Vacation In South Pacific
If you are planning to take a vacation in South Pacific or wish to know more about it, pay attention to the following information.
Have you ever dreamed of visiting Fiji or the Pacific Islands? This article will help you learn what to do and where to visit while on your vacation in South Pacific. It’s a big area, so we divide this massive region into the islands of Oceania and the countries of Polynesia. The region of Oceania is made up of Australia, New Zealand, and island countries such as Fiji, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Tonga, and Vanuatu.
South Pacific islands have all the fascinating beauty of their more recognized cousins in Polynesia (Hawaii, Tahiti, Samoa) and Micronesia (Palau, Guam), with many still little known to Western travelers. Once shunned by intrepid explorers because of the torturous typhoons that lashed the islands year-round extremes in weather are no longer an issue for most of these paradises, though you’ll need to bring your rain gear as well as sun lotion since it can be almost perpetually overcast or under clouds on some of the major islands.
South Pacific is a collection of 5 islands located in the north of Fiji and in the middle of Australia.
The South Pacific is an iconic destination with a string of idyllic islands, exotic wildlife, turquoise water and white sandy beaches. It’s no surprise it’s one of the most popular vacation destinations in the world. However, with holiday deals plentiful, choosing the right island can be tricky….
Traveling around the Pacific Islands is only possible once you’ve taken the step to live there. If you’re thinking about visiting, but not living there, it can seem like an impossible dream. However, making that lifestyle – and travel – change is actually quite achievable if you approach it correctly. When you’re looking for a place to visit in the South Pacific, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the number of choices available. But fear not as we’ve narrowed down your options so that you can spend more time relaxing and less time worrying about where to go.
Eye-popping blue waters, palm trees, powdery beaches, and perfect sunny days probably spring to mind when you dream about the fabled islands of the South Pacific. Some of the most beautiful islands in the world lie in this beguiling region, but each of these tropical beauties offers something different.
Vacation In South Pacific
Polynesian island chains like Samoa, the Cook Islands, and French Polynesia offer luminous aqua lagoons, fish-rich coral reefs, and dazzling beaches with silky-soft sands.
Melanesian island chains like Fiji, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia offer a similar brand of natural beauty, but with their own distinct cultures. Palau is a topographic wonderland above and below water, and cultural and archeological attractions are a top draw in destinations like enigmatic Easter Island.
From some of the best islands in Fiji to eco-friendly destinations in Australia, find your kind of paradise with our list of the best islands in the South Pacific.
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1. Bora Bora, French Polynesia
Cloaked in green and encircling an impossibly radiant turquoise lagoon, Bora Bora is the beauty queen of the South Pacific. Glimpsed from afar, the lush peaks of Mount Otemanu and Mount Pahia jut from the sea, with arms outstretched as if to welcome you into their seductive embrace.
Adventures here cover both land and sea. You can explore the lagoon and its tiny islets or motus on cruises, which often include the opportunity to snorkel with sharks and rays, and you can hike a web of trails up jungly hillsides to survey all the beauty. Top it all off with mouthwatering French-inspired food and romantic resorts.
Are you looking for the ultimate honeymoon escape? Both the fancy Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora and the InterContinental Resort & Thalasso Spa offer the island’s famous over-the-water bungalows right on the ravishing lagoon.
Bora Bora’s sister island, Moorea deserves special mention and also boasts a beautiful lagoon, slices of white-sand beach, and plunging emerald peaks.
Accommodation: Top-Rated Resorts in Tahiti
2. Aitutaki, The Cook Islands
Presiding over another of the most beautiful lagoons in the South Pacific, Aitutaki is an underrated jewel. Closely linked to New Zealand, the Cook Islands lie between French Polynesia and Samoa.
Aitutaki is the second-most visited island in the chain and lies about a 45-minute flight away from Rarotonga, the most popular island and location of the international airport.
At its most northern end, the island of Aitutaki hooks around one of the Cook Islands’ top attractions: spectacular Aitutaki lagoon. Uninhabited motus (islets) dot the clear waters within kayak distance from some of the resorts, and schools of trevally and other tropical fish flit through the shallows. You can paddle out with a picnic and pretend you’re Robinson Crusoe for the day.
A string of plush resorts perch along its gleaming shores, including Pacific Resort Aitutaki and Aitutaki Lagoon Resort & Spa, yet the island manages to retain a relaxed and traditional feel, with friendly locals and a snoozy pace of life. Best of all, the Cook Islands are among the cheapest Pacific islands to visit if you choose more modest accommodations.
3. The Mamanuca Islands, Fiji
Dazzling beaches, serene blue seas, and plenty of sunshine make the Mamanucas among Fiji’s best islands. Coral reefs shimmer in the clear waters around these 20 tropical beauties, and the famous Cloud Break, a world-class surf break, lies a short boat ride away.
If you loved the scenery on the movie Cast Away and Survivor Fiji, both of which were filmed on islands in this chain, this is your place. Plus you can enjoy the warm hospitality of the locals, for which Fiji is famous.
Wondering where to stay? You can take your pick from plenty of resorts here, including luxury options like Likuliku Lagoon Resort and Tokoriki Island Resort.
Surfers head to Tavarua Island Resort, and backpackers can bask at the more affordable Beachcomber Island Resort. Most of these islands lie less than an hour away by boat from Denarau Island Marina on the main island of Viti Levu.
Just north of the Mamanuca Islands, the less-developed Yasawa Islands come a close second in the beauty stakes.
Accommodation: Best Family Resorts in Fiji
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- Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in Fiji
4. Samoa
Samoa is one of the South Pacific’s best kept secrets. Unassuming, unsullied, and stunningly beautiful, it lies in the heart of Polynesia. If you look on a South Pacific islands map, you’ll find this alluring archipelago of 10 tropical islands about halfway between New Zealand and Hawaii.
Samoa was born in a dramatic volcanic uprising, creating rugged rock islands and toothy peaks. Lush jungles cloak the hillsides, waterfalls tumble down sheer cliffs, and coral reefs rim the islands’ shores.
Adding to all this natural beauty is the warm hospitality of the locals, who still fiercely cling to their traditional values and customs, called “Fa’a Samoa.”
Savai’i and Upolu are the two main islands. Most visitors stay on Upolu, where Apia, the capital, is home to the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum. But Savai’i offers its own sleepy South Seas charm.
Top aquatic adventures in Samoa include snorkeling and diving on the fringing coral reefs, game fishing, swimming, and kayaking. Surfing is also fantastic, but is best left for more experienced surfers due to the treacherous coral reefs.
On land, you can bask on Lalomanu Beach, hike the rainforest trails, take a 4WD or bicycle sightseeing tour, and photograph some of the South Pacific’s most beautiful waterfalls.
Don’t miss taking a dip in the To Sua trench, about a 1.5-hour drive from Apia. Surrounded by beautiful gardens, this 30-meter-deep crater filled with seawater stars on Samoa postcards and tourist brochures.
Samoa’s accommodations range from rustic huts (fales) on the beach to five-star resorts like Sinalei Reef Resort & Spa.
5. The Solomon Islands
Wondering how the South Pacific used to be, back in the days before rampant tourism and ritzy high-rise resorts? Book a ticket to the Solomon Islands. A three-hour flight from Brisbane, Australia, this idyllic arc of almost 1,000 islands is an eco-tourist’s dream.
Lying between Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu, the Solomons offer a dazzling array of adventures. Snorkel through clouds of tropical fish on kaleidoscopic reefs. Surf your dream wave in Malaita or Tagovave. Catch a giant trevally or a monster mahi mahi. Dive World War 2 shipwrecks. Kayak across crystal-clear lagoons or cruise through croc-filled mangroves on an eco-tour.
Looking for land-based adventures? The options are equally exciting. You can climb an extinct volcano or trek through dense jungles to thundering waterfalls and traditional leaf-hut villages. If history is high on your list of interests, head to Honiara, the capital, where you can explore war sites and World War 2 relics.
The Solomon Islands are also renowned for their rich biodiversity – both in the sea and on land. Dappled with coral reefs, the waters host an astounding variety of sea life, and bird-watching is especially rewarding, with many endemic species to tick off your birding bucket list.
If you’re looking for big chain hotels, you won’t find them here. Instead, accommodation is mostly in charming beachfront bungalows, family-run eco retreats, and village stays – the perfect way to soak up the culture and meet the friendly locals.
6. Palau
Palau is one of the world’s top dive destinations, and for good reason. From the air, the 500 plus islands of Palau are a study in topographic beauty, jutting out of the sea like a maze of jungly blobs, and beneath their limpid turquoise waters lies a fish-rich wonderland.
The multi-hued hard and soft corals are populated by an astounding diversity of marine life, including turtles, sharks, sea snakes, giant clams, and rays. Palau is also known for its WWII wreck diving and the Ngemelis Wall, or Big Drop-Off, reputedly one of the best wall dives in the world.
Though underwater scenery is the star attraction, the islands offer plenty of land adventures. More than three quarters of the land is cloaked in native forest and mangroves, and you can hike to waterfalls and Polynesian stone monuments.
Palau’s main commercial town, Koror, is also home to a few museums and WWII monuments.
One of the top things to do in Palau is take a boat trip to the Rock Islands, where you can snorkel in crystal-clear waters, paddle around them in sea kayaks, and bask on their slivers of white-sand beach.
7. Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu
Vanuatu’s largest island, Espiritu Santo (“Santo” as it’s affectionately called), is one of the prettiest islands in the South Pacific and a top place to visit for adventurers. Wrecks, reefs, and ravishing beaches are the top attractions here, and jungle-based adventures are also high on the list.
Champagne Beach is a must-visit, with its powdery sands and crystal-clear waters, and you can snorkel and dive fertile coral reefs, as well as famous wrecks like the SS President Coolidge from WW II.
Landlubbers will also find plenty of adventures. One of the island’s top adventures is a visit to Millennium Cave, which involves a jungle trek, crossing bamboo bridges, descending deep into a cave, and a swim through a pond and a series of jungly rapids.