Day in Noumea, New Caledonia

[LostFan#1]

We visited here on a one-day port stop in October on a cruise from LA to Sydney. From researching these boards and Trip Advisor, we finally (it was hard!) decided on snorkeling at Duck Island (Ile aux Canards). We were so pleased we did! If you want to snorkel in the S. Pacific, don't miss Duck Island!! The coral rivaled what we would see later at the Great Barrier Reef!! And the fish....wow!!

 

Catch the water taxi from Anse Vata (1250 CPF, r/t, no US or AU dollars) to Duck Island. We enjoyed the walk from the ship to Anse Vata along the harbor. But the hop on, hop off bus would likely drop you there as well. Ask someone for the water taxi stand; we simply happened upon it as we were not looking for it to be before the town itself.

 

Duck Island is beautiful and picturesque, a well done resort with wooden walkways, bath houses, covered tables, landscaping, equipment rental, and restaurant. But that also means a cost!! 1000 CPF (local currency only) to rent chaise, 1500 for umbrella, 800 for one hour snorkel rental. We had our own gear and made do with towels on the beach. The weather had been rainy, so once the sun came out, we didn't want an umbrella anyway!! The water was quite cold in late October, but don't give up!!

 

Watch the buoys for guidance, as we had a difficult time getting in and out of the water without stepping on coral which comes very close to shore. The island is easy to walk around once you finish swimming, snorkeling, or sunning. Be sure to watch wind surfers.

[Widebay]

I saw Duck Island from where were swimming on Anse Vate Beach, on our Celebrity Cruise a few weeks ago. Its not far, in fact, I wonder if you could paddle board out to it. I did see a water taxi of some sort taking people out.

We didn't visit there, we checked out the shops/cafes/etc in both Anse Vate Beach & Lemon Beach....but we also had a swim at both beaches, the water temps were great, beautiful blue clear water.

 

In Suva, we decided to do a lot of walking, as we wanted to see if the Grand Pacific Hotel was completed yet. I always enjoy the National Museum in Thurston Park, some great exhibits, including part of the rudder from HMS Bounty. After that we walked back into the city, for some great shopping, a nice coffee (much nicer than what is served up on the cruise ship), and DW & I even visited a nice bar in place called Tapoo City Shopping Centre, for a local Fijian beer, very cleansing.

 

All in all a lovely cruise & visit to Noumea & Suva, as well, the Tahitian Islands, but now its time to cruise elsewhere in the world.