France
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
1,139km²
Area
245km
Coastline
106m
Highest point
Kouanopéo
9,195
People
28°C
Warmest sea
February
1,527km
To the mainland
When to go to Lifou Island
Best for the beach from June to July and from September to November.
The sea is warmest in February (28 °C) and coolest in August (24 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in New Caledonia
Lifou Island is an island in France. It belongs to Loyalty Islands. It covers 1,139 km², with 245 km of coastline. Its highest point, Kouanopéo, rises to 106 m. About 9,195 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,527 km away.
Getting there
- Lifou Airport (LIF)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at NOU airport (Nouméa)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- 1,527 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From June to July and from September to Novemberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Lifou Island.
- 23beachesPlage de Kiki, Plage de la baie des tortues, Plage de Luengoni and 20 more
- 2viewpointsMontag View, Falaises
- 1marinasMarina de We Lifou
- 2dive centresWetr Diving, Lagoon Safaris
- 5campsitesTamanou beach, Chez Benoît, Lilo rêve and 2 more
- 16hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 10restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Lifou Island in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Lifou Island, each with its own numbers.
1mountainPeakyas
Highest point
81m
Kouanopéo
according to Peakyas
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 48 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 62 %0–50 m
- 38 %50–200 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
50 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Wé10,375 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 27 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| Sea (°C) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Rain (mm) | 140 | 125 | 203 | 140 | 99 | 88 | 66 | 62 | 49 | 65 | 66 | 88 |
| Wet days | 16 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 13 |
| Sun h/day | 8.5 | 8.2 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.1 | 5.7 | 6.3 | 7.0 | 8.1 | 8.5 | 8.7 | 9.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 23 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 22 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.5 | −0.1 | +0.6 | −0.3 | +0.2 | −0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.5 | −0.2 | +0.4 | +0.9 | +0.4 |
| 2021 | +0.6 | +0.3 | −0.1 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.7 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +1.2 | +1.5 |
| 2022 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +1.5 | +1.6 | +1.6 | +1.5 | +1.1 | +1.7 | +1.9 |
| 2023 | +1.4 | +1.1 | +0.3 | +1.0 | +1.2 | +0.8 | +0.8 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | −0.6 | −0.3 | +0.1 |
| 2024 | +1.0 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.3 | +0.1 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.5 | +0.7 |
| 2025 | +0.2 | −0.3 | −0.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.3 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.0 | +1.9 | +1.1 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Vanuatu
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q18655792) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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