Christmas Island

The Christmas Island is the largest coral island in the world. It is situated in the Indian Ocean and it is the outer territory of Australia. The capital city is Flying Fish Cove («The Settlement»).

The climate on the islands is tropical. The temperature is about +25℃ throughout the year. From December to April is a monsoon period. The best time for visiting the island is from May to November.

The official language is English. The majority of the population practice Buddhism. 35% of the people are the Muslims and 20% are the Christians.

The holidays on the Christmas Island are for people who like to spend their time on a beach. On the Island, there are many isolated bays with special viewing platforms for watching birds and sea animals. The tourists can both spend a lazy time sunbathing and enjoy the nature. The Island is a habitat for many endemic species which you can see only in these places.

A travel to the Christmas Island will be interesting for the lovers of hiking. In the Christmas Island National Park, there are special hiking routes. Some of the routes lead to the viewing platforms and some to the nesting places of unique birds or the habitat areas of turtles and crabs. The tourists will enjoy the untouched nature of these places.

The Christmas Island is known for red crab migration which takes place every year. One can witness it in November or December.

The Island is surrounded by a narrow tropical reef. The coral reefs of the Christmas Island are considered to be one of the most interesting places for diving and snorkelling in the world.

Anyone can go fishing and catch a sailfish or a tuna. They are in abundance here.

The fans of golf can visit a local golf club situated in a picturesque place on the coast.

Get in

By Plane

The citizens of Europe will have to take a transit flight to get to the Christmas Island as there are no direct flights. There are regular flights from the Australian airport Perth. Several flights a month arrive from the airport of Jakarta. Charter aircraft are also welcomed.

By Sea

One can get to the Christmas Island by one of the cruise ships arriving at the ports of the Island. This is a convenient way of travelling for those who want to combine transfer and holidays and who have much time. People can also sail to the Island by yacht.

Visa

As the Christmas Island is the territory of Australia, the tourists must obtain an Australian visa. EU citizens can get an e—visa and stay on the Island for 90 days. CIS citizens have to obtain a common visa.

All CIS citizens except the Russians can submit the documents for a visa online. The Russians must submit the documents at the Embassy of Australia or in a visa centre. The documents can be submitted personally, through a trusted person or a travel agency.

It usually takes four weeks to process the documents for a visa.

Customs

The tourists can import and export foreign and national currency of 10.000 Australian dollars without declaring. The sum exceeding this limit and all non-cash payment methods must be indicated on a declaration form as well as gold and jewellery.

The tourists can bring in the following goods duty-free:

• some cigarettes;
• some perfume;
• personal belongings.

It is prohibited to import:

• food;
• wildlife items and goods made of bones, skins and shells of protected animals;
• wooden goods.

The tourists are not allowed to export:

• animals and plants;
• bones, skins, shells, sea shells, corals and goods made of them;
• bamboo items;
• things made of birds’ feathers;
• items having a historical or artistic value.

The Christmas Island is a Duty-Free Zone.

Cuisine

The cuisine of the Christmas Island combines Australian, Chinese, Indonesian, and Malaysian cooking traditions. The staple food here is seafood and vegetables.

The locals prefer to grill meat. The meat is commonly served with Asian sauces. The foodies should definitely try the Australian meat pie.

We also recommend trying a chicken Melbourne prepared according to a unique traditional recipe.

Creme soups, fish soups and noodle soups are very popular on the Island.

The tourists will have a great choice of seafood dishes such as grilled seafood, fish, clams, lobsters, and prawns. The tourists should try tune in a sweet and sour sauce.

Those who a sweet-tooth can try various fruit pies and exotic fruits. The most favourite dessert of the Australians is a chocolate biscuit.

The most popular non-alcoholic drinks are fruit juices.

Alcoholic drinks are imported from different countries.

Money

The official currency on the Christmas Island is the Australian Dollar (AUD) which is divided into 100 cents. The 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 bank notes, 1 to 50 cent and 1 and 2 dollar coins are in circulation.

The tourists can exchange foreign currency at banks and in exchange offices. Credit cards are accepted almost everywhere, so the tourists do not really need cash.

One can cash traveller’s checks at banks.

There are almost no ATMs on the Island and one can draw the money from the card account at banks.

Be aware that on the Christmas Island, cash withdrawal is limited to 800 Australian dollars a day.

Details of interest

Sightseeing on the Christmas Island

On the Christmas Island, the tourists will see a lot of sights and many of them are situated in the National Park.

• In the tropical forest of the National Park, the tourists can see the Dale Waterfall which is recognised as wetlands of global significance. The waterfall consists of numerous flows of fresh water, which come out of the underground caves and flow into the ocean. For hundreds of years, those water flows created huge basins and the tourists like to stand in them under the waterfall.
• Lily Beach is a sandy beach at the foot of the rock. The tourists can relax in the waters of a small lagoon. There is also a viewing platform for watching the birds nesting on the rocks.
• Unique limestone formations along the southern coast of the Island. During many years, the water made holes in them and from these holes the water and the air come out making a loud noise.
• Dolly Beach is an isolated sandy beach surrounded by the plants and rocks. The beach is known for the sea turtles laying eggs here. At night, anyone can witness how the turtles lay eggs.
• Greta Beach is the main place where the sea turtles lay eggs. At night, you can see how they do it and you can even meet small turtles who got out of the sand and now making it for the ocean.
• The Buck House is the house of the Island’s administrator which is also a museum of the history of the Christmas Island. Not far from the House, there are the fortifications of the Second World War.
• A grotto near the gulf club. In a small cave, a water basin with a sandy bottom was formed. In the basin, there is both fresh and salty water.

Souvenirs on the Christmas Island

The tourists take with themselves not only great impressions, but also souvenirs:

• postcards and stamps;
• maps;
• figurines of turtles and crabs.