We started our South Pacific trip in Tonga, a Polynesian Kingdom of over 170 islands.

Known as the ‘Friendly Islands’, they were never formally colonised.

As it happens the Friendly Island label was real, everywhere we went we were greeted with a smile and even in our hotel, it seemed like the hotel staff were having as good a time as we were!

We took an island tour to see more of the main island. Our first stop was to see the place where Captain Cook had landed in the 1770’s the second European to have navigated here.

It was Cook who named these islands the Friendly Archipelago, although it is recorded that there were plans afoot for the islanders to kill him and loot his ships!

Our next stop was the Land Bridge, a natural rock arch, nearby to what turned out to be an army firing range, we didn’t stay too long!

Not to far away are a series of blow holes, where sea water crashes into volcanic rock terraces.

Next we visited a royal tombs site, which is around 800 years old.

Next up was the Tongan Stone Henge, just three stones, each weighing 30-40 tonnes and erected in the 13th century. The stones were placed as a gateway into a royal compound. Little is known about how such massive stones were transported here.

We were taken to see a large coral boulder, carried inland by an enormous tsunami. Now sat 200 metres inland and 39 metres above sea level, deposited by a mega Tsunami 50 metres high 7,000 years ago.

Next we went to see some fruit bats, also called flying foxes, hanging from a tree in a cemetery.

In Tonga these are revered creatures and deemed the property of the Tongan Royal family.

Our final stop was a visit a large limestone cavern with stalagmites and stalactites that also contains a freshwater pool.

It’s a refreshing and impressive place to take a dip.

Just a short walk from the cavern is a lovely beach. In 2022, one third of Tonga’s coastal tourist hotels were destroyed by a tsunami, so the beaches are now mostly undeveloped and natural.

We spent an evening at a cultural show, before the dinner and dances we strolled along a beautiful beach as the sun was setting.

The Tongan dances were great, so expressive with lots of hand movements.

Upon our arrival in Tonga we saw lots of national flags flying from vehicles but had no idea why.

It turned out that Tonga were playing Samoa in the Rugby League World Cup in Australia.

We watched the game in the hotel along with nearly 200 locals, cheering each tough tackle and point scored.

I love it when you stumble into a local occasion like this!

On our last full day in Tonga my wife tracked down a whale trip, being the last day of the season the likelihood of seeing anything was very low.

I foolishly took a day by the hotel pool, whilst Jacqui persevered and went along.

And so it was that I missed out on what was an amazing experience watching and swimming alongside to two humpback whales (at a safe and respectful distance).

Her pictures below show these wonderful creatures from her trip.

Tonga was a great first stop, it’s not a well established tourist destination, having been set back by the recent Tsunami.

However, the wonderful Tongan people bring this island to life, making it well worth a visit on any South Pacific tour.

Next we head to Fiji.