Star Breeze - Flowers of the South Pacific: Tahiti to Fiji

Where this cruise calls, day by day

10 ports and 6 sea days over 15 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Papeete

   French PolynesiaDepart

   Papeete is the administrative and shipping capital of French Polynesia rather than the postcard version of it, and most Tahiti itineraries begin or end here. The quay is right in town, so you step off into traffic, gendarmes and a French-Polynesian city that works for a living. The scenery people came for is mostly on the other islands, or up in Tahiti's interior valleys.

   • Marche de Papeete, the two-storey municipal market for vanilla, monoi and pareu
   • Les roulottes, the food-truck park at Place Vaiete that fills up after dark
   • Point Venus and Matavai Bay, where Cook observed the transit of Venus
   • Musee de Tahiti et des Iles at Punaauia for Polynesian navigation and tattoo history

   Getting ashore

   Docked at the Quai d'Honneur in the middle of town; the market is about a block away and no shuttle is needed.

   Best months

   May-Oct (dry season)

2. Day 2

   Moorea

   French PolynesiaPort

   Moorea is 17km across the water from Tahiti and looks like what people imagine Tahiti will look like - two deep bays cut into a ridge of jagged green spires. Ships anchor off and tender in, usually near Opunohu or Cook's Bay. The interior is the draw as much as the lagoon here, because the road climbs high enough to look down on both bays at once.

   • Belvedere Lookout above the saddle between Cook's and Opunohu bays
   • Snorkelling with stingrays and blacktip sharks in the shallow lagoon
   • Magic Mountain 4WD track for the view over the barrier reef
   • Temae Beach, the island's best public stretch of sand

   Getting ashore

   Tender in to a small pier in Opunohu Bay near Papetoai, or occasionally into Cook's Bay; either landing is a minor village, with the main commercial strip at Maharepa a good 10-15km away, so arrange transport.

   Best months

   May-Oct (dry season)

3. Day 3

   Bora Bora

   French PolynesiaPort

   Ships anchor inside the lagoon off Vaitape and tender in, which means the famous view - the twin basalt peaks of Otemanu and Pahia rising out of turquoise - is yours from the deck before you go anywhere. The island itself is small and the village is modest; the reason to be here is the water and the ring of motus around it. Nearly every worthwhile excursion involves getting back into a boat.

   • Lagoon tour with stops to snorkel with stingrays and blacktip reef sharks
   • Matira Beach, the one long stretch of public sand, about 15 minutes south of Vaitape
   • Manta ray site off Anau on the eastern side of the lagoon
   • 4WD trip up to the WWII coastal gun emplacements above Vaitape

   Getting ashore

   Tender to the pier at Vaitape - there is no berth big enough for a ship; the village is at the landing but everything scenic needs a boat or a taxi.

   Best months

   May-Oct (dry season)

4. Day 4 · At sea

5. Day 5

   Aitutaki

   Cook IslandsPort

   Aitutaki has one of the most photographed lagoons in the Pacific - a wide triangle of shallow water studded with sand motus. The catch is access. Ships anchor in open ocean outside the reef and tender a long way in to Arutanga, and swell cancels the call often enough that you should treat the visit as provisional until the anchor is down.

   • Lagoon cruise to One Foot Island (Tapuaetai), where the tiny post office stamps passports
   • Snorkelling over the giant clams, and the stop at Honeymoon Island
   • Climbing Maunga Pu, all 124 metres of it, for the whole-lagoon view
   • Standing on the Visitor's Rock by the tender pier, the local welcome custom

   Getting ashore

   Tender in to the Arutanga wharf - ships cannot enter the lagoon, so the anchorage is outside the reef, the ride is long, and surf cancels this call more often than almost any other in the Pacific.

   Best months

   May-Oct (dry season)

6. Day 6

   Rarotonga (Avatiu)

   Cook IslandsPort

   Rarotonga is the main island of the Cook Islands - a single volcanic peak wrapped in a reef, with one 32km road running the whole way round and a second, older road inland. Avatiu Harbour is far too small for a cruise ship, so vessels anchor outside and tender in, and swell on this exposed north coast cancels calls regularly. Everything ashore is easy once you land.

   • Circling the island on the clockwise-and-anticlockwise bus, which loops in about 50 minutes
   • Muri Beach lagoon for snorkelling and glass-bottom boats, 20 minutes round the coast
   • The cross-island track past Te Rua Manga, the Needle, and down to Wigmore's Waterfall
   • Punanga Nui Market beside the harbour, biggest on Saturday mornings

   Getting ashore

   Tender in to Avatiu Harbour, with Avarua town a 10-15 minute walk from the landing; large ships cannot berth and northerly swell cancels the call fairly often.

   Best months

   May-Oct (dry season)

7. Day 7 · At sea

8. Day 8 · At sea

9. Day 9 · At sea

10. Day 10

    Nuku'alofa

    TongaPort

    Nuku'alofa on Tongatapu is the capital of the last Polynesian kingdom still ruled by its own monarchy, and the town is modest, low and hot. Ships berth at Queen Salote Wharf a few kilometres out. Sunday observance is written into the constitution here - trade is prohibited - so a Sunday call means a closed town and church services instead.

    • Ha'amonga 'a Maui, a coral trilithon raised around the 13th century
    • Mapu'a 'a Vaea blowholes at Houma, a long line of spouts along the coast
    • Talamahu Market for tapa cloth and woven pandanus
    • The Royal Palace waterfront and the royal tombs, viewed from outside

    Getting ashore

    Docked at Queen Salote Wharf; the town centre is about 3km, walkable in around 30 minutes but easier by shuttle or taxi.

    Best months

    May-Oct (dry season)

11. Day 11 · At sea

12. Day 12

    Taveuni

    FijiPort

    Taveuni is called Fiji's Garden Island for good reason - it is high, wet and green, with rainforest running down to the sea and no shortage of waterfalls. The 180th meridian crosses it, and there is a signpost where you can stand in two days at once. Its real reputation is underwater: the Somosomo Strait between here and Vanua Levu holds some of the best soft-coral diving in the world.

    • Tavoro Waterfalls in Bouma National Heritage Park, three falls on one walk
    • Diving the Great White Wall on Rainbow Reef in the Somosomo Strait
    • Waitavala natural waterslide, a smooth rock chute locals ride standing up
    • The 180th meridian marker at Waiyevo, and the Lavena Coastal Walk

    Getting ashore

    Ships anchor and tender to the small jetty at Waiyevo on the west coast; there is no cruise berth, and everything else is a minibus or 4WD ride along one rough coast road.

    Best months

    May-Oct (dry season)

13. Day 13

    Savusavu

    FijiPort

    Savusavu is a one-street town on the south coast of Vanua Levu, sitting on a narrow sheltered inlet that has made it a cyclone hole for cruising yachts. Hot springs bubble up in the middle of town, and locals cook in them. It is far quieter than the western Viti Levu resort strip, and it is the base for some of Fiji's best diving.

    • The hot springs in the middle of town, still used for cooking
    • J. Hunter Pearls farm tour on the bay
    • Diving or snorkelling towards the Namena Marine Reserve
    • Savarekareka Mission chapel, about 10km out of town

    Getting ashore

    Ships anchor in Savusavu Bay and tender to the Copra Shed Marina, which is in the middle of town - everything is walkable from the landing, though Sundays shut the place down.

    Best months

    May-Oct (dry season)

14. Day 14 · At sea

15. Day 15

    Lautoka

    FijiPort

    Lautoka is Fiji's second city and the sugar port on the dry western side of Viti Levu - cane trains, a mill, and none of the resort gloss. Ships dock at Queens Wharf close to the town grid. Most passengers head straight out, because Nadi, the Sabeto valley and the boats to the Mamanuca islands are all within easy reach.

    • Sri Siva Subramaniya temple in Nadi, the largest Hindu temple in the South Pacific
    • Garden of the Sleeping Giant orchid collection under the Sabeto range
    • Viseisei village, held to be Fiji's oldest settlement
    • Lautoka Municipal Market for kava, produce and handicrafts

    Getting ashore

    Docked at the commercial wharf; town is about a 20-minute walk with a shuttle usually running, and Nadi or Denarau is 25-40 minutes by taxi.

    Best months

    May-Oct (dry season)

16. Day 16

    Lautoka

    FijiArrive

    Lautoka is Fiji's second city and the sugar port on the dry western side of Viti Levu - cane trains, a mill, and none of the resort gloss. Ships dock at Queens Wharf close to the town grid. Most passengers head straight out, because Nadi, the Sabeto valley and the boats to the Mamanuca islands are all within easy reach.

    • Sri Siva Subramaniya temple in Nadi, the largest Hindu temple in the South Pacific
    • Garden of the Sleeping Giant orchid collection under the Sabeto range
    • Viseisei village, held to be Fiji's oldest settlement
    • Lautoka Municipal Market for kava, produce and handicrafts

    Getting ashore

    Docked at the commercial wharf; town is about a 20-minute walk with a shuttle usually running, and Nadi or Denarau is 25-40 minutes by taxi.

    Best months

    May-Oct (dry season)