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A diminutive town with plenty to offer
The Falklands’ British heritage is realised through red telephone boxes and traditional English pubs in Stanley, plus the familiar Victorian architecture of the police station and town hall. These buildings nestle alongside pretty houses with brightly coloured roofs and decorated woodwork - a common spectacle on the islands.
You can find out more about the Falklands, including the 1982 conflict, at the Historic Dockside Museum. Elsewhere, be sure to pay a visit to Christ Church Cathedral, a place of worship guarded by the Whalebone Arch. One of the islands’ most iconic landmarks, the arch was constructed from the jawbones of two blue whales in 1933.
Witness penguins in the wild
There are probably more penguins than people on the Falkland Islands – and your visit to Stanley will give you the rare opportunity to see them in the wild. Around 45 minutes away from the town by car is the Bluff Cove Lagoon, home to more than 3,000 Gentoo penguins and a colony of King penguins; the beach has seasonal visits from Magellanic, Rockhopper and Macaroni varieties too. You may even be lucky and have one of these inquisitive birds come up and say hello! Enjoy a drink in the Sea Cabbage Café and have a wander around the Bluff Cove Museum afterwards.
Revel in the majestic night sky
For a breath-taking experience that’s completely free, simply take the time to go outside when it’s dark - and look up. Thanks to the Falkland Islands’ lack of light pollution, you could well be in a planetarium when you do so. You’re likely to spot a shooting star or two and you may catch a glimpse of the International Space Station on a clear night. From this southern hemisphere vantage point, you’ll be able to see Alpha Centauri, the third brightest star in the sky, plus the Carina and Centaurus constellations. Be sure to watch out for Orion like you’ve never seen it before – upside down!
