Searching for paradise...

What has been the best place in the pacific for you, and why?

If you have been to any atolls, what has been the best atoll you've been to?

Is there any places you'd like to spend a extended (2-3 month) period of time, and why?

I have to ask this question, because recently I dreamed that the northern Cooks would be "the perfect place" - and this dream got shattered a few days ago when someone told me they are just shit.

Then I started to wonder, what if that's all there is, disappointments in the pacific for me, because I'm waiting for too much?

I am sure somewhere there is a place with good lagoon, excellent snorkelling and decent vegetarian food - without much annoyances.

-J

Food for Thought - but then you've heard it all before...

I didn't post the northern Cooks trip report with the intention of discouraging you. It made me more eager to go there knowing that one can walk from motu to motu. (Take insect repellent for the flies, a camelback plus some extra water, wear reef shoes.) Another report I found was more worrisome, where the writer mentioned seeing tadpole like things swimming in his drinking water. But with three guesthouses I'm afraid it might be too boutiquey.

Finding places with "good lagoon, excellent snorkelling and decent vegetarian food - without much annoyances" should not be difficult at all. The problem seems to be that you want to go to the showoffy distant places without doing research (often there's a reason a place is not visited). Just the other day there was a woman posting about having 7 days in the Cooks on her RTW. She was thinking of skipping Rarotonga (and Aitutaki too I would guess) to go somewhere off the beaten track. Crazy.

My thoughts on atolls are already posted on one of Laszlo's links.

I actually think finding "good vegetarian food" could be a problem in much of the Pacific (especially the English-speaking parts), where locals seem fond of canned food like corned beef.
Atolls in particular often have very little in the way of locally-grown veggies and fruit, and the remoter they are, the less likely to have imported ones either.

I fully agree with the rest of your (sc's) 2nd paragraph!

Yeah well, one cannot know how he/she feels at an distant atoll before one experiences it, right?

Maybe that's the reason why I want to check it out. Go somewhere far and see how I feel. Otherwise I will never know.

I know that there is a common misconception about the "Paradise atoll" - One cannot just have every comfort of the western world on an remote place like these atolls.

However, I've been to Mongolia as a vegetarian, so that had a pretty steep learning curve! :D I figure I can cope with the food... Dunno otherwise.

silvanocat, I know you didn't mean to discourage me, but nevertheless it discouraged esp. my missus. And it's totally ok, maybe better this way so we don't go there and end up really, really disappointed.

I wonder where the almost-perfect-paradise atolls with little tourism and little services (still some) are...

-J

Maybe that's the reason why I want to check it out. Go somewhere far and see how I feel. Otherwise I will never know.

This is the bottom line. You have been making many postings (I have even answered one or two), seeking information which fits your dream. I can understand that in general. But, the dreams and fantasies always have a lot to do with the individual person. I meet people who have found their corner of 'paradise' even though it doesn't interest me personally.

The practical problem always seems to involve combining the image of the physical environment (remote atoll, perfect beach or whatever) with other more personal needs. You mention vegetarianism, someone else might want a plush hotel but empty of other clients - oh, and a quaint traditional village nearby. This is where the 'reality check' is important. Some things on a person's wish list don't always fit neatly with the wished for environment.

So all you can really do is wander around, check places, and see if any of them fit. I don't think there is a fast and easy way to do this.

the northern group of cooks is one of the best places to see real south pacific that had changed very little or influenced by globalization.

we were there 13 yrs ago (pukapuka, manihiki, raka, and pehnryn) and spent roughly 1month on each atoll since there was hardly any cargo and flights. and on pehnryn was 2months since there was even less transportation. it was total isolation from the world...no tv, no electricity, no radio, nothing. your money didnt mean anything to the people and you actually get full cultural immersion. time literally stood still and didnt realize we had been on some islands a little longer since there was no news when the boat or flight would come in (but youll know when theyre coming because they approach the cargo boats like theyve just won the lottery!

if youre concern is being a vegetarian, youll have to put up with coconut dishes for the entire duration of your stay there. if youre a vegan, it would even be extra challenging as seafood is the staple. but on the contrary, youll hone your skill in dynamic apnea (free diving), traditional spear fishing techniques, and a lot of other tradition that the southern group people have already lost due to their closeness to raro and exposure to the western culture. youll see things that most travellers have not or just dream of seeing. some of these atolls are also predicted to be immersed within 20-30yrs (yes tuvalu isnt the only one). if youre into the underwater world, youll see underwater ecological conditions that was like 300-500 yrs ago.

so if this what "paradise" is to you....then youll find it there. some people's definition of paradise are the luxurious overwater bungalows of french polynesia.

have fun there and report back.

I know someone who went to 2 of the northern Cooks last year - saw his pics, too.
They look pretty much as modern and developed as anywhere in Polynesia, with nice, modern village homes, guesthouses, speedboats, etc.
I could think of any number of islands in Melanesia that are a LOT more "timeless".
Even some Polynesian islands seem much more "traditional" than the northern Cooks these days.

You could, of course, try the Ontong Java atoll in the north of the Solomons. However, you may have to wait 6 months for a boat. All the houses are traditional, the environment is stunning, but there is no power or plumbing (you use the sea, one side for men, the other for women) and the staple diet is fish and coconut.

Rennell (also in the Solomons) was actually one Polynesian island I thought of.
The houses there are not strictly traditional in style, but sure it is more traditional/rustic than anything in the Cooks, and it is reasonably easily accessible by air, too.
And the environment is definitely something special there - one of the South Pacific's very few World Heritage sites!
It's big enough to have locally grown veggies and fruits, too.
Also has a few basic guesthouses - and nothing upmarket, as of 3-4 years ago.

Bellona is another Polynesian outlier in Solomons, in Renbel Province (Rennell and Bellona). It has some stunning beaches, but is far more overcrowded than Rennell. You can travel between the two, depending on flights and/or whether or not you can hire someone with a canoe to take you across (but that leaves a rather long, uphill walk on Rennell to get to anywhere).

Samoa? Tonga? Fiji? Cooks? Vanuatu? There is electricity on the main islands in those places. You probably need an insurance policy that covers any and all contingencies including medical evacuation, especially as you have a major health condition. It will come with a hefty premium, but is well worth it.

silvanocat,

They probably did not like it as it is a four-letter word. However, I also think that the OP is yanking our chain, pulling our leg or whatever other expression we may use for someone who just wants to keep us busy. Everybody has his serious health condition: with the right karate chop, we all might drop dead.

i agree with silvancoat that the yasawas can easily address the OP's concerns (electricity and food-vegetarian ) or any of the society islands of FP where one is not far from civilization.

but you can still easily accomodate these concerns by bringing tons of dehydrated veggie food and portable solar panels converted to charge my nikon batteries.

now the question would just be how much is the budget and time spent on "paradise". and i think the OP doesnt have a clear answer.

Thanks to everyone for their replies!

I am sorry if somebody feels that "I am trying to 'keep you busy' by asking useless questions". This is not my intention - I'm merely curious.

However, there are things that the guidebooks won't tell, and I don't see any other alternative than to ask here. And, aren't forums designed for conversation?

Yasawas sound like a backpacker hell to me.. The easy package thing.

And FP could be over my budjet - or at least I couldn't be there for long!

I guess this equation of remoteness vegetarian meals some electricity just cannot give a good answer for me.. That's just the way it is, most likely.

-J

jvainio, I still think you need to start visiting places. You just have to do it, and not try to make a choice depending on things people will tell you.

For example, there are many islands in the Yasawa chain, some are very popular, others less so. It isn't always backpacker hell. You're thinking in stereotypes. I was at one place for 6 days and I was the only one there except for the family running the place. It was a 30 minute walk to a nearby village. No electricity - kerosine lamps at night. I wasn't even looking for isolation.

Here's my BLOG entry at the time. . The word 'paradise' was used ironically.

OK, it still might not be the place for you, but the world isn't so simple as a couple of categories - your dream plus everything else. Fact is, your own dream is pretty common among visitors to the S Pacific. The words 'paradise' 'island hideaway' 'island escape' are key concepts in the tourist industry marketing. It hits you as soon as you enter the arrivals area at Nadi airport. They know what the visitors are looking for.

Somehow, you're going to have to make some compromises. On the one hand you want an isolated atoll away from tourism etc. but then you start laying some extra demands on your dream location -- vegetarian food, must have electricity, etc. Paradise on your terms. The truly isolated atolls aren't going to have a lot of any kind of food, and if there is any electricity at all it'll come from a generator. Isolation plus all the other benefits just isn't the right combination.

So how important is this 'remote' 'isolated' 'hard to get to' idea? What's the issue here? You don't always need big distances to get that 'remote' feeling .. and with a bit of compromise you may have better luck finding a place with electricity (the island will have to be big enough to support a population which needs it - either that or a purpose built resort).

Just reserved tickets from Cairns to Noumea to September 25th (Friday)...

We'll see how we go.

The plan is to go Noumea -> Ouvea -> Lifou -> Ile des Pins -> Funafuti -> Nukulaelae -> Nadi -> Vanua Balavu -> Vanua Levu -> Taveuni -> Rarotonga -> Aitutaki -> Auckland -> Kaitaia -> Lake Tekapo -> Finland

(a rough outline of the plan, skipped all the details, for ex. i know that there isn't Ile des Pins to Funafuti flights etc)

Wish me luck!

-J

Good luck - a diverse and mostly rather realistic itinerary after all.
Good to see you were not so obsessed with "atoll paradise" that you skipped the more interesting larger islands in the region.
New Caledonia is stunning, and Vanua Balavu should be a very interesting "off the beaten track" island in Fiji.

Thank you Laszlo for the encouragement!

I picked New Caledonia mostly because of your writings of it ;)

And ye, I hope that I'll find at least a part of what I'm looking for. Take the plunge, as here people have said.

Kind of concerned about the Nukulaelae part, but my girl wants to go there so ....

-J

That was exactly why I added the note "mostly" realistic, but I think even that's far from impossible IF you make it a high priority and devote enough time to it.
Whether or not it is worth the effort you will see once you've been there and compared it to all the others.
As far as sheer beauty is concerned, most islands will have it hard to match Ouvea and the Isle of Pines, I believe! ;-) But they can easily be less "touristy".
Oh, and don't overlook mainland NC, which you should ideally tour BEFORE going to the Loyalties or IDP.

On my most recent trip to Solomon Islands (April this year) I discovered that electricity is arriving at the more remote areas. In the Lau Lagoon, for instance, the local member of Parliament has used some of his constituency grant to provide solar charging stations for lamps (to replace the ubiquitous kerosene ones, as fuel becomes more expensive).
There is also someine with an inverter he uses to run tools, and it was available to charge a mobile phone and portable DVD player for us. Soon, they will have a nearby mobile phone service available too.