Bellona Island

Bellona is a raised coral island south of Guadalcanal, a plateau ringed by cliffs with a fertile interior basin farmed in gardens, about ten kilometres long and two and a half wide, its cliffs thirty to seventy metres high, and its people are Polynesian, sharing a Polynesian language with Rennell rather than the Melanesian tongues of the main islands; its own name is Mungiki. Caves in the limestone hold burials and old settlement sites. There are no beaches to speak of, only cliff. Rennell lies alongside it and the two are administered together as a single province.

Highlights

• The raised plateau - a coral island lifted clear of the sea, ringed by cliff.
• The interior gardens - the fertile basin the island lives on.
• The Polynesian community - language and culture distinct from the main group.
• The limestone caves - burial and settlement sites in the rock.

When to go

May to October is the drier season. Flights are small and irregular in any month. The wet season brings squalls that cancel them.

Before you go

Access is a small plane running irregularly and cancellations are normal. There are no beaches and no resort of any kind; visitors stay with families. Bring what you need.

Nearby

Rennell is southeast, and Honiara is north.

Key facts