Lord Howe Island is not well known overseas and perhaps not widely known in Australia outside the state of New South Wales, of which it is a part despite the fact that it lies 700 kilometres offshore. It is located in the Tasman Sea at a latitude of roughly 31 degrees south, a two-hour flight from Australia’s east coast.
Lord Howe Island is just 11 kilometres long and was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list in 1982. It is a tiny outcrop in the Pacific Ocean, covered in lush greenery and surrounded by pristine waters (they really are) that are a unique mix of warm tropical and cool temperate ocean currents. The reef is home to over 450 fish species and 90 species of coral, many of which only occur here.
Believe it or not, I used to come here on business when I worked for the NSW Government in sea and air transport regulation. It was my job to determine which airlines should be licensed to serve the island. In those days flights weren’t as frequent as they are today and it meant staying on the island for at least three days. Yes, it was tough but someone had to do it!
The first reported sighting of the then uninhabited island came from Lieutenant Henry Lidgbird Ball on 17 February 1788, during a voyage from Sydney in command of the Royal Navy armed tender, HMS Supply. On the return journey, Ball sent a party ashore to claim the island for Britain and named it Lord Howe after British admiral, Richard Howe. It subsequently became a provisioning port for the whaling industry and was permanently settled in June 1834.
Lord Howe Island was included as part of the then colony of New South Wales in 1855 and the laws of NSW continue to govern the island today. When whaling declined in the 1880s, the island began exporting the endemic kentia palms, and this remains a key component of the island’s economy to this day.
Lord Howe Island has volcanic origins — it’s a remnant of a shield volcano that erupted some seven million years ago. Rising up from its southern tip is one of the small island’s most distinctive volcanic features, the hulking basalt peak of Mount Gower at 875 metres.
Another volcanic wonder is the world’s tallest volcanic stack, Ball’s Pyramid – modestly named by Lieutenant Ball after himself – which rises 551 metres out of the ocean. Located 23 kilometres offshore, Ball’s Pyramid is home to another ancient relic, the Lord Howe Island phasmid, a giant stick insect thought to be extinct for decades before it was rediscovered here in 2001. Some of the region’s most beautiful coral reefs fringe the sea stack but climbing Ball’s Pyramid to see them from above isn’t permitted. They can, however, be seen at their best when snorkelling or scuba diving.
While Lord Howe Island reefs have not entirely escaped the coral bleaching phenomenon found in many parts of the world, their soft corals appear to have fared better than most. A team of marine biologists led by University of New South Wales Science studied the world’s southernmost coral reef during, immediately after and then seven months after a marine heatwave in 2019 and found that the penned, fanned and tentacled corals of Lord Howe Island were more resilient to bleaching than hard, reef-building corals.
There are literally dozens of plant and animal species here that are not found anywhere else on Earth. Among its most famous endemic creatures is the Lord Howe woodhen, a chocolate-coloured ground-dwelling bird that has made a remarkable comeback following a recent major conservation initiative. Anyone exploring the island will now most likely encounter one of these curious birds.
Lord Howe woodhen
Sooty Tern
There is no public transport on Lord Howe Island but all accommodation properties meet flights, providing free transport for arriving and departing guests. Walking is a pleasure on the island as you’re never far from shops, restaurants or beaches. There are bicycles and helmets for hire and a limited number of rental cars. With fewer than 400 residents and daily visitor numbers capped at 400 to help protect the island’s natural environment, this is one destination where you never need to worry about crowds.
Take your pick of Lord Howe Island’s dazzling beaches, with 11 to choose from. Pictured above is Lagoon Beach, and below are North Bay’s beach and Ned’s Beach.
At Ned’s Beach you can walk into the water and the fish will swim around your legs, waiting for you to feed them by hand.
Pinetrees Lodge
When I used to come here the venerable old Pinetrees Lodge was the place to stay. It’s still a great lodge but there are numerous other properties to choose from including Capella Lodge, Arajilla Retreat and Island House.
Island House
The Lord Howe group includes Mutton Bird Island and the Admiralty Islands.
QantasLink offers year-round scheduled services to Lord Howe Island. Flight time is less than two hours with flights departing from Sydney on most days and from Brisbane at weekends.
There are connecting services with Qantas from all Australian capital cities and with QantasLink from many regional centres.
Eastern Air Services provides scheduled flights to Lord Howe Island from Newcastle, Port Macquarie and the Gold Coast and also offers charter services.
