France
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
8.4km²
Area
19km
Coastline
270m
Highest point
Crête de la Novara
0
People
18°C
Warmest sea
February
3,194km
To the mainland
When to go to Île Saint-Paul
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in February (18 °C) and coolest in September (12 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in the southern Indian Ocean
Île Saint-Paul is an island in France. It covers 8.4 km², with 19 km of coastline. Its highest point, Crête de la Novara, rises to 270 m. Nobody lives on it. The nearest mainland is 3,194 km away.
Getting there
- 3,194 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Île Saint-Paul.
- 3beachesTerrasse des Pingouins
- 3named peaksCrête de la Novara, La Quille, Rocher du Milieu
- 4volcanoes
- 5ruins and archaeological sitesAncienne conserverie and 4 more
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Île Saint-Paul in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Île Saint-Paul, each with its own numbers.
1beachCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
17.5°C
Baie des Manchots
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 104 m above the sea. 90 % of it is below 200 m.
- 21 %0–50 m
- 69 %50–200 m
- 10 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 16 |
| Night low (°C) | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
| Sea (°C) | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| Rain (mm) | 69 | 51 | 87 | 59 | 87 | 83 | 72 | 74 | 67 | 68 | 75 | 72 |
| Wet days | 13 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 |
| Sun h/day | 8.3 | 7.3 | 6.1 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 5.6 | 6.8 | 7.3 | 8.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 24 | 24 | 25 | 28 | 35 | 36 | 38 | 36 | 36 | 32 | 30 | 27 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −1.6 | −1.0 | −0.5 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 | −0.3 | −0.5 | −0.4 | −0.4 | −0.6 | −0.1 |
| 2021 | +1.6 | +1.3 | +1.0 | ±0.0 | −0.5 | −0.2 | −0.1 | −0.3 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.2 | −0.2 |
| 2022 | −0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 |
| 2023 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +1.0 | +1.7 | +1.1 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.3 | +0.9 | +0.3 |
| 2024 | +1.0 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.6 | −0.1 |
| 2025 | −0.9 | −0.1 | −0.5 | −0.4 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −0.1 | −0.3 | −0.2 | −0.2 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q204821) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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