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Kiritimati is served by Fiji Airways flights from Nadi, operating weekly, and occasional charter flights from Honolulu. The flight from Fiji takes approximately three hours. The island has basic tourist accommodation including fishing lodges that can arrange dive trips. Kiritimati sits just north of the equator in the Line Islands chain, roughly halfway between Hawaii and Fiji. Note that Kiritimati in Kiribati is different from Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, which is an Australian territory.

Kiritimati's diving infrastructure is minimal compared to mainstream dive destinations. Several fishing lodges offer diving as a secondary activity, and occasional expedition operators include Kiritimati on Pacific itineraries. Divers should expect to arrange equipment in advance and may need to bring critical items. The lack of established operations means flexibility and self-sufficiency are important. However, the diving potential is extraordinary, with hundreds of kilometres of unexplored outer reef and multiple wreck sites from the World War II and nuclear testing era.

Kiritimati was used by both the United Kingdom and the United States for nuclear weapons testing in the 1950s and 1960s. The British conducted Operation Grapple hydrogen bomb tests in 1957 and 1958, while the US conducted Operation Dominic in 1962. The tests were atmospheric and did not directly damage the reef structure, though the social and health impacts on the local population remain controversial. Today, the nuclear testing legacy is primarily historical, and the reefs have recovered fully. Some remnant military infrastructure from the testing era can be found on the island and underwater.