The Ultimate Guide to stunning Saint Helena Island
Last updated on May 18th, 2026 at 04:01 am
Hiding away in the middle of the South Atlantic, Saint Helena is one of the world’s most remote and fascinating islands. Its part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, and the island is known for its dramatic volcanic landscapes, lush green valleys, and incredible wildlife. You can hike misty mountain trails, swim with whale sharks, visit the oldest living animal on earth, discover rare plants found nowhere else, and rare and unusual animals too. St Helena is a dream destination for nature lovers wanting to avoid the crowds and explore somewhere truly unique.
So, if you’re thinking it could be a good idea to go remote and travel to Saint Helena Island – you are absolutely right. This post will tell you exactly why…….
First a few important links to use when you plan your trip. Yes, they are affiliate links, but I use them all for my travels, and if you do too it will help me keep producing this content. Cheers!
Planning for your trip
Language / Money – English / St Helena Pound (equivalent of the UK pound)
Flights – use skyscanner or booking.com to find and book your flight – I often find the same flight for a lot cheaper than booking direct with the airline!
Insurance – Use EKTA or SafetyWing. TBH I usually use EKTA – they accept any nationality, any age and its ok if you are already traveling – which is perfect for me!
Accommodation – use booking.com or for a hostel – Hostelworld. I use both.
Internet – buy a yesim eSim or Airalo before you go. I use both depending on where I am going.
Buses, trains, ferries – 12Go is always my first option for buses, ferries and trains
Car rental – use DiscoverCars – they are my ‘go-to’ car rental site
Hiking – I use AllTrails for online and offline hiking trails – it means you know exactly where you are on the trail and makes getting lost a lot harder!!
Tours and Activities – book with Viator, GetYourGuide, or Eatwith.
Thanks so much if you use one of these links – it costs you nothing but helps me keep writing!
The 15 best things to do when you travel to Saint Helena
There are plenty of things to do if you are an active holiday type or a wildlife freak like me. (Actually I am both as I love hiking too, so this is a dream destination for me.) But don’t worry, there is enough intrigue for those that don’t want to do more than a short walk or game of golf. I get to those later in the list.
Lets start with the action!
1. Swim with the huge whale sharks – an absolute highlight when you travel to Saint Helena
Whale sharks are around the island from Nov to April / May – peaking in Jan / Feb.
It was the first time swimming with whale sharks for me and it was absolutely the most incredible experience. If you have been before you will find the prices here beyond reasonable so you might decide to go again. I went twice and would have gone again if we hadn’t (literally) sailed off into the sunset quite so soon.
Even though we saw them from the yacht, we went on a tour with Dive St Helena who offer diving, fishing, tours, accommodation and car rental as well. They were fantastic. There are other operators too, who have great reviews and I think offer excellent tour options. Sub-Tropic Adventures offer diving, marine mammal tours, and bird tours as well as the whale shark tours. The other operator is the well named Enchanted Isle Ltd. Prices are around the 30GBP mark. The best money you will ever spend!
2. Go whale and dolphin watching
Humpback whales come to give birth to their young from June to December every year. Do I need to say more?
Again both the operators above offer tours to see the whale and the dolphins.
There are three species of dolphin in St Helena waters: the Atlantic Pantropical Spotted Dolphin, the Bottlenose dolphin, and the Rough Toothed dolphin.
There are two very cool things about the dolphins here. First you can often see bottlenose dolphins around the landing steps in James Bay – for free!
But second, if you go on a tour and find the Atlantic Pantropical Spotted Dolphin you are going to get a real show. They live in a pod of around 1000 dolphins, (that’s not a typo – 1000!), and they love to play – leaping and somersaulting around. Of course dolphins also love to ride the bow so you will get a major dolphin fix.
We got to see them from the yacht so didn’t take this tour, but the dolphins here are beyond anything you will see elsewhere!
3. And go snorkeling or diving
Seriously, I don’t get paid by these guys, but once again, if you love marine life and being in or under the water – take a tour with one of them – Sub-Tropic Adventures or Dive St Helena.
Turtles, rays, butterfly fish, all kinds of fish actually, and 8 wrecks as well. Its worth it. St Helena has long shallow rocky reefs with very little tide or current on the sheltered side of the island. The water is a pleasant 18-25 degrees C. Its best from December to May for visibility – and that just happens to fit with the whale shark timings too.
4. Or go fishing and eat fishcakes
If you like to fish, take a trip with Dive St Helena and try and land yourself a tuna, grouper, wahoo, or dorado’s. But then you must at least once try the ‘national dish’ of St Helena – fishcakes. They are really good!
If you’re really keen, Linda of Richards Travel Lodge, will teach you how to make the fishcakes in a cooking class at their home restaurant, glass of wine in hand! You can also stay with them and take one of their tours.
5. Go hiking – its an absolute must when you travel to St Helena
St Helena has a fantastic variety of hikes over a fantastic variety of terrain!
There are 21 Post Box Walks and 8 footpaths. If you’re from the UK, the Post Box walks are similar to Letterbox Walks there. If not, its a system where an ink stamp is found in a post box on the walk for you to collect as you do the trails. You can pick up a Post Box Walks booklet from the Tourist Office or the Museum of St Helena – its a great souvenir when you have stamped off the walks!
The walks range from 45 minutes to 2.5 hours, are of varying difficulty, and are very scenic. These are the must do’s that I would recommend:
- Lot’s Wife’s Ponds – 1.5hours, 5km, medium
- Diana’s Peak Walk – 2.5 hours, 3.8km, medium
- Sugar Loaf – 2 hours, 12km, med
- Blue Point Walk – 1.5 hours, easy
- High Peak Walk – 1 hour, 1.5km, easy
Read about all the walks on my dedicated post on Hiking and Walking in St Helena.
6. See more wildlife – wirebirds, sea birds and unusual snails!
St Helena has some interesting wildlife. The sea birds are fantastic and St Helena is home to an unusual snail as well.
Again, I had a birds eye view of the birds (haha) on the yacht, but you will see some of them when you walk around on the island. I saw plenty of Red-billed Tropicbirds on Jacob’s Ladder (see 6.) and beautiful white Terns at Napoleons gravesite (see 7.) and on other walks.
The island also has Masked Boobies, Brown Boobies, Black Noddys, Brown Noddys, and Madeiran Storm Petrels, and for a close up view of the nesting sites on the cliffs, again you can take a boat tour – again with the same teams as above!
The unofficial national bird – the endangered wirebird can be found in some places – there are signs near the airport which is one good spot to see them.
As for the St Helena Blushing Snail – it is super cute! Red colored and tiny – a maximum of only 12 mm long by 9 mm wide, it is endemic to the island like many other species here. I was determined to find one and found more than one on the Diana’s Peak walk in the cloud forest of Diana’s Peak National Park. Yahhhh!
7. Climb Jacob’s Ladder to Ladder Hill Fort – another absolute must when you travel to St Helena
Even if you don’t like hiking, or walking, you surely have to give this a go!
Jacob’s Ladder feels almost vertical when you climb it – well it is almost vertical! There are 699 steps to take to reach the Ladder Hill Fort at the top of Ladder Hill. You will feel it unless you are super fit!
However, the rewards for your efforts are; a superb view of the lower town and harbor below, tropic birds swooping, and when you get back down, a certificate from the St Helena Museum (for a small fee)!
While you are making your way up, be grateful you are not a soldier back in the day. Originally the route was a rope ladder the soldiers had to climb up and down to the fort!
Later it became a horse-powered ‘railway.’ When that fell into disrepair the railway was removed leaving only the steeps we use today. The good news is that coming down, you can do a bit of a slide down the rails – very good fun.
The record for the fastest ascent (at the time of writing) is held by Sam Collins at 5 minutes 4.19 seconds, set on 29th January 2024, beating Graham Doig’s 5 minutes, 16.78 seconds in 2013! More like 15 minutes for me – but I got my Jacob’s Ladder Certificate from the museum!
8. Walk in the footsteps of Napoleon in St Helena
The most famous resident ever of St Helena, and probably the most famous there will ever be, is no less than Napoleon Bonaparte! You may be happy to travel to Saint Helena, but he was not.
Napoleon was exiled here in 1815 after being defeated at the Battle of Waterloo, and lived here until he died in 1821. (A bit mean don’t you think?) He lived in Longwood House, which was converted from a barn, and later a summer home for the Governor to the house you see today – complete with his bed and all. (He must have been very short – the bed is tiny!)
After he died it was used by a local farmer for storage, but later was sold to the French who restored the house and still own it today. You can visit it and the museum there from Monday to Friday : 8.00-10.30 / 13.30-15.30.
Also worth visiting is Napoleons gravesite or tomb in the Valley of the Tomb or Napoleon’s Valley. Napoleon was buried here- for a while!
In his will Napoleon wanted to be buried on the banks of the Seine, but the British Governor, Hudson Lowe, said NO. And so he was buried here – without a name!
Lowe said the grave should read “Napoleon Bonaparte, ” but Napoleon’s friends, said it should just be “Napoleon” (a royal convention). Nobody won, so he went un-named. That was until 1840 when his body was collected by the Prince de Joinville and taken back to France. No – not to the banks of the Seine, but to the much less romantic L’Hotêl Les Invalides.
If you are visiting in May, a “Moment de Memoire” is held at the site every year on the 5th of May – the anniversary of Napoleon’s death.
9. Play a round at a very interesting golf course
If you like to play a round and want to play at one of the most remote golf courses in the world, St Helena golf club fits the bill, and visitors are welcome! I think you would have to be a true golf aficionado to travel to Saint Helena just to play golf, but if you are already here, why not play a round?
The 9 hole course is near Longwood House, with good views, red (volcanic) earth ground, roads that cross the fairways, and maybe a goat or two. A real bonus is that a number of the endemic wirebirds have made it home!
10. Visit Plantation House and meet the oldest living creature on the planet
This is truly another thing you can’t miss when you travel to Saint Helena!
Plantation House is the governors Residence and is a ‘quite splendid’ old building built in 1791-2. (That’s just me saying ‘quite splendid.’) Tours of the house and grounds used to be available on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11am. Unfortunately tours are no longer available regularly because the current governor doesn’t allow them when he’s in residence. (I’m not sure what the problem is!) Contact the Tourism Office to check before you go.
The best part of the place for someone like me though, is Jonathan the Tortoise who lives there.
Jonathan the Tortoise is the oldest known living land animal on Earth. He is 192 years old in 2024!! He has lived in St Helena in the paddock in front of the Governors Residence since 1882 and has some younger friends that live withe him there now. Its surely going to be a very sad day the day he dies.
If you can’t tour Plantation House, then you can still see Jonathan from the bottom of the paddock. There is road access and you will spot him and his mates lumbering around!
11. Visit Deadwood Plain and the Boer Cemetery
From 1900 -1902 nearly 6000 Boer prisoners of war were held on St Helena! Who’d have thought?
You can see a sign at the location of the first Boer POW camp on Deadwood Plain, which is next to the track that leads from the main road to the start of the Flagstaff, The Barn and Sugar Loaf postbox walks. Otherwise you can visit the Boer cemetery at Knollcombes near the church. The graves are un-named (this seems to be a thing in St Helena) but have numbers. The names of the Boers that died here are engraved on two granite obelisks down below.
12. Wander High Knoll Fort
High Knoll Fort was built in case of invasion and like its name – its high. therefore, even if you are not into forts, its great for the views. This fort was built in 1874, but the original one was built in 1798. Its worth a look as it is the “largest, most prominent and most complete of the forts and military installations on the island.”
13. Drive the roads and take in the diverse scenery and fascinating placenames!
It’s great fun to drive in St Helena just for the names of places alone – Man and Horse, Deadwood, Blue Hill, Sugar Loaf, Half Tree Hollow, The Gates of Chaos, Guinea Grass, Rosemary Plain, Luffkins, The Gumwoods, Kunjie Field……..and so it goes on!
The roads can be pretty interesting too – hairpin bends making you think you’re in Monte Carlo, and rugged tracks (roads) best suited for 4wd’s.
The scenery changes dramatically all the while. One minute you think you are in New Zealand, the next in England, and then on Mars. Its never boring!
Do drop in at St Pauls Cathedral, and, the site of Halley’s Observatory, as well as other sites covered in this post. Edmund Halley (the Halley’s comet guy) came to the island in 1673 to observe the southern skies. It has superb views over Longwood and the south-east of the island. If you come back at night you will get some great unpolluted star gazing in too.
If you are going to drive, I’d recommend a 4wd if you can get one. Book this well ahead before you travel to Saint Helena.
And, when driving on the hills, give way to cars coming up, and toot as you approach the corners to let cars on the other side know you’re coming. Both unwritten ‘rules’ of driving in St Helena. You can easily hire a car on the island.
14 . Wander in the capital – Jamestown
When you travel to Saint Helena you are going to generally start in Jamestown – the capital of the island. Its fun just to walk around Jamestown.
It sits in the valley between two cliffs with a dramatic arch entrance when arriving from the port. Main Street is full of Georgian homes and buildings and the St James Church, built in 1774 is not only beautiful in its simplicity but also the oldest Anglican church in the southern hemisphere.
The Castle Gardens are lovely to relax in with the fountain, fish, birds, gardens themselves, and the Water Witch memorial. Of course, I may be biased as in the corner is Ann’s Place – a yachtie hangout – but open to all as a restaurant / café, and meeting place. It is fabulously adorned with all things nautical, donated by passing yachts like ours.
Don’t miss the St Helena Museum on your wanderings – of course you must get your Jacob’s Ladder Certificate here, but its also a great little museum showing the history of the island. Even a museum-ophobe like me can enjoy it for a while – and that’s saying something!
15. Visit the world’s most remote Distillery and Coffee Plantation
Welsh distiller Paul Hickling set up the world’s most remote distillery in 2006 – the St Helena Distillery. It produces the ‘famous’ cactus pear Tungi Spirit, along with White Lion Rum, Juniper Gin and the very popular Midnight Mist Coffee Liqueur. Tours and tastings are available – not a bad reason to travel to Saint Helena for the connoisseurs!
Equally remote is the Rosemary Gate Coffee Plantation which produces a unique coffee that is becoming a ‘must have’ for coffee connoisseurs around the world.
In 1733, pure Arabica coffee seeds were brought to Saint Helena by The East India Company from the coffee port of Mocha in Yemen. This has become a unique and distinctive coffee as it comes from a single type of Arabica bean – the Green Tipped Bourbon Arabica. Due to the remoteness of St Helena, the original coffee has remained pretty much pure and unchanged – hence its high-ranking status!
If you don’t want to visit the plantation, you can try it at the St Helena Coffee Shop, down by the port!
Frequently asked questions about Saint Helena Island?
Q: Where is Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha?
A: All three are in the south Atlantic Ocean. Saint Helena is 1,200 miles west of Angola, and 2,500 east of Rio de Janeiro.
Q: Is Saint Helena a country?
A: No. It is one of the three islands that make up the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha – a self-governing British Territory.
Q: Do I need a visa for Saint Helena?
A: Unless you have a UK passport, usually yes. Check and apply for an e-visa here.
Q: Is there anything else I need to enter Saint Helena?
A: Yes. You also need a return ticket, pre-booked accommodation, and valid medical insurance. The insurance must be for at least £175,000 and include aeromedical evacuation or other means to pay for treatment. Check your travel insurance covers this or you will have to buy insurance on arrival.
Q: Who lives on Saint Helena?
A: The residents of the island are called Saints – it must be nice to become a saint so easily!
There were no permanent inhabitants on St Helena until 1659 when the British took control, bringing the first slaves with them. Before then, Dutch, Portuguese and British ships had used the island to produce and stock up on food. And a couple of people had lived in isolation here, but there was no permanent settlement. Today the ‘Saints’ are of mixed European (mostly British), South and East Asian, and African descent.
Q: Is that the Napoleon Saint Helena?
A: Yes – it is the island Napoleon was exiled to by the British in 1815, and where he died in 1821.
Q: When is the best time to travel to St Helena?
A: The main tourist season is during the ‘summer’ from December to March (20-32C). However, the seasons are not very distinct on the island and you can have rain in the morning and bright sun in the afternoon at any time of year. It is cooler in the interior.
However, there are a few other things that you have to think about when planning to travel to St Helena – its about what you want to do there:
- For Whale Sharks the best months are January and February.
- For the best visibility for diving and snorkeling and the best marine life – November to March.
- For humpback whales – July to December
- For hiking – the days are longer and typically a bit drier in summer, but all year is possible. The St Helena Festival of Walking is in March.
- For birding – any time of year but it could be considered best during the breeding season from September to February. Migratory birds also arrive in winter which can be another good time.
Travel tips for Saint Helena Island
Getting to St Helena Island
The only commercial airline flying to St Helena is Airlink which flies from Johannesburg to St Helena on Saturdays.
Money
The Saint Helena Pound which is equivalent to the British Pound or the British Pound. You cannot use the St Helena Pound in the UK. The only other place you can use it is on Ascension Island.
The Saint Helena Pound looks similar in shape and size but has different pictures – it makes a nice souvenir.
Bring GBP cash as there are no ATMs on the island and credit cards are not accepted in most places. You can get a cash advance at the local bank (fees apply). The Bank of St Helena also has a Tourist Card which is a prepaid GBP Cash Card. More information is on the Bank’s website.
Internet & Mobile coverage
There has been real internet on the island since 2023. There are a few Wi-Fi hotspots around the island where you can buy internet access. Details are here. You can now also buy a sim – details are here. Check if your accommodation has wifi as well before booking.
Getting around on Saint Helena
By far the best way to get around on the island is by hiring a car. I would recommend a 4wd if you can so that you can get off road on some of the ‘tracks.’
You can also go on tours which can be a great way to learn more about the island, but if you are planning to go hiking or want to see more, then hiring a car for at least a few days is a good idea. There are plenty of car hire options – often your accommodation provider will also have cars for hire. A few things to note are:
- Drive on the left hand side of the road, the same as the UK.
- The speed limit is 30mph except in Jamestown where it is 20mph. Road signs are shown in miles per hour.
- A lot of the roads (most actually) are single lane so it is important to TOOT when coming up to a bend in the road to warn cars coming in the other direction. This does mean you will be tooting a lot!!
- Drive slowly on these roads, and if you meet another car, be polite and give way the best you can.
- If you are going down a hill always give way to cars coming up the hill. (That’s an unwritten rule.)
- Wave to drivers in the other car you are passing. (Another unwritten ‘rule of the road!’)
- You can drive on your overseas licence for up to 3 months.
Car hire, taxis, and public transport is detailed here. Don’t forget to check with your accommodation first if they have car hire as well.
Eating in Saint Helena?
The island is covered in eating options and I definitely didn’t get around them all! However, my not to be missed places are:
- The Consulate Hotel for breakfast, dinner, or just coffee,
- The Farm Lodge which is fabulous and thought to be the best food on the island,
- Annes place for the yachtie vibe (obviously I’m going to be biased on that one)!
Richards Travel Lodge, Wellington House and Harris’ Guest House all get the thumbs up too.
Finally, if you love your coffee (I don’t so I’m purely going on friends reports) the St Helena Coffee Shop, down by the port, has coffee you want – fit for a prince as it turns out! (Prince Edward recently visited for coffee.) A great casual setting for breakfast or brunch too.
Where to stay in Saint Helena
Because I arrived and stayed on a yacht, I did not stay in any accommodation, but did get around eating out and did talk to others staying on the island. My summary, taking this into account:
The Mantis is a very popular option and in the historic center of Jamestown. I did enjoy eating here and guests seemed to be very happy with it. The Consulate Hotel – in a mid-18C building was a treat for food and friends that stayed here really enjoyed it.
Banana Tree Lodge is also a very popular B&B and books out with its rave reviews. As said, I did not get a chance to stay here but friends did and loved it! Richards Travel Lodge is another very popular option! Both are out of town and best with a car.
Rock Mount Cottage is a newer apartment out of town close to three postbox walks and would be a great location if you have a car!
Summit View is popular for a whole holiday house. And Whale View St Helena Island is a new option – take a look and see what you think!
Related Posts – for people who plan to travel to Saint Helena
Hiking St Helena Island; Footpaths, strolls and Post Box walks
What to do on the remote and amazing Ascension Island
and a bit further away – some more remote islands….
10 remote and off the beaten path islands for the explorer
Where the heck is Yap? And what to do when you get there!
A Cook Islands paradise – blissing out in Aitutaki!
7 great reasons for the nature traveler to visit Rodrigues Island