Island Life … What is it in our opinion? There is nothing better than that. But what are the actual largest islands in the world?
We have figured it out and set this Top 10 Largest Islands in the World list together.
10. Ellesmere Island (Canada, 196 236 km2)
Ellesmere Island is located in the far north of Canada, in the Arctic Ocean. In 2001, the island had only 168 inhabitants and therefore Ellesmere Island is the most sparsely populated inhabited island in the world.
Large parts of the island are covered by ice and more than a fifth of the island is protected as Quttinirpaaq National Park, where you’ll find seven fjords and several glaciers. On the island, there are three settlements: Alert, Eureka, and Grise Fiord.
Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Alert says it is the northernmost settlement in the world. After the end of the Cold War and inventing technologies that made the measurement of weather conditions at large distances, the overwintering population has fallen to 50 persons.
9. Scottish Highlands United Kingdom (UK 216 777 km2)
It is sometimes a bit confusing, but the island of Great Britain consists of England, Scotland and Wales. Together with Northern Ireland they officially back the country UK.
Britain is ideal for taking breaks to cities such as London, Edinburgh or Liverpool, but you can also make great road trips along, for instance, the Wales Coast Path or the Scottish highlands. The only downside is the unpredictable and often rainy weather.
8. Victoria Island (Canada, 217 291 km2)
Victoria Island is one of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and is just as Ellesmere Island in the Arctic Ocean.
In the west, it is separated by the Strait Prince of Wales Island Bank. After Baffin Island, it is the largest island in Canada.
There are approximately 1,700 people on Victoria Island; it is due to the arctic climate 10 to 11 months of winter and first spring month. A destination for real winter lovers so.
7. Honshu (Japan, 227 962 km2)
Honshu is the largest island of Japan and it is called the mainland. It is south of Hokkaido and north of Shikoku. With over 98 million inhabitants, it is the second most populated island in the world, after Java.
Also, the world’s largest agglomerations are here called Greater Tokyo, where 25 percent of the total Japanese population live.
Honshu is a mountainous and volcanic island where frequent earthquakes happened in past. The highest peak is the active volcano Mount Fuji at 3776 meters.
In the north of Honshu it is fairly cold, but in the south it is subtropical. Other major cities on Honshu are in addition to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Hiroshima and Nagoya. During a tour of Japan Honshu is a place that can never be missed.
6. Sumatra (Indonesia, 443 066 km2)
Sumatra is the largest island of Indonesia and a real dream for nature lovers. You will find volcanoes, rain forests, beautiful beaches and unusual species such as the orangutan. The pristine jungle with the traditional strains of Sumatra forms a contrast to the busy capital Medan.
You can do trekking in Sumatra going through the rainforest (highlight: the Gunung Leuser National Park!), Surfing and diving in clear waters, sniffing culture and meet unusual animals.
It is a great island for anyone who wants to get away from mass tourism and want to know the real Indonesia.
5. Baffin Island (Canada, 507 451 km2)
Baffin Island is also part of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and is the largest island in Canada. The island is named after the British explorer William Baffin.
There is an arctic climate on Baffin Island, which is separated by the Baffin Bay Greenland. The winters are extremely cold, so there are no water pipes on the island because that would freeze too quickly. Still, there are 11,000 of people living on Baffin Island.
4. Avenue of the Baobabs, Madagascar (587 713 km2)
The island of Madagascar lies in the Indian Ocean and is unique. Officially it belongs to Africa, but because it is so far from the mainland, you will find there are animals, plants and trees that are endemic to Madagascar.
For nature lovers, Madagascar is the place to be visited. So you will find beautiful National Parks full of lemurs, chameleons, unique Uplands rock formations and of course the exotic baobab trees.
You can also find lovely beaches and smaller islands nearby such as Nosy Be and Île Sainte-Marie, where you can spot humpback whales!
3. Borneo Asia (Indonesia / Malaysia / Brunei, 743 330 km2)
Borneo is located in Southeast Asia and is divided among Indonesia and Malaysia. Also, the small independent state of Brunei, it spreads quite huge by touching these 3 countries.
The southernmost and largest part belongs to Indonesia and is officially called Kalimantan. To the north, there lies Malaysian Borneo.
The island is known for its pristine rainforests, colorful coral reefs, white sandy beaches, the orangutan, people with age-old traditions and the smaller tropical islands. The island is especially popular with nature lovers, adventurers and divers.
2. New Guinea (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, 785 753 km2)
New Guinea also belongs in part to Indonesia (western part) and the eastern part of Papua New Guinea, which also comprises several islands further to the east.
New Guinea is known for its great cultural diversity and unique flora and fauna. On the island, there are more than 1,000 different groups.
Many of these groups live in the rugged inaccessible interior with impenetrable forests in the tropical coastal strip, where you can find beautiful sandy beaches and beautiful coral reefs.
1. Ilulissat Greenland (Denmark, 2.1308 million km2)
You might expect that Australia is the biggest island in the world, but because Australia is so large and unique with plant and animal life, that it is been considered as a continent. The same is true for Antarctica, which is bigger than Australia and Europe together.
Greenland is admittedly too large but has the same habitat characteristics as North America and is therefore not seen as a continent.
It is a huge white polar country, known for its endless ice and snow-covered mountains. Greenland is an autonomous region within the Kingdom of Denmark.
Only a few pieces coast and a handful of smaller islands buried under ice, there are only a few habitable areas. You can do kayaking along the fjords in Greenland, take a ride on a snowmobile or dogsled to Cape Farewell, or do a course in ice climbing to discover nature in a different way.
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