On the island of Tristan da Cunha there is a police cell and a police officer.
And that’s enough.
After all, it’s not like anyone can escape – it’s the world’s most remote inhabited island, 2,787 kilometers (1,732 miles) from the nearest mainland – the southwest coast of South Africa – there are no flights in or out and Passenger ships arrive only nine times a year.
Despite the isolation, local Kelly Green tells MailOnline Travel she loves her life there and reveals the feeling of security is a definite plus point.
She reveals: ‘Now I’m sitting at work and my house is open. I’m not afraid of anyone stealing from me or anything like that. There are some minor crimes but there has never been a murder in Tristan. I don’t think anyone’s been locked in the cell since I’ve been here.
The island’s only police officer is known as ‘Rockhopper Copper’, a reference to the northern rockhopper penguins that frequent Tristan da Cunha. If there was a serious crime, Kelly says the suspect would have to be transported to St. Helena, the closest neighboring island to Tristan Da Cunha (1,300 miles/2,100 km to the north).
“It’s really not that easy” to leave the 207 square kilometer/79 square mile island, emphasizes Kelly, who moved to Tristan da Cunha from the United Kingdom in 2013.
He continues: ‘The boats (to Cape Town) we normally travel on will only carry 12 passengers and will only arrive nine times a year. If you are a family of four and you want to leave, that is equivalent to taking up four places and there could also be expatriate workers who need to return.’
Tristan da Cunha is the most remote inhabited island in the world

Kelly Green, who moved to Tristan da Cunha in 2013, told MailOnline what it is like to live in Tristan da Cunha.

Tristan da Cunha is 2,787 km/1,732 miles from the nearest mainland, the southern coast of South Africa.
There’s no possibility of an airport, but Kelly says, “We’re looking at making Tristan a little more accessible with more boats.”
Currently, the trip to Cape Town by boat usually takes six days.
The fact that the island is an active volcano that reaches a height of 2,062 m/6,670 ft above sea level adds to the otherworldliness of life there.
And this obviously means that the population lives under a constant threat to their lives.
The last eruption was in 1961 (one microsecond ago in geological time) and meant that the entire island had to be evacuated to the UK.
Kelly explains: “They were away for a couple of years and most of them came back. They didn’t really like England.
Some more recently born Islanders have “never left”, Kelly reveals, although they “try to get out of Tristan every couple of years” to visit family and friends in the UK.
The island’s remote location means Tristan da Cunha’s 236 residents may face a long wait for supplies.
Kelly says: ‘We are quite self-sufficient as a farming and fishing community and grow most of our meat, eggs and vegetables ourselves. But we depend on supplies from Cape Town for things like tea, coffee, sweets, flour etc. You could be planning to do or build something, or something could go wrong with your car and you’ll have to wait several months to receive a part. This can sometimes be frustrating. There is no Amazon Prime.
Imported products can also be expensive.

Tristan da Cunha is an active volcano that reaches a height of 2,062 m/6,670 ft above sea level.

The island’s remote location means Tristan da Cunha’s 236 residents may face a long wait for supplies.

Tristan da Cunha is a farming and fishing community and residents grow their own meat, eggs and vegetables.

Tristán da Cunha suffers “hurricane winds” in winter
Kelly reveals: ‘There are some subsidized items, but it’s mainly a 75 per cent markup if the item is from Cape Town. If we source the item from the UK, it has a 95 percent markup, so it can make the product very expensive. For example, olive oil per minute costs around £10 ($12.64) for a fairly small bottle.’
What’s more, since the islanders are mostly self-sufficient, people don’t earn very well.
Kelly explains: “Even the best paid job costs around half the minimum wage in the UK.”
Another challenge is the island’s “wild” climate.
Kelly says that Tristan da Cunha experiences “hurricane winds in winter”, and most people live in bungalows as they can withstand the winds more easily.
And he adds: “Our port only works about 70 days a year.”
But while life on the world’s most remote inhabited island is challenging and unique, many aspects of it are remarkably normal.
Kelly reveals that residents can watch TV shows and movies, drink in a pub and a variety of jobs are on offer.
Kelly, who works in the island’s tourist office, explains: ‘We have all kinds of jobs, everything you would think a community would need to be functional. Teachers, nurses, banking staff, carpenters, electricians and plumbers.
However, there is a difference. Tristan da Cunha’s main source of income is the Tristan rock lobster, in the collection and processing of which each islander participates.
Kelly says: ‘People usually have their government jobs, then go to work in the fish factory or become fishermen for a day. My husband is a carpenter but on a fishing day, he is a fisherman. I’ll do my normal daily job and when the boats return in the afternoon, I’ll go process the fish.’

Kelly explains: “There’s not a lot of free time because here you get up pretty early, then you go to your government job, and then after your government job, you usually tend to your animals, your potato fields, your vegetable gardens.” “.
So if you think life on a remote island would leave you with endless free time, think again.
Kelly explains: “Surprisingly, there’s not a lot of free time because here you get up pretty early, then you go to your government job, and after your government job you usually tend to your animals, your potato fields, and your vegetables”.
Unsurprisingly, much of the free time residents have is spent outdoors.
Kelly says: ‘A lot of people like to do braais (barbecues). There is a swimming pool, so the kids love it in the summer. People also like to go to the beach and we do a lot of hiking in the mountains.’
Residents and cruise tourists also love spending time on neighboring Nightingale Island (25 miles from Tristan), Kelly explains.
She says: ‘There is just a huge amount of wildlife. Sometimes you can barely move: you stand on a rock and you’re surrounded by penguins and seals.’
Aside from the wildlife, the volcano is the island’s main attraction.
Kelly says, “You can walk up there and you’ll have spectacular views of the settlement.”
And when the weather is bad, residents now have an Internet connection powerful enough to watch Netflix.
Kelly says: ‘We’re in our second month of having Starlink Internet (a satellite Internet service), so for the first time we can watch Netflix. Before, if I wanted to download a game on my phone I had to leave it overnight, now it’s like a second.’
Although the island has no restaurant and Kelly says he “really misses being able to go out to eat”, Tristan da Cunha does have a shop and the pub, The Albatross Bar, is “full of locals on the weekends” and “very popular with locals.” tourists, who love to say that they have been able to have a beer there.
The islanders’ favorite drinks? Beer and whiskey, according to pub manager Randall Repetto.
Kelly continues: “It’s a very social life because everyone knows everyone.”
Although there are occasional disputes within the “tight-knit” community, he explains that “people get over them very quickly, as it’s not like anyone can be avoided.”
The expatriate workers are the only outsiders living on the island and include the doctors working at Tristan da Cunha’s only hospital, the Camogli Health Centre.
Kelly says: ‘It’s a really nice and comfortable hospital. It’s quite modern, we don’t have big CT scans or MRIs, so the doctors here can only do minor surgeries like appendicitis, maybe some hernias. For anything important, we have to move to Cape Town. A dentist also visits the island once a year and there is a trained local hygienist.
So what’s the best thing about the remote island lifestyle?
Kelly says: “The best part about Tristan is definitely the freedom you feel here, the safety you feel here and the beauty of the island. It depends on what you like, but I love being surrounded by wildlife and my farm animals ‘Just knowing that my kids are safe and can just run outside. It’s a nice feeling to have that.’ I’m sure it’s not for everyone, but it’s definitely unique.’