Nightingale Island St Helena UK
United Kingdom

25 Cruises availables At departure or passage at this port

Seabourn Cruise Line (24 Cruises)

Silversea Cruises (1 Cruises)


Frequently Asked Questions

Nowhere: no pier, no village, no permanent residents. Landing is by Zodiac directly onto the rocks, and only if the swell allows. No landing here is ever guaranteed, and expeditions always plan an alternative.
In the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, a British territory set nearly 2,800 kilometres from any continental coast, halfway between South America and Africa. Only expedition ships venture here, usually on long ocean crossings.
A Zodiac cruise along the cliffs is already a rare spectacle: rockhopper penguins porpoising through the waves, kelp forests swaying beneath the boats. That uncertainty is part of the voyage, and it is best accepted before you sail.
You move slowly along designated paths, between tussock clumps that sometimes rise above head height. Life is everywhere: millions of seabirds nest on these four square kilometres of ancient lava, one of the highest densities of wildlife in the southern hemisphere.
Great shearwaters in their millions of pairs, darkening the sky as they return from fishing; northern rockhopper penguins with their ragged yellow crests; Atlantic yellow-nosed albatrosses, often sitting metres from the path; and two species found nowhere else, the Nightingale bunting and the Tristan thrush.
No, and that is exactly what makes the walk extraordinary. The birds never learned to fear humans: they carry on with their displays, their squabbles and their comings and goings as if visitors did not exist. Subantarctic fur seals sprawl on the shore rocks.
Waterproof clothing, boots with good grip and acceptance of difficult ground. You hear the island before you really see it: a roar of wings and calls rises from the cliffs long before the Zodiac reaches the rocks.
None. No pier, no building, no made path beyond the designated routes, no drinking water. Only ancient lava, giant grasses and birds. Everything comes from the ship and goes back to it.
Rarely, and that owes more to the voyage than to the island. The itineraries that include it are long ocean crossings seldom chosen as family trips. The rock landing, tussock taller than an adult and the swell all demand real physical independence.
Pound sterling and English: Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory. Since there is nothing to buy on Nightingale, the question only arises if your itinerary also calls at Edinburgh of the Seven Seas on the main island.