The most remote anchorages in the world have three things in common: no airport, no marina infrastructure, and no commercial operator who services them regularly. They are remote because they are genuinely difficult to reach and because the remoteness that makes them difficult to reach is the same remoteness that keeps them in the condition that makes them worth reaching.
The self-sufficient offshore sailing vessel, its own water, its own fuel, its own anchor, its own compressor for the diving, is the vessel type that reaches these anchorages as a matter of standard operation rather than exceptional achievement.
The Naora circumnavigation route was designed to include the most remote and the most extraordinary anchorages of each ocean chapter. Here are the ten most remote anchorages on the route, what makes each one worth the passage that reaches it, and how far it is from the nearest infrastructure that the conventional traveller depends on.
The Ten Most Remote Anchorages On The Naora Route
| Anchorage | Ocean | Distance from nearest infrastructure | What is there | Why it is worth it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aldabra Atoll, Seychelles | Indian Ocean | 1,100 Nm from Mahé | 100,000 giant tortoises, UNESCO heritage, research station only | The most remote UNESCO site in the Indian Ocean, no resort, no airport |
| Outer Tuamotu lagoon, French Polynesia | Pacific | 400 Nm from Papeete | Uninhabited coral ring, 30m visibility, nesting seabirds | The lagoon in its natural state before the tourism infrastructure arrived |
| Dahlak Archipelago, Eritrea | Red Sea | Remote Eritrean coast, permit required | Undived coral reefs, no commercial diving operation | The most undived significant coral in the Red Sea, 60 years of protection by political isolation |
| Minerva Reef, South Pacific | Pacific | 450 Nm from Tonga | Submerged atoll, only visible at low tide | One of the most isolated anchorages in the Pacific, no land, just the reef ring |
| Brothers Islands, Egypt | Red Sea | 70 Nm offshore from Egyptian coast | Lighthouse station only, no tourist infrastructure | The finest Red Sea dive sites at dawn with no liveaboard competition |
| Rodrigues Island, Mauritius | Indian Ocean | Approximately 302 Nm east of Mauritius | Small population, minimal tourism | The lagoon that the Mauritian tourist circuit has not found |
| Huahine outer anchorage, Society Islands | Pacific | 170 Nm from Papeete | Traditional Polynesian community, limited tourism | The Society Islands before the resort development |
| Bazaruto outer islands, Mozambique | Indian Ocean | Remote Mozambique coast | Dugong, national park waters | The last significant dugong population in the western Indian Ocean |
| Socotra, Arabian Sea | Indian Ocean/Arabian Sea | Approximately 130 Nm from Yemen | Dragon blood trees, 90% endemic reptile species | The Galapagos of the Indian Ocean, conditional on security assessment |
| Flint Island, Kiribati | Pacific | 700 Nm from nearest inhabited island | Uninhabited, nesting seabirds, pristine reef | One of the most isolated points in the Pacific on the circumnavigation route |
Reaching the anchorages above requires the self-sufficient offshore sailing vessel. Aboard Discovery, our 2025 Lagoon Eighty2, we carry the water-maker, the diesel reserve, the onboard compressor, and the anchor system that the remote anchorage requires. Sven, our founder and captain, plans every weather window and sails every leg himself. Antony, our co-founder, manages the permits for restricted anchorages in Aldabra, Dahlak and Socotra as part of the pre-departure preparation. The member who boards for the Indian Ocean chapter or the Pacific chapter or the Red Sea chapter is the member who anchors in these locations. The locations are not the advertisement. They are the anchorages.
The membership tiers that include access to these chapters are described at naora.world. The conversation determines which chapter and which tier is the correct combination for the person who wants to be at anchor at Aldabra or in the outer Tuamotu or in the Minerva Reef when we get there.
