Sailing Vava'u
NZ Home and Entertaining
Foreigners once tried to build a five-star resort on Tonga’s Vava’u island chain. They flew in to dazzle the locals with promises of employment, expansion and prosperity. Not wanting to appear rude, the islanders called many meetings to cogitate the proposal. Months passed before the answer finally came: “Thanks but no thanks. We don’t really want that sort of place here.”
And it is exactly this attitude that makes Vava’u one of the last pristine tropical refuges in the South Pacific. With its tiny population of 16,000 easygoing people, it offers a rare seclusion in idyllic surroundings. Smooth ivory beaches ring lush volcanic islands. Aquamarine waters, unpolluted and millpond calm, lap torpidly on dozens of mostly-uninhabited islands. Coral reefs teem with underwater life, and trees hang heavy with exotic fruits.
There may be no hotels with mini-bars in Vava’u, but there are a few resorts with scattered beachfront fales, decorated in casual chic taste, where visitors can wallow in a simple brand of luxury.
Probably the best way to see Vava’u, however, is by boat. The beauty of sailing Vava’u is that there are typically no rough seas, no blustery slogs to get to the next location, no wretched seasickness—just short, languid hops between islands.
Sunsail, a yacht chartering company that leases boats in 42 global ports of paradise, has a Vava’u operation managed out of Auckland. The joy of booking through charter companies like Sunsail is that no matter how undeveloped the surroundings, you’re guaranteed a quality boat. Sunsail has 12 boats for lease in Tonga, bareboat or skippered. Nine are monohulls, the largest of which sleeps up to ten people. The other three are catamarans sleeping up to ten.
The monohulls are all Beneteaus, ranging in length from 33 to 50 foot. They have multiple double cabins with ensuite bathrooms, large, nautical-themed saloons, compact and well-conceived galleys, spacious cockpit, teak cockpit deck and gleaming fiberglass hull. Most have dining seating adjoining the galley, but in Tonga’s tepid climate eating on deck is de rigueur.
Sunsail prefer to do bareboat charters, but for those who require a skipper, they have Limoni. (Ray) Sisau on hand. Ray has mocha skin, bulging muscles and a radiant white smile. He is a competent sailor, a diligent hard worker and a brilliant fisherman, providing meals of fresh snapper almost daily.
The boats are provisioned with basics like steak, vegetables, fish, eggs and salad makings, but it’s advisable to either shop duty free, or in Tonga’s capital, Nukalofa, for necessities like feta, Brie, herbs and alcohol before heading up to Vava’u. Bringing your own gourmet meats from home is also an excellent idea.
Although Ray doesn’t cook on-board, he loves to take guests to lonesome and immaculate Euakafa Island, dig a pit in the sand, light a fire and throw freshly caught fish on a grill, dousing them in coconut milk and lime. He tosses on bananas, boils rice in coconut milk, adds avocado and cilantro, cracks a bottle of New Zealand’s finest Sauvignon Blanc (bring with you) and invites you to dine Tongan style — crouching shoulder deep in the water. The ultimate moveable feast.
The food in Tonga is astonishingly good, and the traditional village umu feast, usually served in a village beach fale (woven and thatched hut), must be tried. Suckling pigs are roasted on a spit, root vegetables are baked in a pit oven and then presented (on banana leaves) with papaya, lobster, and raw fish marinated in coconut milk and lime.
Without doubt, the most extraordinary restaurant in Vava’u is La Paella, on Tapana Island. Owners, Maria and Eduardo, are Spaniards from Valencia. She is an elegant, beachified flamenco dancer, he, a salty, introverted guitarist with long hair, wild beard and tapered fingers. They sailed here ten years ago, were enamored with the place, stayed on and opened a restaurant that serves ridiculously authentic tapas and paella to passing sailors. The restaurant is built high on a cliff overlooking Tapana harbour, cobbled together from a eclectic mix of bamboo, driftwood, wooden beams and random Spanish items—bullfighting posters, mantillas, naive paintings and sun-faded throws. The effect is one of relaxed and eccentric beauty—extravagant and inspiring.
After serving divine lobster cerviche, béchamel croquets, frittata and seafood paella, Eduardo and Maria fling aside a makeshift curtain and launch into the music of Spain, Cuba, Brazil and Mexico. La Paella’s weird enchantment makes this tiny tree house, accessible only by boat, the most acclaimed restaurant in Tonga.
For non-sailors, the best place to stay is on Mounu Island Resort with New Zealanders Allan and Lyn Bowe. Alan is a gregarious, wiry man with patchy shaven head and chest length beard. He looks not unlike Tom Hanks in the latter part of the movie Castaway—without the hair. Lyn is a woman with lingering beauty, despite a life of unrelenting sun. The couple “went troppo” 20 years ago and now own the resort and a popular bar on Neifu, Vava’u’s capital.
Mounu Island Resort is tiny with three uncomplicated but elegant guest fales. Each is secluded in it’s own private area of the island. The architecture of the fales is a modern take on the traditional Tongan home, with coconut pole construction under a shingle roof. The rooms consist of a circular room with wooden floors, adjoining bathroom with hot shower, a bed under a mosquito net and a large sundeck. What more do you need?
Mounu has a restaurant with candlelit dining where Lyn prepares hearty meals like coq au vin while Alan, in that inimitable Kiwi way, regales guests with highly amusing tales of life in the islands. Although they prefer to serve for guests only, sailors can often radio ahead that morning and book a table.
Vava’u is real end-of-the-earth stuff, and for travelers who don’t require all-night room service, it’s utter perfection.
Sunsail Reservations, Z Pier Westhaven Marina, Auckland. Postal - P.O. Box 33729 Takapuna
Ph 64 9 3787 900, Fax 64 9 3788 363, E Mail res.v@sunsail.co.nz; Website: http://www.sunsail.co.nz/
Mounu Island Resort, Private Box 7, Neiafu, Vava’u, Kingdom Of Tonga, Telephone +676 70747; Fax +676 70493; Email mounu@kalianet.to; http://www.mounu.com/