Isle of Pines

Known as the “Jewel of the Pacific”, the Isle of Pines is the southernmost of the Caledonian islands. It is the largest island in the marine area of the Great Southern Lagoon, one of the six lagoons in New Caledonia that are UNESCO World Heritage sites for the diversity of their coral reefs and their ecosystems. Discovered by James Cook in 1774, the island owes its name to the New Caledonia Pines that line the many white sandy beaches with their transparent waters, for which it is famous. During your visit, you can complete your exploration of this exceptional natural heritage with the discovery of the vestiges of the penal colony, where at the end of the 19th century, political prisoners from the Paris Commune and Kabylians from Algeria were deported.