Loyalty Isalands - where to stay???

Hey

Me and 'her indoors' would like to go to New Caledonia at Christmas and the Loyalty Islands have really caught our eye. Er, we don't want to camp. Not a fan....

BUT: We have a budget of $4k each (including flights) and wouldn't mind a bit of a dive, some R n R, eat great food and just get enjoy the surroundings. Would any of you have any suggestions of any places we could stay and prices, please

Coming from Sydney by the way

Pierre

In my opinion (which is probably biased) Lifou is the pick of the Loyalty Islands, with Drehu Village being my choice of accommodation. (see their web site for info re prices).
When we were in Mare a couple years ago we stayed at Nengone Village -(the only place to stay if you didn't want to camp or "rough it") we noticed it had deteriorated somewhat from our previous stay, the food wasn't great & the accommodation was a little run down, to say the least - the management leaves a lot to be desired.
Ouvea has a wonderful resort Hotel Paradis D'Ouvea - quite expensive, geared for the Japanese tourist market & not really indicative of the New Caledonian way of life, although, Ouvea itself is quite beautiful.
Have you considered Ile des Pins? With $4K each to spend, I would consider a package to Le Meridien to be an ideal choice for an introduction to New Caledonia. It has it ALL.

Ive not been to the Loyalties, but agree with Fernsie at the suggestion of considering IDP. How LONG will your trip be?

Le Meriden is gorgeous but can be pricey. If your stay is say for up to 7 days then it may be ideal. Id also consider Oure Lodge on the other side of the island.Le Meridien is near the famed La Piscine and adjacent to a reasonably priced restaurant at Chez Regis. Oure is near the best beaches of Kuto/Kanumera. The whole island is about 7km across so anywhere is going to be ok - those 2 are the best hotels, with Le Meridien being the classier of the 2.

BTW the wife is English and is fluent in French. French is not compulsory in NC but it helps. You'll LOVE the food there, especially seafood.