The Rich List: why this season has more luxury vessels in Australia than ever before

Australia is seeing more luxury ships coming to our shores than ever. Luxury cruising can offer more value than you think, due to the inclusions. Here’s a rundown on luxury cruises in Australia and some suggested deals worth exploring. Aussies are...

Super-habitats could hold key to shark conservation

In the heart of French Polynesia, a narrow channel carves its way through the Fakarava Atoll, connecting a vast lagoon to the open ocean. To the casual eye, it’s a beautiful stretch of turquoise water. To a thriving community of grey reef sharks,...

Antarctic diplomacy in plain English: The MAGA edition

The Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) is where 29 world powers should unite every year to defend what many call Earth’s last great wilderness. But the new report from ATCM 2025, staged in scorching Milan from 23 June to 3 July, spans...

Pacific Islands News Roundup – September 19 – 25, 2025

Editor’s Note: We are undergoing a web host migration process and may need to make necessary modifications to our format and frequency over the next several weeks. Thank you in advance for your understanding. Political Leadership and Regionalism,...

Pearl Culture: A remarkable achievement of Cotton University

Silpi Sikha Borah (The writer is a doctoral scholar and an ex-Cottonian from the Department of Zoology.) The Zoology Department of Cotton University, under the leadership of Dr Akalesh Kumar Verma, has been actively engaged in harvesting pearls...

The year of luxury – your guide to luxury cruise for the new 2025/26 season

Australia is seeing more luxury ships coming to our shores than ever before. Luxury cruising can offer more value than you think, due to the inclusions. Here’s a rundown on luxury cruises in Australia and some suggested deals worth exploring....

Kazakh Activists Shine a Light on Nuclear Fallout

Kazakhstan is surrounded by nuclear neighbors — Russia to the north and west, China to the east, and India and Pakistan to the south. Until 1995, when it completed a year’s long multi-nation effort to disassemble and remove the Soviet nuclear...

Seasteading is making a comeback — but these utopian paradises on the high seas have a history of failure

Wayne Gramlich was there at the very beginning of the Internet. While still in high school in the mid-1970s, the now 69-year-old managed to access the nascent technology — then called the ARPANET — and he decided on MIT for college because it was...

Luxury Travel Advisors Reveal the 5 Biggest Travel Trends for 2026

5 Travel Trends That Will Be Huge in 2026 mariusz_prusaczyk - Getty ImagesFor travel lovers, the world awaits like never before, according to the experts at Virtuoso. The global travel agency network, which annually surveys its members, offers its...

Region Codes: The Hidden Trap in Your DVD and Blu-ray Collection

Just as it seemed like physical media like DVDs and Blu-rays were about to disappear, the failures of the streaming industry has led to the rediscovery of media ownership. The thing is, if you didn't come up with DVDs and Blu-ray discs, you might...

5 Travel Trends That Will Be Huge in 2026

For travel lovers, the world awaits like never before, according to the experts at Virtuoso. The global travel agency network, which annually surveys its members, offers its latest look into 2026 and beyond—and it’s a tantalizing one. The...

5 Travel Trends That Will Be Huge in 2026, According to Luxury Travel Advisors

For travel lovers, the world awaits like never before, according to the experts at Virtuoso. The global travel agency network, which annually surveys its members, offers its latest look into 2026 and beyond—and it’s a tantalizing one. The...

The Quiet Luxury of the Sea

For a growing circle of travellers, that is the point. Luxury yacht chartering has evolved from status symbol to sanctuary, a private world where days are designed around your rhythms and the map is edited in real time. Much of this shift comes...

Florida's Answer To Bora Bora Is A Diver's Dream With More Than 350 Miles Of Pristine Coral Reefs

It will come as no surprise that the stunning French Polynesian island group of Bora Bora, with its beautiful beaches, is a paradise for snorkeling and diving, with warm, clear waters, an abundance of marine wildlife to spot, and, of course,...

14 winning images from the Ocean Photographer of the Year awards

Soaring orcas, curious grey whales, and a toothy alligator—the 2025 Ocean Photographer of the Year awards showcase the enchanting beauty of Earth’s waters. Indonesia-based photographer Yury Ivanov took top honors for his image (seen below) of two...

Partial solar eclipse 2025 to eerily dim the Sun today: How to watch it

A rare celestial event will unfold this Sunday as a partial solar eclipse coincides with a darkened appearance of the Moon, offering skywatchers in select regions a striking display. Unlike the dramatic total eclipse where the Moon completely...

The best cruises to tick off your travel bucket list

Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our...

Paul Gauguin Reveals Guest Lineup for Thanksgiving Sailing

Thanksgiving on the m/s Paul Gauguin will be brimming with arts and culture, as Paul Gauguin Cruises welcomes four special guests to the 10-night “More Tuamotus and Society Islands” sailing—a celebratory occasion during the line’s first year...

Record dengue fever outbreaks challenge Pacific health systems

Dengue fever continues to surge across the Pacific, reaching record levels and pushing health systems to their limits. Since January, more than 16,500 cases and at least 17 deaths have been reported in the region, according to the Pacific...

Silicon Valley wanted to build floating libertarian paradises on the ocean. The plan failed — but now seasteading is back

Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our...