South pacific islands - 3 month itinerary

Hi,

I'm planning to spend 3 months in the South Pacific islands and was wondering how to best split the time between different island nations to see as much as possible on the one hand, but not just be rushing around on the other hand. At the moment my idea looks like this:

21 days Solomon Islands
10 days Vanuatu
7 days Fiji
7 days Samoa
12 days Tonga
(2 days NZ)
5 days Cook Islands
14 days French Polynesia
5 days Easter Island
= 83 days. I have 90-92 days, so where should I add some days? My thought was French Polynesia, because there are lots of islands that I find very interesting to visit and with more days, one of the extended air passes would make more sense, budget and time wise.

Many thanks for your help! :)

I'd add more days to Vanuatu and Fiji.
And would add New Caledonia, if possible.

OP (or Laszlo),how are you thinking of travelling around? Is there an air pass that covers all of those?

No really worthwhile airpass.
You must buy separate onway tickets.
Some of the countries in the region can also be included in RTW tickets.

ok,thanks...sounds like this is going to be a very expensive trip in airfares alone then....

Well, it is definitely not SE Asia!
But within the SW Pacific region, airfares are still affordable at ca $300 between neighboring countries.
It gets more expensive out East to French Polynesia and the Cooks.

Don't you think adding New Caledonia on top would be too much? I already feel like I'm squeezing in a lot now.

As for getting around, yes it's going to be quite some cost in airfares, but I'm willing to invest some money in that and rather live cheaply on the islands. We will take a tent and camp where possible/allowed.

There is no cheap living in the South Pacific.
Camping opportunities are limited, too.
Of course, it is all relative. No need to pay resort prices, but it will be much more expensive than say SE Asia anyway.

Hmm well so far according to my research seems like:

1. Solomon islands - about 30€ for a double shared bathroom, incl. kitchen so can just cook for ourselves. So thinking 25€ p.P. per day to cover sleeping + eating. Of course transport will be expensive on top and the couple of dives that we will do. But living for 25 a day to cover basics I still call cheap :)
2. Vanuatu - found some camping spots for around 10-15€/night, also often with kitchen usage. Same story.
3. Fiji has dorms around 15-20€ so that was a bit more expensive, but food cheap too eat out.
4. Samoa also seemed more backpacker budget and always recommended for low budget next to Fiji.
5. Tonga - heard from many people about good wild camping options there, people being happy to let you camp on their grounds. Not sure how it will work out of course!
6. Cook islands - one of the pricier ones but also dorms on Rarotonga and cheaper budget options with shared kitchen on Aitutaki.
7. French Polynesia - found camping places on every one of the islands I have looked into so far, even on Bora Bora was something like 15€ p.P.

So... I think yes if you want the same quality as in SEA with a beach bungalow and eating out 3 times a day, then the South Pacific is very expensive! But if you are happy to adjust and travel a bit differently, it should be fine for everyday costs. Like I said, transport between the islands will be pricey!

Please correct me if I'm wrong about any of the above as you seem to know this region well :) Any tips always appreciated!!

Forgot Easter island which also has camping options :)

Easter Island has one unappealing camping optipn in town but one can stay in a small dorm for about the same price so I couldn't bother.
Camping wild is forbidden now.

New Caledonia is the best place for camping in the region.

It is not just accommodation that makes the region expensive.
But pretty much everything.
Of course prices differ from country to country, with Fiji, Tonga and Samoa beingbthe cheapest.
But if you are prepared for local price levels and don't expect them to be truly cheap like Asia, it can be well worthwhile.

Fiji has dorms around 15-20€ so that was a bit more expensive, but food cheap too eat out

For me, the overriding problem with your post is that you have a list of countries with number of days per country. It is almost meaningless. 'Fiji' does not have dorms. Specific accommodations at specific places have dorms, and this is where the problem 'what are you figuring on doing with your time' comes in. Certain island resort have dorms. I can think of one hotel in Suva that has dorm accom as an option. Island resorts have meal plans, not independent cheap eateries. The mainland towns and cities have the independent eateries. So, if you are planning around dorms, this seems to imply you're planning an island resort stay for Fiji. Sounds like an incredible waste of time, effort and money to me.

see as much as possible on the one hand, but not just be rushing around on the other hand

Rushing around is exactly what you are doing. When it comes to Fiji, unless you are clearer on precisely what you plan on doing, it doesn't sound like you're going to see much of Fiji. Although, the tautology is that, with any amount of time, it is possible to see as much as possible in that time interval.

Easter Island has one unappealing camping optipn in town but one can stay in a small dorm for about the same price so I couldn't bother.
Camping wild is forbidden now.

New Caledonia is the best place for camping in the region.

It is not just accommodation that makes the region expensive.
But pretty much everything.
Of course prices differ from country to country, with Fiji, Tonga and Samoa beingbthe cheapest.
But if you are prepared for local price levels and don't expect them to be truly cheap like Asia, it can be well worthwhile.

What do you mean by pretty much anything is expensive? So far according to my research I have not found everyday prices for accom and food outrageous. Definitely cheaper than Europe or Aussie. Do you have any examples?

We will see about Easter island when time comes. As we're 2 it's always nicer to pitch our own tent and have our own "room" rather than sharing a dorm with too many other people. Although we don't mind some dorm nights if it's cheaper or weather is bad.

Fiji has dorms around 15-20€ so that was a bit more expensive, but food cheap too eat out

For me, the overriding problem with your post is that you have a list of countries with number of days per country. It is almost meaningless. 'Fiji' does not have dorms. Specific accommodations at specific places have dorms, and this is where the problem 'what are you figuring on doing with your time' comes in. Certain island resort have dorms. I can think of one hotel in Suva that has dorm accom as an option. Island resorts have meal plans, not independent cheap eateries. The mainland towns and cities have the independent eateries. So, if you are planning around dorms, this seems to imply you're planning an island resort stay for Fiji. Sounds like an incredible waste of time, effort and money to me.

see as much as possible on the one hand, but not just be rushing around on the other hand

Rushing around is exactly what you are doing. When it comes to Fiji, unless you are clearer on precisely what you plan on doing, it doesn't sound like you're going to see much of Fiji. Although, the tautology is that, with any amount of time, it is possible to see as much as possible in that time interval.

Sorry, should have specified more in my original post, but didn't want to write an endless post that noone would read ;)
Fiji is "on the way" for us, but not the main thing we want to see in the region. Since we need to pass through Nadi/Suva to go to/from Samoa/Tonga anyways, it sees logical to at least to a short stop. Also, I love diving and want to see the bull sharks at Beqa Lagoon.
So the idea for Fiji is more to pass through, do some diving, and explore the main island only. Nadi, Suva and Pacific Harbour seem to have cheap accom, so I hope we'll be fine. We'd probably rent a car for a day or two to explore the island. We were thinking about adding Taveuni at one point, but it seems a bit tight with the time frame we have. Like I said, Fiji is not our main focus!
Yasawas and the Mamanucas don't look appealing to me AT ALL. I don't want this resort kind of holiday surrounded by only backpackers, plus it seems very overpriced.

Hope it's clearer now :)

if you have not done already, have a look at travel links between the island. check that your itinerary matches with flights. Is there a logical progression from one island to the next, or do you have to look at using hubs (eg Nadi, Aukland). What is the logical starting country to allow your travel plans to flow smoothly.....

Thanks, I have done this already and that's how my list came together :) Tonga and Samoa are a bit difficult to connect, will have to go back via Fiji most likely. And the Cooks only possible through Auckland as far as I have seen. I'm considering skipping the Cooks because of that and because it seems like they don't really have anything that I can't find somewhere else. On the other hand I have wanted to see Aitutaki for a while now!

I will be starting from Brisbane, as pretty much all flights to Solomon Islands go through there.

There are twice weekly flights to and from Tahiti to the Cook Islands - not sure which days but if you have a look at the Cook Islands Airport website you should be able to find the schedule. So you could go from NZ to the Cook Islands to Tahiti or vice versa. Aitutaki is worth the effort!!

Thanks! Yes, I have looked into these flight schedules and I know I will have to do some planning around them...
I will be doing it the other way round (as per the list I posted in my first post): NZ, then Cooks, then French Polynesia (Tahiti).

Have you been to some other islands in the area? How does Aitutaki compare? If I look at pics, there is not such a difference between some French Polynesian islands and Aitutaki, hence wondering if it's really worth the high extra cost and effort.

I have done Rarotonga, Tahiti and Moorea. In my opinion Tahiti/Moorea offer nothing substantial over Raro. A bit more exotic thats true, but also more expensive. Not been to Aitutaki or Bora Bora but my understanding is that they are similar. Maybe choose one country, Raro/Aitutaki or Tahiti/Moorea/Bora Bora.

Thanks, thought so as well. It's always hard to judge just from pictures online.
I think I will give the Cook islands a miss then. French Polynesia offers some nice airpasses, where I could visit multiple islands in a short time for a reasonable cost.

Also, if you want to go to Easter Island, you must go via Tahiti anyway.

True, good point.
I think the decision will be either for or against the Cooks, but definitely include Frech Polynesia.

While I haven't been to the Cooks, I would still recommend New Caledonia as an additional country instead of them.
It is more different, more diverse, easier and cheaper to get around, and a great place for camping - which is actually forbidden in the Cooks.
It is also possible to fly from NC to Tahiti directly, without having to go via NZ.

I have visited cooks Tahiti and New Caledonia. Each has it's attractions and each has it's downsides. I didn't find NC cheaper than the cooks. In fact if anything I found it more expensive for hotels, taxis, eating out etc. If you fly NC to Tahiti consider that at the end of your trip as you will miss that big chunk of central polynesian fiji, samoa and tonga and it seems a bit counter intuitive having to back track. That is unless you jump NC to tahti and then work you way back east to finish in Fiji

Well, he wanted to camp, which NC is an excellent place to do. Campsites are numerous, gorgeous and usually cheap, some even free. Food can be cheap if self-catering: baguettes and pate make great sandwiches rivalling the junky budget food in many other countries in the region.

There is no need to backtrack to Fiji after Tahiti. NC should simply be the last stop in the SW Pacific if choosing to fly from there to Tahiti. It has direct flights from Fiji and Vanuatu, so could be approached from either.
Of course flying to Tahiti via NZ may be cheaper after all, but it is worth remembering that there is an option of connecting the SW and SE Pacific directly.

Ok seems like I need to give New Caledonia some thought again ;) I had initially ruled it out because it seemed like it was going to be too expensive. I was not aware some campsites are even free there.

I will not be flying back to Australia after French Polynesia, but instead I will move onwards to Easter Island, then Chile and continue my travels in South America. Plus, Tonga and Fiji (at least for the diving) are a must. So the option that NC connects directly to French Polynesia is not that interesting to me.

If I add New Caledonia, I will have to cut something else more I assume?
I am guessing that 5 days (originally planned for Cooks) will not be enough for NC? Correct me if I'm wrong..

What about Samoa, is it a "must" or would NC be more interesting?
Like I said, Solomons, Tonga, a couple days Fiji, French Polynesia and Easter Island are not really up for discussion. Well, maybe the Solomons, if someone tells me it's really not worth it. I will not exchange FP with NC because I really want to dive in FP plus need to go via Tahiti to Easter Island anyways. Also, FP does seem to have very good camping facilities on all relevant islands as well.

Samoa is my least favourite country in the region by far and I would gladly skip it.
The Solomons are interesting but I found Vanuatu much more so, and more welcoming, too.
I wouldn't say skip the Solomons, but I might cut it shorter to have more time in Vanuatu.
NC requires at least a week to tour Grande Terre and visit one outer island - the Isle of Pines is truly unique and stunning.
And the outer islands there are quite accessible by boat unlike in the Cooks.

Just a final thought: To me the absolutely most interesting and diverse country in the region is not on your list. PNG!

Ok will think about swapping some time in the Solomons for more time in Vanuatu and skipping Samoa.

PNG will have to wait until another time. I feel this would need 3-4 weeks to enjoy and it seems too expensive for us for now. Especially things like to Kokoda Trail which would be a must do for me. Also, more into West Papua for now. But one day for sure we will explore PNG as well ;)

Forgot to say, I will look into NC a bit more too. Isle of pines looks very special!!

Hey man, nice itinerary! When are you going?

I will only have around 21 days including some time in NZ (going from Chile -Easter Islands - Tahiti - ? - Australia), so I need to choose more carefully . Thought about Hawai for a second (Tahiti - Auckland through Hawaian Airlines.

But after reading all of these posts (thank you very much for every contribution!!), considering New Caledonia and Cook Islands!!

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