelen Islands are a small archipelago located in the southern Indian Ocean. There is no airstrip on the islands, and to get to them travelers must take a six-day boat ride from Reunion, another small island located off the coast of Madagascar.
The island is primarily a scientific center, but it also holds a satellite, a French missile defense system, and even serves as a sort of refuge for a particular type of French cattle that has become endangered on the mainland.