Kiribati

A raised coral island of extraordinary phosphate wealth, Banaba was strip-mined by the British and Japanese until its population was relocated and it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its unique cultural landscape shaped by colonial extraction.

Kiritimati is the world's largest coral atoll, a low coral-limestone ring around a vast turquoise lagoon that supports exceptional birdlife, productive hard-sand flats for bonefish and trevally, and a remote Pacific outpost character shaped by quiet local communities and the open ocean.

The largest marine protected area in the Pacific and one of the largest in the world, the Phoenix Islands Protected Area encompasses eight atolls and deep-sea reef systems, protecting critical undisturbed Pacific marine ecosystems and seabird colonies, and inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The capital of Kiribati, South Tarawa is a long narrow atoll where the Republic's government, commerce and cultural institutions are concentrated along a causeway connecting a string of islets, and where a major Pacific War battle left visible traces.

A lush Line Islands atoll known for its nineteenth-century copra plantation heritage, large coconut groves and wide beaches, Tabuaeran retains a quiet Pacific character with a small settled population and minimal tourism infrastructure.

A small coral atoll with a rare freshwater lake at its centre, Teraina supports a lush interior of coconut palms and pandanus unlike the scrubby vegetation of most Kiribati atolls, and hosts large populations of coconut crabs and indigenous bird species.