MikeVeitch 0 Posted August 9, 2004 I am thinking of going to Vava'u Tonga late Sept. Has anyone been and how is the diving? Also thinking of going to Vanuatu. How is the diving there? Other than the Coolidge wreck... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hge54_old 0 Posted August 30, 2004 I spent a week in Vanuatu in 10/04, and dove out of Port Vila. Compared to Fiji, it was pretty poor diving. There seemed to be mmany more lionfish, but little color , and not much else. A liveaboard might be a better option. Hal Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tonym 0 Posted August 30, 2004 Mike, FYI Vanuatu was whacked by a Cyclone in March of this year. I suspect that it tore up the corals quite a bit. We had a liveaboard chartered for April and it was smacked by a Japanese long liner slipping its anchorage in the Cyclone , had to go to AUS to get repaired. Don't know if it ever returned to Vanuatu Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kestrel 0 Posted September 3, 2004 Hi Mike. I just got back from two weeks in Tonga. I went for the sailing and the whale-watching-- both of which are excellent there-- rather than the diving. But I did bring my dive gear and expected to get in more than the couple of days of diving that I did. (The diving wasn't that bad-- it's just that we were sailing on a small boat, so much of the time we were in the far south and west of the archipelago and out of range of the dive ops) I'd have to say that compared to Indo-Pacific locations such as Fiji or the Solomon Islands, I was definitely underwhelmed by the diving in Tonga. Again, the sailing (there are two charter ops- the usual suspects-- Sunsail and Moorings) is great. There are also half a dozen whale-watching ops there. The draw of course is the humpbacks which congregate in the Vavau region. We saw a lot of whales and whale signs-- some major league tail-slapping exhibitions when we were sailing one day, and also did have a humpback buzz under us during one dive. Yeah, that was amazing. But most of the whale watching is either the conventional sort done from a small boat, or involves the ops that allow you to snorkle with the humpbacks, assuming they can find an amenable humpback. (Some ops allow this and are oriented toward it, other's don't. There is some controversy on this issue. Too much to discuss in this post.) This seems to be the major tourism pull in the area. The two dive ops that are there-- Beluga and Dophin-- both struck me as professional. However, if it's only the diving that's in question, I wouldn't fly through Fiji (which I think you have to do to get to Tonga) to dive in Tonga. I'm sorting through my photos and will probably post a report on a board that's less exclusively underwater oriented, like maybe scubadiving.com. If I do, I'll try to shoot you a link. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeVeitch 0 Posted September 4, 2004 Hey guys, thanks for all the info. Things have changed though. I was going to head down there to work but evidently there is just not enough tourism there to support me... Therefore, heading to Cayman instead. THanks again for the input Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lndr 0 Posted October 14, 2004 Maybe I've missed the boat on this one , but ... Spent two weeks in vanuatu in May. First week in Vila, the diving was average (extremely disapointing diving with Get Wet, better when switched operators to Nautilus) but the rest of the experience was great. Second week in Santo, stayed on Aore. Great week. Dived with Prodive. Definitely recommend diving with them!! We only did three dives on the Coolidge, the rest we did on reefs (specially requested). Some awsome dives on the fans and really nice diving out the front of the shop, frogfish / squid / pipehorse/ lionfish on the home reef. I'd recommend Aore (Santo) for sure. cheers Leander Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mauidoug 1 Posted October 10, 2006 Aloha, I just recently returned from a 2 week trip to Tonga. Overall it was a great expereince, and I plan to go back.I did not dive, though the diving looks to be good with swim throughs, soft corals, caves, etc.. Instead, we concentrated on whale watching/swimming. While legal in Tonga, swimming with whales is not easy. There are many factors that have to come together, but when they do its MAGIC! There are rules regarding aswimming with whales and they are followed. Most of the whale watching boats take 15-18 people. Only four people can swim with a whale, and each boat can spend only 90 minutes with a whale. So, a lot of the time is spent looking, and waiting. A few of the boats take small groups of four or less. We chartered a yacht, and spent a week in vavau' and a week in Happai. The week in Happai would have been great if the weather cooperated. But, we had three back to back storms that brought six days of 25-35 knot winds. The Happai, islands are isolated, and there are lots of whales. The islands are too far from Vavau, for day trips and have no infrastucture to support a whale watching industry. So a yacht is the only choice. In Vavau, there are lots of boats, hotels, and restaurants. Its a beautiful location, and a great vacation destination, even without the whales. In September 07, I have chartered a small boat for 10 days. It will be based out of Vavau' and can take three people. In 2008, I will charter the 50 foot sailboat again and spend 10 days in Happai island group. I have done a lot of traveling through Indonesia, Micrnesia, Polynesia and have to say that swimming with whales is one of the best experiences of my life. Best, Maui Doug Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Giles 1 Posted October 10, 2006 evidently there is just not enough tourism there to support me...Therefore, heading to Cayman instead. Oh dear god ... i'll inform the rum factory ... was that the real problem with Tonga and Vanuatu .. not enough Rum for you ? is that what tourism is code for ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeVeitch 0 Posted October 19, 2006 Giles, note that was sept 04, just before Ivan.... plans changed... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
