TONGA – NIUA’FOU AND VAVA’U
VAVA’U Vava’u is a group of more than 50 islands, about 150 miles north of Tongatapu. They are either raised coral limestone or coral atolls. The beautiful harbour opposite the main town of Neiafu is a common destination for yachties sailing the South Pacific, attracting about 500 yachts every season. The waters of the islands are known for their clarity. The area attracts many humpback whales between June and November and there are organised tours to see them. Other things to do include diving, renting a yacht, kayaking; game fishing and kite surfing. There are some good walks on the main island. There are many places to stay both in the capital Neiafu and on the outlying islands.
Vava’u Airport (VAV)
St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Neiafu:. Set on a hill above the famous Port of Refuge, the colonial-era St. Joseph’s Cathedral is a landmark that offers visual character. Step inside its whitewashed walls on a Sunday morning and you might witness locals in their best dress and hear a beautiful choir singing uplifting songs. The views back across the Port of Refuge are also quite splendid. A sad bit of local history played out on this hill, too: Legend has it that a nearby road was named Hala Lupe (Way of Doves) for the somber singing of the female prisoners who constructed it.
Vava’u Festival & Regatta.
Mount Talau NP. Visit from Neiafu town, past residential houses, dogs, chickens and pigs to an over grown path to 170 uneven, slippery concrete steps to 4 viewing platforms. Views great. Descend a poorly marked path to the left at the top of the concrete steps through bush/forest down narrow rock chasm and finally came out near main entrance and sign!
ʻEneʻio Botanical Garden is the first of its kind here with the largest and most varied plant collection in the Kingdom. Located in Vava’u, 10 minutes from Neiafu, it consists of 22 acres of privately owned gardens developed in 1972 by Haniteli Fa’anunu, retired Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. As an agronomist with 38 years of agricultural experience the garden has 100 plant families and 500 plant species, both native and exotic. The garden also has ocean access at ‘Ene’io Beach, a private beach with a camping area.
NIUAS. Remote islands to the north of Tonga: Niuafo’ou, Niuatoputapu, and Tafahi. The Niuas are reachable by weekly flights from Vava’u.
Niuatoputapu is 240km north of Vava’u and has a population of around 1400. It has beautiful white beaches, particularly on the north-west side of the island. Niuafo’ou is the northernmost island of Tonga. It is known as Tin Can Island from the fact that in earlier times mail was delivered and picked up by strong swimmers who would retrieve packages sealed up in a biscuit tin and thrown overboard from passing ships. Niuafo’ou is the tip of an underwater volcano. The last eruption was in 1946, after which the whole island was evacuated for ten years. Accommodation on both islands is limited.
DO
Apart from a few historical sites on Tongatapu, most things to do in Tonga reflect its island nature. Beaches, diving, snorkelling, fishing, boat trips, kayaking and kite surfing. Some good restaurants especially for lobster.
Take time to learn a little about Tonga’s fairly feudal culture and its many traditions. Go to church. Even if you are not religious the singing can be very moving. Watch tapa cloth being made from mulberry bark and try a drink of kava, the traditional drink, which is a mild narcotic
GET IN
Visa. Nationals of all Schengen Area member states may enter Tonga visa-free for up to 90 days within a 180-day period. Nationals of China (PRC) may enter Tonga visa-free for up to 30 days. Most others may obtain a free visa on arrival valid for 31 days, which is extendable up to 6 months.
By plane. Fua’amotu Airport (TBU) is on Tongatapu around half an hour from Nuku’alofa. Air New Zealand flies from Auckland five times weekly. Virgin Australia flies from Sydney twice a week. Talofa Airways flies directly from Samoa (Apia) and American Samoa (Pago Pago) four times weekly. You can also arrive from Fiji (Nadi and Suva) on Fiji Airways, with connections from the USA, Hong Kong, Australia and Samoa.
The Teta Tours and Toni’s Tours mini-bus will deliver you to your hotel or guest house for TOP20.
By private boat. Lots of people arrive by private yacht since Tonga, particularly Vava’u, is a common stop on the around-the-world circuit.
GET AROUND
By plane. To get between island groups, you have to fly (or sail). Real Tonga Airline operates between the major islands, with flights from Tongatapu to ‘Eua, Ha’apai, and Vava’u and from Vava’u to Niuafo’ou and Niuatoputapu. The flight from Tongatapu to ‘Eua is, at eight minutes, said to be the world’s shortest scheduled flight.
By land. Motorbikes, scooters and cycles can be rented on Tongatapu, Vava’u and Ha’apai. On Tongatapu, you can hire a car. There are also taxis. To get around the main island, Tongatapu, Teta Tours and Toni’s guest house offer day tours of all the main tourist sights. The speed limit is usually 40km/h and this is stuck to by the local drivers. You’re meant to also buy a local Tongan driving licence on top of your existing licence before you drive (TOP25). The roads are good in and around Nuku’alofa but deteriorate the further from the town and the further south you travel. Most cars in Tonga are in a terrible state, maintained on a budget and held together by a combination of ‘Western Union’ stickers and prayer. The low-speed limit helps to keep accidents down. There are buses to various points on Tongatapu from Nuku’alofa although there are no timetables.
HISTORY
An Austronesian-speaking group linked to what archaeologists call the Lapita cultural complex reached and inhabited Tonga sometime between 1500 and 1000 BC. Settlers had arrived in Nukuleka by 888 BC. Tongans lacked a writing system, but they did have an oral history.
The Tongan people first encountered Europeans in 1616, when the Dutch vessel Eendracht, made a short visit. Later, other Dutch explorers: Jacob Le Maire and Abel Tasman in 1643. James Cook, in 1773, 1774, and 1777; Spanish Navy explorers Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa in 1781; Alessandro Malaspina in 1793; the first London missionaries in 1797; and the Wesleyan Methodist minister, Reverend Walter Lawry, in 1822. Whaling vessels were among the earliest regular Western visitors, the first in 1799 and the last in 1899. Sometimes Tongan men were recruited to serve as crewmen on these vessels. The United States Exploring Expedition visited Tonga in 1840.
In 1845, an ambitious young Tongan warrior, strategist, and orator named Tāufaʻāhau united Tonga into a kingdom. He held the chiefly title of Tuʻi Kanokupolu, but had been baptised by Methodist missionaries with the name Siaosi (“George”) in 1831. In 1875, with the help of missionary Shirley Waldemar Baker, he declared Tonga a constitutional monarchy; formally adopted the Western royal style; emancipated the “serfs”; enshrined a code of law, land tenure, and freedom of the press; and limited the power of the chiefs.
Tonga became a protected state with Britain in 1900, with the representative a British Consul (1901–1970). Tonga maintained its sovereignty, and remained the only Pacific nation to retain its monarchical government. The Tongan monarchy follows an uninterrupted succession of hereditary rulers from one family.
Tonga joined the Commonwealth in 1970 (atypically as a country that had its own monarch, rather than being ruled by the United Kingdom’s monarch) and the United Nations in 1999. While exposed to colonial pressures, Tonga has always governed itself, which makes it unique in the Pacific.
Politics. Tonga is a constitutional monarchy. It is the only indigenous monarchy in the Pacific islands. Criticism of the monarch is held to be contrary to Tongan culture and etiquette. King Tupou VI (a descendant of the first monarch), his family, powerful nobles and a growing non-royal elite caste live in much wealth, with the rest of the country living in relative poverty.
Male homosexuality is illegal in Tonga. The Constitution of Tonga protects land ownership: land cannot be sold to foreigners (although it may be leased).
King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV, and his government made some problematic economic decisions and wasted millions of dollars on unwise investments. King Tupou VI resigned suddenly on 11 February 2006, and was succeeded by George Tupou V. Pro-democracy activists burned and looted shops, offices, and government buildings and more than 60% of the downtown area was destroyed. King George Tupou V died of leukemia in 2012. He was succeeded by his brother Tupou VI in 2015.
Geography. Located in Oceania, Tonga is an archipelago directly south of Samoa and about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand. Its 169 islands, 36 of them inhabited, are divided into three main groups – Vava’u, Ha’apai, and Tongatapu – and cover an 800-kilometre (500-mile)-long north–south line.
The largest island, Tongatapu, on which the capital city of Nukuʻalofa is located, covers 257 square kilometres (99 sq mi). Geologically the Tongan islands are of two types: most have a limestone base formed from uplifted coral formations; others consist of limestone overlaying a volcanic base.
Climate. Tonga has a tropical rainforest climate with a distinct warm period (December–April), during which the temperatures rise above 32 °C (89.6 °F), and a cooler period (May–November), with temperatures rarely rising above 27 °C (80.6 °F). The average daily humidity is 80%. The tropical cyclone season currently runs from 1 November to 30 April.
Ecology. Tonga contains the Tongan tropical moist forests terrestrial ecoregion. In Tonga, dating back to Tongan legend, flying bats are considered sacred and are protected. The bird life of Tonga includes a total of 73 species, of which two are endemic; the Tongan Whistler and the Tongan megapode..
Economy. Tonga’s economy is characterized by a large non-monetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from half of the country’s population who live abroad (chiefly in Australia, New Zealand and the United States). The royal family and the nobles dominate and largely own the monetary sector of the economy – particularly the telecommunications and satellite services. Tonga was named the sixth most corrupt country in the world by Forbes magazine in 2008.
The manufacturing sector consists of handicrafts and a few other very small-scale industries, which contribute only about 3% of GDP. Commercial business activities also are inconspicuous and, to a large extent, are dominated by the same large trading companies found throughout the South Pacific. In September 1974, the country’s first commercial trading bank, the Bank of Tonga, opened.
Tonga’s development plans emphasize a growing private sector, upgrading agricultural productivity, revitalizing the squash and vanilla bean industries, developing tourism, and improving communications and transport.
The tourist industry is relatively undeveloped. Cruise ships often stop in Vavaʻu for whale watching, game fishing, surfing, and beaches.
Demographics. Over 70% of the 103,197 inhabitants live on its main island, Tongatapu. Although an increasing number of Tongans have moved into the only urban and commercial centre, Nukuʻalofa, where European and indigenous cultural and living patterns have blended, village life and kinship ties remain influential throughout the country. Tongans, Polynesian by ethnicity with a mixture of Melanesian, represent more than 98% of the inhabitants.
Everyday life is heavily influenced by Polynesian traditions and by the Christian faith; everything is closed on Sunday. 90% of the population are affiliated with a Christian church or sect: Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (36%), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sent missionaries in 1891 to visit King Siaosi (George) Tupo 18%), Roman Catholics (15%)
Health. Tonga has one of the highest obesity rates in the world. In 2011, 90% of the adult population was considered overweight, with more than 60% of those obese.
RESPECT
Tonga is a very conservative Christian nation. Over 90% of the population belongs to a Christian denomination or sect, with the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (a Methodist denomination) being the official religion and adhered to by around one-third of the population. A further third are adherents of Mormonism or Roman Catholicism, and most of the rest adhere to a variety of Protestant denominations.
As one would expect, Sunday is strongly revered – the vast majority of the population attends religious services, very few shops will be open and there is very little to do. Hotels will be open, as will some restaurants and beach resorts, although mainly to serve expats and tourists. Small shops, including, in Nuku’alofa, a popular bakery, may open later on Sunday afternoon. Many of the church services are very enjoyable. Strike up a friendship with some locals and you will have no problems finding an enjoyable Sunday experience.
TV stations close or play Christian shows on Sundays. Radio stations will also play religious material on Sundays. To compensate, the now-closed cinema in Nuku’alofa usually used to have a screening just after midnight on Monday morning. This service is now over.
For maximum respect, keep your ankles covered (both men and women). Men, keep your shirt on everywhere except at the beach. Topless men off cruise liners have been arrested and held until after the ship has left!
TONGA – TONGATAPU, ‘EUA AND HA’APAI
Tentative WHS:
Lapita Pottery Archaeological Sites (A National Serial Site for consideration as the Kingdom of Tonga’s contribution to a transnational serial site listing) (09/08/2007)
The Ancient Capitals of the Kingdom of Tonga (09/08/2007)
TONGATAPU
XL: Nomuka island group
World of Nature: Fanga’uta and Fangakakau Lagoons Marine Reserve
Experiences: Lakalaka dance
Maritime/Ship Museums: Kanokupolu: Ha’aFonu Tonga Maritime Museum (permanently closed)
NUKU’ALOFA World Capital
Airports: Nuku’alofa (TBU)
Museums: Nuku’alofa: Tonga National Museum
Religious Temples: Nuku’alofa Tonga Temple
Festivals: Heilala Festival
Markets: Nuku’alofa: Talamahu Market
The Dark Side: Nuku’alofa: Free Church of Tonga (destroyed)
EUA
Religious Temples: Ohonua, ‘Eua: Church of Tonga
World of Nature: ‘Eua NP
HA’APAI GROUP
World of Nature: Ha’atafu Beach Reserve
TOFUA
TONGA – NIUA’FOU AND VAVA’U
Tentative WHS: Lapita Pottery Archaeological Sites (09/08/2007)
Islands
LATE
NIUAS, DARE: Niua islands
VAVA’U
Airports: Vava’u (VAV)
Religious Temples:
Vava’u: St. Joseph’s Cathedral
Neiafu: St. Joseph’s Cathedral
Makave: Free Wesleyan Church
Festivals: Vava’u Festival & Regatta
World of Nature:
Mount Talau NP
Utula’āina Lookout
Botanical Gardens: ʻEneʻio Botanical Garden
