Prison Island

Situated between Home and Direction Islands, Pulu Beras ('rice island') as it is known in Malay, used to be twice its present size and with a hill that was almost the highest point on the islands. The now tiny island housed a prison in the early days of settlement, though little remains of this today except the name.

Prison Island is also a place of legend - the Cocos Malay people say that a mermaid lives there and that she calls back home any Cocos-born people who leave the islands' shores.

Enjoy an easy walk around the island's entire perimeter, bathe in the shallow waters and relax. The Glass-Bottom Boat Tour often includes a stop on Prison Island - enquire with Geof or the Visitor Centre.