The Best Things To Do In Cocos Keeling Islands

The ‘Welcome to Paradise’ brochures handed out at Cocos Keeling Islands’ airport after half a day’s travel from Perth perfectly encapsulates Australia’s most remote group of 27 islands that hang in the Indian Ocean like a sparkling tiara.

One of three Australian external territories, those lucky enough to experience its unhurried landscape either stay or lose no time hurrying back; one escape to the deserted sand-draped isles isn’t nearly enough.

Be warned though, Cocos Keeling is a hard addiction to break. Picture snorkelling in aquarium-clear waters, swishing in hammocks hooked to palm trees, or simply strolling along the water’s edge, splashing up surf. Whether you crave well-earned R&R, a dab of adventure, or losing yourself in the islands’ rich natural environment, we’ve checked out the following what-to-do and where-to-eat options.

Underwater adventures

Cocos’ horseshoe-shaped islands sit in one of the world’s most azure archipelagos, giving the illusion a higher power perhaps created them for ocean lovers.

Join Cocos Dive and book an underwater sea-scooter tour or venture deeper with a dive. Either way, you can explore the islands’ wrecks where teems of tropical fish flit and dart through coral-encrusted hulls.

Swimming with manta ray with Cocos Dive on Cocos Keeling Islands — Swim with manta rays with Cocos Dive. (Image: Karen Willshaw)

Since Parks Australia declared the marine park a sanctuary in March 2022, you’ll be snorkelling in waters set to remain pristine and protected.

Swimming with turtle on Cocos Keeling Islands — If you’re lucky, you could swim with a turtle. (Image: Supplied)

For an experience with a difference, join a motorised canoe tour and discover the untouched islands with Cocosday .

You’ll skim across the lagoon in a motorised canoe, moor at an idyllic isle and indulge in a gourmet champagne picnic. Have your video ready to record the famous Cocos hermit crab race – the commentary alone is a hoot.

Hermit Crabs on Cocos Keeling Islands — Watch the Cocos hermit crab race. (Image: Supplied)

Bring your snorkel and sense of adventure – the current will carry you around the tip of Pulu Maraya, a tranquil tidbit of an island where coral overflows with magical marine life. For a memorable experience, swim alongside their incredibly handsome shells.

Cocosday Motorised Canoe Safari — The motorised canoe safari is an unmissable experience. (Image: Supplied)

Catch-of the-day

If fishing pumps through your gills, jump on half a day’s trip with Cocos Blue Charters and snag a catch for dinner.

Not into game fishing? Admire the star-studded sea life through the boat’s glass panel instead. Bring your snorkelling gear if you want to come eye-to-fish-eye with Cocos’ vibrant sea life.

Cocos Blue boat in the Cocos Keeling Islands — Take the boat out with Cocos Blue Charters. (Image: Rachel Claire Photographer)

The owners will also moor at surrounding islands for any history buffs on board. Both Prison Island – once home to a harem – and Horsburgh Islands – where the Australian Army established a base during the Second World War – have intriguing pasts.

Prison Island on Cocos Keeling Islands — Prison Island has a fascinating past. (Image: Jaxon Roberts)

Dress to get wet and explore the islands’ Eastern Atolls with Cocosday Tours. Snorkel around coral reefs brimming with exotic fish or choose an outlying island to bask and beachcomb to your heart’s content.

Cocos Keeling Islands aerial shot — Snorkel around coral reefs in the Cocos Keeling Islands. (Image: Ryan Chatfield)

A couple of onboard stand-up paddle boards will help you work up an appetite for the included champers and nibbles.

Cocosday Tours also offers fishing tours around the reef flats. Using their high-quality fishing gear, you can catch coral trout, bluefin trevally, red bass or yellow lip emperor.

Sports fishing on Cocos Keeling Islands — Go fishing in Cocos. (Image: Josh Cheong)

Take to the air

From July to September, trade winds bring perfect conditions for kite surfing. Fly like a bird over West Island’s curvaceous shoreline with Zephyr Tours or Ape X Kiteboarding – it’ll be an adventure like no other with these experienced kite school tour operators.

The instructors will show you the ropes and have you soaring over a translucent lagoon spotting turtles, black-tip reef sharks and shoals of fish.

Both Zephyr and Ape X Kiteboarding are one-stop shops offering packages including accommodation, transport and island adventures along with unlimited kite lessons.

Aerial Kitesurfing on Cocos Keeling Islands — Cocos Keeling has perfect conditions for kite surfing. (Image: Rik Soderlund)

Artistic endeavours

Step down into the hull of a restored barge of Big Barge Art Centre , lined with one-off art pieces made from washed-up flotsam and jetsam.

Local artist, Emma Washer pulled the colossal broken-down ship, the Biar Selamat (meaning ‘let’s be safe’) from the overgrown jungle back in 2001.

Emma devoted over 10 years to turn her vision of creating an art gallery into a reality. The 19-metre-long art centre now sits in a prime beachfront location and offers various workshops on recycling washed-up waste.

The Big Barge & Sula Sula Servery — Visit the Big Barge Art Centre for some creativity and culture. (Image: Supplied)

All-things-coconut

Join a farm-based tour of the Wild Coconut Discovery Centre and see behind the scenes of a coconut production centre during a 1.5-hour demonstration. Learn about the timeworn techniques the farmers employ to create their products.

Cocos is laden with coconut palms – you’ll discover how they are utilised to make a range of goods, including tasty coconut chips and delicious ice creams. And you’ll get to enjoy free tastings afterwards in the farm shop.

T-off with locals

Scrounger’s Golf is played every Thursday afternoon across the airport’s international runway. It’s an island initiation must-do, like taking the Polar Plunge in Antarctica, though not nearly as cold.

The nine-hole round is all about teamwork, boardies, beers and banter, rather than getting a ball on the putting green.

Make your way to the Donga, West Island’s local club, sign up, grab some coldies, and hire your clubs, ready for tee-off at 3.30pm.

Cocos Keeling Islands golf course — Play golf across an international runway, just to say you have. (Image: Lynn Gail)

Eating on West Island

After exploring deserted beaches, luxuriating in warm crystalline waters whiling away hours in contented bliss, you’ll no doubt be thinking about satisfying your taste buds. With Cocos’ land mass measuring a mere 14 square kilometres, restaurants are limited. However, there’s a good range of Australian, International and Malaysian fare available.

Watch the fading sun dance through waves from your lantern-lit table at Surfer Girl Brewery . Surfer Girl Brewery offers a range of delicious dishes and great cocktails. Chalk your name up on the outside blackboard or drop in to book. The restaurant also opens for breakfast periodically throughout the week – try their tasty avo and bacon toasties with freshly brewed coffee.

Coconut drink from Surfer Girl Brewery — Surfer Girl Brewery offers a range of delicious drinks. (Image: Supplied)

Pull up a stall next to the locals at Salty’s Grill & Bakery , located externally at the airport. Get your caffeine fix, fresh croissant, pastry or toastie in the mornings. Pop in on Tuesday and Sunday for pizza night, or Friday for fish and chips night. Salty also serves up freshly made sourdough on plane days.

The Big Barge Art Centre’s Sula Sula Servery, a boho-styled cafe built from recycled boat timbers, serves a range of drinks and tasty treats to enjoy as the waves roll in. Check opening hours with the Visitor Centre on West Island.

Add Tropika Restaurant at the Cocos Beach Resort. Buffet style Malaysian and Australian, breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days.

Open daily from 5pm onwards, the Cocos Club is a family-friendly hub, pub and foodery rolled into one. Relax with a cocktail or coldie and play a game of pool as you catch up with locals. They’ll tell you where the surf’s up and where the fish are biting.

Get intimate with your loved one by ordering a delicious spread with Cocos Picnics . They’ll put together a delicious, handmade grazing platter for you to indulge in – your only decision will be which deserted, soft sandy beach to hideaway on.

The basket is filled with gourmet goodies, rugs, cushions, candles and fairy lights – there’s even a pack of cards, a low-ground picnic table and a speaker for your playlist as you lay back to unwind under lazily swaying palms.

Eating on Home Island

Catch the ferry across from West Island for an authentic Malaysian dining experience at Kampong Cafe & Restaurant .

After exploring Home’s Island peaceful Kampong (a traditional Malaysian village) continue your cultural immersion at Island Brunch Cafe with their western-infused Cocos Malay dishes and speciality iced drinks.

Order a takeaway and dip your toes in the water at the lagoon’s edge. The sweeping layers of aquamarine hues are incredible. Pinch yourself to ensure you’re not at home daydreaming, turning pages of a glossy visit-paradise holiday brochure.

Home Island Cooking Cocos Keeling Islands — Enjoy an authentic Malaysian dining experience on Home Island. (Image: Supplied)

From cabins to canvas, craft distillers to destination dining, Heathcote locals reveal their eco-savvy passions in ways that resonate with those seeking to travel lightly.

Heathcote , on traditional Taungurung Country in Central Victoria, is synonymous with its garnet-hued shiraz, but wine isn’t the only string to its bow. The town itself is sprinkled with heritage buildings from the gold rush era, and beyond that a growing collection of sustainable gastronomy and eco-friendly escapes. Nearby Bendigo, one of only 65 cities in the world recognised as a UNESCO Creative City and Region of Gastronomy, plates up an astonishing calibre of produce, wine and food for its size. Increasingly the entire region is taking up the challenge, though Heathcote in particular shines with its focus on sustainability.

Pink Cliffs GeologicalReserve — The dramatic landscape of Heathcote’s Pink Cliffs Geological Reserve. (Image: Visit Victoria/Emily Goodfrey)

The eco-stays bringing sustainability to Heathcote

Yellow BoxWood’s safari-style tents — Yellow Box Wood’s safari-style tents are nestled on 40 hectares of bushland. (Image: Emily Goodfrey)

Andee and Lisa Davidson spent years working in southern Africa before settling in Heathcote. “We had a vision of how this could be,” explains Andee. “We wanted a retreat, but one that was off-grid and environmentally sustainable.” Now, at Yellow Box Wood , two luxury safari-style tents are at the heart of 40 hectares of rolling hills and native bush, with kangaroos, wallabies, echidnas, goanna and birdlife aplenty. It’s all solar-powered, wood for the fire is mainly fallen timber, and water is collected on the carport roof. No lack of creature comforts though – en suite with rain shower, espresso coffee maker, comfy seating, wood-burning fire all set to go. There’s also a solar-heated, mineral salt pool in a bush setting, walking tracks, and even a mini bush golf course. On my visit, I put the vision to the test. Cocooned in the plush four-poster bed I can glimpse the stars, while the heater casts a golden glow on the canvas. In the morning, I wake to a blush-pink sunrise, kangaroos feeding and a soundtrack of magpies.

If a tent is not your style, Stephen and Cally Trompp’s carbon-neutral Mt Ida Eco Cabin might entice with its generous deck and farmland views. Inside the cabin, corrugated iron walls as rusty as a shearing shed, gleaming (recycled) floorboards, timber truss ceiling (crafted by Stephen), wood-fired heater and an old-school turntable with a pile of vinyls to spin. It’s fun, and a little boho. “Everything is recycled. The cabin takes maximum advantage of the sun in winter. It’s all solar-powered. Don’t panic, though,” says Stephen, “you can still charge your phone and get 4G reception!” Settle into an Adirondack chair on the deck or pedal off on a mountain bike to suss out the wineries.

A taste of Spain in Central Victoria

Another person with a vision is Evan Pritchard at his Three Dams Estate where the wines reflect his deep love of Spain and of Spanish-style grapes, such as tempranillo. Afternoons in the ‘wine shed’ or cantina are matched with music (flamenco is a favourite), Spanish bites from tapas to paella (with Evan on the pans!) and views to Mount Alexander. Sustainability is also a passion. “You don’t need to buy anything. We decided to be off-grid from the start, but it is a lifestyle change,” he says. “You need to think about it and be careful.” Everything here is recycled, reassembled, refurbished. Evan has an electric car (with solar-powered charger), solar-power for the winery, and even a jaunty little electric tractor/forklift. “I love the idea of all the things you can do using the sun.” Sipping a crisp rosado (a Spanish rosé) with Evan in the sunshine, I couldn’t agree more.

The vineyard redefining sustainable winemaking

Silver Spoon winery — The Silverspoon Estate winery is completely off-grid. (Image: Graham Hosking)

On the other side of Heathcote, Silver Spoon Estate demonstrates sustainability on a more extensive scale. Tracie and Peter Young’s winery, cellar door, award-winning restaurant and their own house are all solar-powered and off the grid. Sustainability is intrinsic to everything they do. The property sprawls across 100 hectares, with 20 hectares under vine – shiraz, viognier, grenache, tempranillo. As the climate has changed, so too has the approach. These are dry-grown vineyards. “We prune for drought. That means lower yields but more intense flavours,” says Peter. The fine-dining restaurant offers sweeping views, a wood-burning fire and a deck for languid lunches. Head chef Ben Hong sources regional, sustainable ingredients and weaves estate wines into the menu – think crispy wild mushroom arancini, viognier-infused chicken breast.

Silver Spoon’s award-winning restaurant.

Heathcote’s other hidden gems

Not all local wineries have a cellar door, but I find local treasures at the Heathcote Wine Hub , a petite 1855 timber church in the main street, lovingly returned to life by Karen Robertson and Carey Moncrieff. “Carey is a scrounger,” says Karen. “He doesn’t throw a single thing away.” He does, however, craft things into something quite special. Heritage floors, light-filtering lancet windows and shelves of regional wines create the perfect ambience for wine tasting. Or order a glass and linger over a cheese platter.

Heathcote is not all wine, of course. Nathan Wheat and partner Vanessa Curtis run Envy Distilling with a committed sustainable ethic – and a serious love of gin. Their small-batch distillery produces grape-based gin, and soon brandy. Distilled water is reused in an ingenious cooling system. All waste is treated on site. They buy excess wine from winemakers to distil and buy recycled barrels. “Distilling with the sun,” as Nathan says. Each Envy gin has its own story. Spicy, award-winning The Dry, is designed to capture the region’s dry, rugged nature. Pull up a stool at the bar (reclaimed timbers and tiles, of course), order a Gin Flight, or kick back with a cocktail and let Nathan share his eco journey.

Envy gins — Sample gins at small-batch distillery Envy.

A traveller’s checklist

Getting there

It’s less than two hours’ drive from Melbourne. The scenic route we take goes past Sunbury, then along a splendid country road through Romsey and the magic, boulder-strewn landscape of Lancefield. Watch for kangaroos on the road!

Staying there

Go off-grid in style at Yellow Box Wood for glamping or try Mt Ida Eco Cabin for a couple’s weekend hideaway.

Eating there

French dishes at Chauncy — Award-winning French restaurant Chauncy.

At award-winning Chauncy , French chef Louis Naepels and sommelier wife Tess Murray have created a tiny, elegant pocket of rural France. Meticulously restored 1850s sandstone building, sun-drenched dining room, impeccable service, a menu suffused with local flavours and thoughtful wine pairings.

Fodder is both cafe and social hub. Chef Mo Pun and sister Lalita serve classic Aussie breakfast-to-lunch fare, though their Nepalese heritage sneaks through.

Playing there

Sanguine Estate ’s cellar door and terrace overlook bucolic vineyards. Its award-winning, dry-grown wines include the distinctive D’Orsa Blanc dessert wine, reflecting the family’s Swiss-Italian heritage. Order a charcuterie board and stay a while. Keep it carbon neutral by cycling some (or all) of the 50-kilometre O’Keefe Rail Trail to Bendigo.

At Bridgeward Grove , learn about the property’s Old Mission Grove heritage olive trees, do a sommelier olive oil tasting, and stock up on sustainably grown olives and oil. Explore the unique landscape, wildflowers and wildlife of pink cliffs geological reserve.

The best things to do in the Cocos Keeling Islands