The World’s Most Desolate French Territory

The Kerguelen Islands are so remote that the nearest permanently inhabited land is over 3,300 kilometers away. Despite this extreme isolation, they remain a formal district of France.

Known historically as the Desolation Islands, this rugged archipelago sits deep in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean. Accessing the islands is incredibly difficult, as there is no airport, meaning visitors must arrive by ship from Réunion. Scientists work there on a rotating basis, but no one lives there year-round permanently. It is a strange piece of Europe hidden in one of the emptiest corners of the globe.