French Southern Territories Travel Guide
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Guide
The French Southern and Antarctic Lands, the Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises, covers the Kerguelen, Crozet, Saint Paul, and Amsterdam islands in the southern Indian Ocean, and general tourist access effectively ended in 2019, when it stopped being possible to book a berth as an ordinary tourist. The territory has no permanent inhabitants at all, only researchers studying the native wildlife visit regularly, and while a small amount of tourism still technically exists, it is minor compared to the territory's real purposes, scientific research, environmental monitoring, and logistical support for France's presence in the region, and any visits that do happen are tightly controlled to limit impact on a remote and sensitive environment.
The only way to reach these islands at all is by sea, there is no airport anywhere in the territory. The Marion Dufresne, a French research and supply vessel, makes the journey to Kerguelen, Crozet, Saint Paul, and Amsterdam four times a year, departing from Réunion, and represents essentially the sole regular transport link between the outside world and this territory.
Border crossings
- The Marion Dufresne, from Réunion
The territory's primary transport link, a research and supply ship running four times a year rather than anything resembling a tourist ferry or cruise schedule.
Transit routes
- Do not plan a standard tourist visit here
General tourist berths stopped being bookable in 2019, and what limited access remains is not built around ordinary travel.
- Check current, specific access through a specialized operator if genuinely interested
Some expedition-based access may still exist through the right channels, but this is a fundamentally different proposition from booking an ordinary trip.
Entry point notes
- No permanent population, researchers only
A useful way to understand what this territory actually is, a scientific outpost rather than an inhabited place with a tourism industry.
- Sea access only, four times a year
The Marion Dufresne's limited schedule is the practical reality of how remote and infrequently accessible this territory is.