South Pacific: Part Three

Tonga, Vanuatu, and more Australia

Neiafu, Tonga (Vava’u Island)

After five long, rolling sea days and jumping the international date line again, we arrived in Neiafu, Tonga. We went to bed on January 24 and woke up on January 26; January 25 just vanished for us.  We arrived late afternoon and by the time we were cleared to tender it was already almost 5pm.  The last tender back to the ship was set for 7pm, so we decided not to bother.  This added our sixth sea day, but at least we were in a protected anchorage, and I finally felt a little better.

The next day we headed to shore and went to check out the Mt Talau National Park.  We hiked up a long set of stairs to reach the top of the flat plateau.  There were some great views with a couple of observation decks.  There was supposed to be four decks in total, but we were only able to locate two of them.  Afterwards, we wandered through town for a bit before heading back to the ship.  Neiafu is the largest city on the island of Vava’u and the second largest city in Tonga, but it’s still only home to about 4000 people. 

Nuku’alofa, Tonga (Tongatapu Island)

Our next stop in Tonga was Nuku’alofa which is the largest city as well as the capital of Tonga.   The best part is we were able to dock here, no tendering!  We spent the first day wandering around the city looking for supplies for a scrapheap boat building challenge that Mike was planning to enter.  It was next level hot out, so we didn’t explore for as long as we would have liked.

There is a sidewalk that runs along the coast for quite a way, so on our second day we followed that for a while and then walked back along the beach.  We checked out the Royal Palace of Tonga which is closed to the public because it is home to the current monarch, King Tupou VI.  We also walked by the Royal Tombs, the ruins of Centennial Church and the Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua.

Our next stop was originally supposed to be in New Caledonia; however, they decided they didn’t want to grant us entrance with cats onboard.  The itinerary was altered and we are now headed back to Port Vila for another couple of days.

Port Vila, Vanuatu

After three much calmer sea days and a successful boat project we arrived back in Vanuatu.  Mike’s scrapheap, the SV Alumina, didn’t win, but he did an amazing job!

On our first day back in Port Vila, we walked an hour through the city to reach Gaston Chocolat.  They used to have a café before the earthquake in 2024, but now they just sell chocolate from their warehouse.  We were the only ones there, so they took the time to walk us through the process, and we were able to taste all the flavours of chocolate they make.  Gaston Chocolat partnered with 83 Islands Distillery to create a rum chocolate bar.  They soak the cacao nibs in 83 Islands Rum for six months before blending in down into a bar.  It was delicious with just a light hint of rum.

The next day we walked the other direction for a while, but it was super sunny and hot, so we turned back and headed to the grocery store to stock up on snacks for our next round of sea days.  We have five more days at sea before we will reach Australia.

Cairns, Australia

After five long, but luckily smooth sea days we arrived back in Cairns.  We spent the first day wandering around the downtown area and shopping for snacks and essentials.  In the evening, we went out for nachos.  It was a pretty quiet day, but we still managed to walk almost 25 000 steps.

The next day we walked to the Flecker Botanic Gardens where we explored the Rainforest Boardwalk.  I was only slightly panicked by the signs indicating recent crocodile sightings in the area.  From there we explored the Cairns Botanic Gardens and into Mount Whitfield Conservation Park.  We tried to complete the Red Arrow hike to a look out, but unfortunately the viewpoint was under construction.  We went a bit further onto the Blue Arrow looking for the next viewpoint, but it was also under construction.  It was still a good day and once again over 27 000 steps this time.  We finished off the day with some delicious dumplings.  The ship received provisions today, but it was nice to eat off the ship for a few days.

Townsville, Australia

A quick overnight sail brought us to Townsville where we have three days to explore.  We arrived around noon and by the time we had clearance to leave the ship it was early afternoon, but we decided to check out the Strand (the waterfront beach area).  There were several stunning beaches, but there are dangerous stingers (jellyfish) in the water, so no one was swimming. There were a couple of sections along the beach where they've installed nets in the water to create safer swim zones. We walked along the beaches and parks to Kissing Point Fort and then along a boardwalk to Jezzine Barracks Park.  Initially we had planned on a shorter day, but Townsville really delivered and we kept finding more and more to explore. 

The next day we took the ferry over to Magnetic Island where we hiked over to a point where there were supposed to be rock wallabies.  We caught a glimpse of one, but I think it was just too hot out and they were chilling in the shade elsewhere.  Afterwards, we hiked the Forts Walking Track to see if we could spot some koalas which were introduced to the island.  There was one koala that we spotted hanging out in the trees along the track and the views from the trail were pretty great as well.  We hopped on the bus back down to the ferry terminal and ended up seeing several more wallabies just down from the terminal before we caught the ferry back to Townsville.

For our final day (according to Mike) we had to climb Castle Hill which sits in the middle of Townsville.  It is 14 meters too short to be deemed a mountain, but it still sits over 280 meters above the city.  We took the Walker Street Steps up to the Goat Track and climbed up over 1300 steps to reach the top.  The heat was killer and we had to take frequent breaks.  There are several great lookouts at the top, but we only had time to check out the Summit track because a decent thunderstorm was rolling in.  As the sky rumbled and turned black behind the mountain, we decided it would be in our best interest to hustle down before the storm arrived.  Luckily it was much quicker going down, and we reached the city just as the rain started.  On the way back to the ship, we stopped at Tiny Mountain Brewery for a celebratory pint.

After five days of over 20 000 steps each day I have to say I’m looking forward to our sea days on the way to Sydney.  My feet need a break!

Sydney, Australia

After four more sea days (it turns out Australia is massive) we arrived in Sydney.  Maps are clearly not to scale since Australia covers almost the same amount of area as the lower 48 states.  We sailed under the Sydney Harbour Bridge at about 9am and we were alongside by 10am.  Unfortunately, we were docked quite far from the CBD (Central Business District) of Sydney.  After leaving the cruise terminal we walked about 35 minutes to a ferry that dropped us off at Circle Quay right in the heart of Sydney.  From here we walked around the iconic Opera House, explored the Royal Botanic Gardens and Hyde Park, and wandered past St. Mary’s Cathedral and the Anzac Memorial.  Sydney is incredibly beautiful and full of green spaces.  The mix of old and new architecture is fascinating.  At this point we decided to walk back to the ship which took about an hour, and it rained off and on most of the time.  We walked across the Anzac Bridge but couldn’t take photos because of the rain.

The second day we took two busses across the city to Bondi Beach and walked the coastal trail from Bondi to Coogee Beach.  It was about six kilometers of coastal views and various beaches.  The landscape was stunning and the beach areas were interesting.  We saw a lot of pools along the coast which offer a safe way to enjoy the water.  We took the train back from Coogee Beach to Town Hall and then walked back to the ship again.  This time we were able to get some pictures as we crossed the Anzac bridge.

On our final day we took the bus back into the CBD and walked from Darling Harbour to Circular Quay before exploring the shopping on Pitt Street.  We wandered through downtown admiring the stunning old buildings.  From here we went to Chinatown, the Wentworth Park Greyhounds track, and the Sydney Fish Market.  Afterward we walked back to the ship along the other side of the bay on a beautiful waterfront path through multiple parks. 

I’m not much of a big city person, but Sydney really blew me away.  It was absolutely beautiful with so much to see and do.  Public transportation is affordable and easy to use, and the city is very walkable.  We will definitely be back because three days wasn’t nearly enough to see everything Sydney has to offer.

This concludes our South Pacific Segment and marks the beginning of the New Zealand & Australia Segment even though our itinerary included some stops in Australia already.  We have a five-day sail to reach New Zealand where we plan to disembark for a few days to see some friends.  We’ve spent extensive time in New Zealand and are excited to be back.