Christmas is an Island

(5/31/2004)

Commencing June 5, 2004, Austasia Airlines will be operating a Boeing 737-400 weekly flight service between Bali and Australia's Christmas Island.

Located just 360 kilometers south of Indonesia's island of Java, Christmas Island is a short 1 hour 45 minute flight from Bali. The new air service will fly every Saturday, leaving Bali at 1510 hours and landing in Christmas Island at 1555 hours local time. The northbound flight leave Christmas Island at 1635 hours, landing in Bali at 1920 hours.

A Very Special Island

Christmas Island is a jewel in the Indian Ocean offering relaxation and the ideal holiday for nature lovers. 63% of the island's 135 square kilometers is designated National Park and the island is home to unique flora and fauna that have developed in relative isolation and are found nowhere else in the world.

Situated in one of the deepest Oceans, divers can explore miles of underwater walls – rich in fish and coral species. The island's waters are also home to a large number of spinner dolphins and are frequently visited by mammoth whale sharks, who, despite the ferocity implied by their name, are harmless and happy companions to divers and snorkelers they encounter swimming near the island.

As you might expect, the waters surrounding Christmas island are a fisherman's or fisherwoman's dream.

One of Nature's most unusual phenomena is the yearly migration of the more than 100 million land crabs who make Christmas Island their home. Present on the island the year round, these gigantic crabs annually migrate en masse from the plateau to the island's shoreline in a ritual of breeding and spawning. Like a scene from a Hollywood "B" horror movie, the paved roads of the island literally disappear for days beneath a seemingly endless carpet of marching crabs.

For obvious reasons, shoes are recommended when the crabs are on the move and a golf ball claimed by a amorous crab incurs no penalty shot on the Island's popular golf course.

Special Introductory Package Prices Through July 31

To celebrate the new flight connections between Bali and Christmas Island, special 7 night packages including round trip flights from US$ 517 are available. The island has a wide range of accommodation options to suite every taste and budget.

Space at hotels and on the aircraft are limited. Follow the link to obtain on-line information and make reservations.

[Christmas Island Website]