INSURANCE
Travel insurance is essential; please make arrangements with your travel agent when making your bookings.
THE VENUE
The Bowling Club is in the heart of the shopping centre, only a three or four minute drive from the Airport. Norfolk is a very small island, and nowhere is more than ten minutes drive from anywhere else.
MEDICAL and DENTAL
Norfolk Island has a 23-bed hospital which provides a dental clinic, physiotherapy services, pharmacy and 24-hour emergency service. Phone: +6723 22091. Australian Medicare does not extend to Norfolk Island.
LANGUAGE
English is spoken on Norfolk but you’ll also hear the locals speaking Norf’k, a unique language derived from the speech of the Bounty Mutineers and their Tahitian wives who settled Pitcairn Island in 1790. It has a lilting quality, very pleasant on the ear. The United Nations has added Norf’k to its list of endangered languages.
CLIMATE
One of Norfolk’s many blessings is a subtropical climate. Average maximums from 18º-19ºC in winter; 23º-25º in summer. Average rainfall is 1328mm per year with average humidity in the 74%-79% range. Wettest months are May to August; driest November to January. Bring a jacket for the cooler evenings.
TIME
Norfolk is 1½ hours ahead of Australian Eastern Standard time. During summertime, ½ hour ahead of Sydney and 1½ behind New Zealand.
CURRENCY
Norfolk uses Australian dollars. Travellers cheques and most credit cards are widely accepted. There are branches of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Banking Corporation in Burnt Pine; a Commonwealth Bank ATM, as well as some limited EFTPOS.
CUSTOMS
Imports of fruit, vegetables, flowers and seeds are prohibited. Pork and poultry from New Zealand are also prohibited. The duty-free allowance for passengers over 18 years of age is 2.25 litres of alcohol and 250grams of tobacco products.
DRIVING
Driving is on the left-hand side of the road and livestock has right of way. Speed limit is 50kph except in the shopping centre and the heritage area at Kingston, where the limit is 40kph. Locals give a friendly “Norfolk Wave” to all passing vehicles. You are encouraged to do the same.
TRANSPORT
There is no public transport, although there is one taxi. A car is often included in accommodation packages; insurance and petrol are the only costs. Otherwise rental cars are readily available from around $30 per day.
ELECTRICITY
240 volts ac, 50 cycles, using a 3-pin Australian-style plug. Electricity generally is excellent, but is produced by diesel generators. A surge protection device for delicate electronic equipment, particularly computers, is recommended.
KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH HOME
As well as public phones, most accommodation houses have international or mobile phones, internet access or there are internet cafes and hot spots.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any enquiries or need further information – full contact details are at the top of this information sheet. Norfolk Island offers many attractions for visitors and full information can be found at
