Pacific Islands
Bound by mountains to the north and Port Phillip Bay to the south, Melbourne, Australia’s fastest growing city, sprawls 9,000 kilometres, surrounded by pristine beaches and rugged coastlines, scenic mountains, forests, historic towns, wineries, and Australian wildlife. Melbourne is home to the Australian Open Tennis, Formula One Grand Prix, Spring Racing Carnival, Australian Rules Football [...]
You’re going to love Vanuatu. But it’s not just a decadent escape with balmy breezes and gourmet food. It’s also home to several best-in-the-world experiences that very few people know about: a luxury liner, like the Titanic, shipwrecked in clear diveable water; the world’s most accessible active volcano on the island of Tanna; a giant [...]
In a stunning approach from the air, the islets of tiny Tuvalu appear like a mirage in the vastness of the Pacific. Barely higher than the surrounding ocean, and capped with a fringe of coconut palms, it’s easy to understand why rising sea level due to global warming is a major concern here. Time moves [...]
The Kingdom of Tonga is perched just east of the international date line: when it’s a fun-packed Saturday at the beach in Samoa, it’s already time for Sunday prayers in Tonga. Thus it’s said, most often by the island’s tourism industry, that Tonga is ‘the place where time begins’. Others, perhaps observing the pace of [...]
Timor Leste is located in the eastern part of Timor, an island in the Indonesian archipelago that lies between the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. Timor Leste includes the enclave of Oecussi, which is surrounded by West Timor (Indonesia). Portugal colonised the territory in 1749 and remained there until 1975 when independence was [...]
The Solomons remains an undiscovered gem for adventure travellers, divers and those seeking an authentic Melanesian experience. Flee the dusty streets of Honiara after a quick bite to eat and maybe a wander through the museum, and hit the water. In the Western Province, coral islands encircle huge lagoons, volcanoes bubble away underwater, locals practise [...]
Samoa has some of the most beautiful and enticing islandscapes in the South Pacific. It’s an opinion few travellers will disagree with once they’ve spent a few weeks rattling up steep rocky trails to stare into the overgrown maws of extinct craters, swished their way through the lush undergrowth of sprawling plantations to clamber into [...]
PNG can be challenging. With almost no tourism infrastructure and limited information available in books and on websites, it can feel like you’re stepping into the great unknown. But this is exactly why travellers find this country so compelling. Nothing is contrived for tourists and every experience is authentic – even the main island of [...]
A spectacular 400 mile long strand of pearls laid across blue sea best describes this jewel of the Pacific. Made of limestone coral reefs lifted above sea level and undercut by ocean currents which over time have notched the basis so that from the air they look like giant mushrooms, the Republic of Palau, in [...]
When you’re the world’s smallest independent nation you’re allowed to be different – and Niue (new-ay) is very different. Don’t expect the standard Pacific island experience: you won’t be relaxing on palm-fringed beaches here, because there aren’t any. Leave your idleness at home and bring a sense of adventure instead. Discover the mystery of the [...]
