New Caledonia trip report - mostly pictures

[yvrcnx]

Here are just a few pictures of my trip to New Caledonia.
It was quite an experience going to a place I have never even heard of until I had to go there. I spend 3 weeks there and been to places where time seemed to stand still.
New Caledonia is almost 3 hours flying time from Auckland and about 2 from Sydney.

Flight both ways was great in NZ's C class. Great service, good food for a relatively short flight like that.

NZ A320 taking us to Noumea, flight only operates twice a week:


A few pictures approaching Noumea:




Noumea Airport with an A330 belonging to Air Calin:


View from my room at the Le Meridien Noumea:


A couple of pictures of a beautiful sunrise taken on a ranch about 1 hour outside of Noumea:





Beach on the island of "Isle des Pins", about 2 hour speed boat ride from Noumea:




Some images of Isle des Pins:




City Hall of Isle de Pins:

[impresta]

wow you are a great photographer! some of those pix are postcard worthy!

[YK@HKG]

Nice pics......hmm.....do you need a visa to enter New Caledonia?

[yvrcnx]

Nice pics......hmm.....do you need a visa to enter New Caledonia?

New Caledonia is a french territory. If you don't need a visa for France you most likely don't need a visa for New Caledonia.
Here is a really nice website with lots of information. I you have any other questions, please ask away.

http://www.newcaledoniatourism-south.com/home.cfm

When I first arrived there I was a little surprised as I expected something more like Tahiti.
New Caledonia's westcoast is very dry, once you get on the other side it's very lush.
Most of the islands is still populated by the original people of these islands, the Melanesian. In Noumea, which is on the main island, you will find a very large population of french nationals. Tourism is really not promoted nearly as much as it should, I think, but that makes these islands very quiet, as you can see in the pictures of beaches I took.
By the time I left, I had fallen in love with the islands and it's people.

[CGK]

Nice pictures. Thanks!
Being Indonesian, can I go there without visa?

[yvrcnx]

Nice pictures. Thanks!
Being Indonesian, can I go there without visa?

CGK, I assume you would need a visa for France with Indonesian nationality.
In that case you would also need a visa to enter New Caledonia as same rules apply. Same as Tahiti.
You would also need to transit either through N.Z. or Australia to get to New Caledonia, though Air Calin does have nonstop flights a couple times a week from Japan.
I am sure you are familiar with visa requirements for Australia and N.Z.
Sorry to not be the bearer of better news.

[KeithMEL]

Awesome pics - thanks for sharing.
I mean to visit one of these little islands one day - was going to use my miles for Tahiti but put that off after realising how expensive that place was. Fiji seems too commercialised.

I might check out Noumea - what are prices like over there? And I'm glad they have an SPG property...

[LukeGT]

Beautiful pics!

[jjpb3]

Am I happy yvrcnx figured out how to post his pics!

Thanks for sharing.

[yvrcnx]

Awesome pics - thanks for sharing.
I mean to visit one of these little islands one day - was going to use my miles for Tahiti but put that off after realising how expensive that place was. Fiji seems too commercialised.

I might check out Noumea - what are prices like over there? And I'm glad they have an SPG property...

KeithMel, there are 2 Starwood Properties in New Caledonia, one in Noumea and another one on the Isle des Pins (Island of Pinetrees).
http://www.starwoodhotels.com/prefer...&ratePlanName=

They are both Le Meridiens, the one in Noumea is very affordable, though it has a ruin next to it from a previous hotel, but I have actually never seen much of it as I was in the other wing.
The one on Isle des Pins is more pricey but stunning as you will see if you go to the photopage on the SPG site.
Prices are below what you see in Tahiti. I have travelled all over the island and we always found nice accomodation that was inexpensive.
As you go outside of Noumea and travel through the smaller towns you need to know that there sometimes isn't much and things close early. We had to always make sure there was still a place to eat in the evening, sometimes we had to buy food at a gas station because everything was closed.
But that was just part of being there. This islands are really, really laid back.
When we went to the Isle des Pins we thought there would be a little town with stores etc., absolutely nothing. It felt like you thrown back 100 years, some people still live in the original huts and when walking through the village on Sunday you see everyone beautifully dressed going to church.
It is definently worthwhile renting a car on the main island and driving around is really easy though the french tend to drive a little crazy.

[yvrcnx]

Am I happy yvrcnx figured out how to post his pics!

Thanks for sharing.

Big part thanks to you jjpb3. I feel like I a little boy that learnt something new extraordinary in school, that somewhat changed his life.
Thanks again.

[KeithMEL]

Cool cheers for the info mate!

It is definently worthwhile renting a car on the main island and driving around is really easy though the french tend to drive a little crazy.

That'd require me to finally get off my arse and learn driving!

[The High Flyer]

Thanks yvrcnx for the wonderful report and pictures. I have always been fascinated by the South Pacific islands. Been wanting to visit Tahiti, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Tonga, and even the lesser nations like Nauru and Niue!!! Accessibility is a problem though. I did quite a bit of research into these places some time back, though that had been since put on the backburner. Now you have gotten the fire in me raging again!

[The High Flyer]

Oh, by the way, if anyone wanted a look of what it's like to rough it out in the South Pacific, watch Castaway by Tom Hanks (and Wilson ). That film was set in a fictitious island, though in reality it was shot in Fiji. I'm not sure if could survive 1,500 days the way Noland did.

[Kai-Sheng]

with Indonesian nationality.

He's an Indonesian?!!Hi ya neighbour!

(correct me if i'm wrong)