Australia
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
35.9km²
Area
38km
Coastline
317m
Highest point
2,188
People
24°C
Warmest sea
February
1,390km
To the mainland
When to go to Norfolk Island
Best for the beach from January to March.
The sea is warmest in February (24 °C) and coolest in August (19 °C). Comfortable swimming (21 °C or more): from December to May.
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.
Main island in the group of islands comprising the Australian external territory of Norfolk Island in the South Pacific Oceanic between Australia and New Zealand
Norfolk Island is an island in Norfolk Island. It covers 35.9 km², with 38 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 317 m. About 2,188 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,390 km away.
Getting there
- Norfolk Island International Airport (NLK)airport on the island, with scheduled flights
- 1,390 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From January to Marchbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Norfolk Island.
- 7beachesSecond Sands and 6 more
- 21viewpointsMount Pitt, Flagstaff & Signals Viewing Platform, Arthur's Vale Viewing Platform and 18 more
- 1lighthouses
- 4named peaksMount Bates, Mount Pitt, Mount George and 1 more
- 2waterfallsDry Waterfall, Cockpit Waterfall
- 19ruins and archaeological sitesPollock's House, Civil Hospital, Crankmill and 16 more
- 1campsites
- 58hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 27restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 101 m above the sea. 96 % of it is below 200 m.
- 10 %0–50 m
- 86 %50–200 m
- 4 %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).
Towns on the island
- Kingston880 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 23 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 22 |
| Night low (°C) | 22 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 21 |
| Sea (°C) | 23 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| Rain (mm) | 72 | 59 | 75 | 72 | 86 | 83 | 70 | 60 | 48 | 49 | 56 | 76 |
| Wet days | 10 | 10 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 |
| Sun h/day | 9.3 | 8.5 | 7.7 | 7.3 | 6.3 | 5.7 | 6.4 | 7.4 | 8.4 | 9.0 | 9.8 | 9.7 |
| Wind (km/h) | 23 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 24 | 22 | 21 | 21 |
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 | +0.3 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.2 | +0.2 | −0.1 | −0.2 | −0.2 | −0.2 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +0.6 |
| 2021 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.2 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +1.1 |
| 2022 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.4 | −0.1 |
| 2023 | −0.4 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.2 | −0.1 | −0.3 | −0.3 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +0.7 | −0.1 | +0.7 |
| 2024 | +1.4 | +1.0 | +1.0 | +1.0 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +1.1 | +1.3 |
| 2025 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +1.3 | +1.0 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.6 | +1.7 | +1.1 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q8437343) · 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 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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