Day 25 Vava'u (Neiafu) Tonga

So, a blissfully uninterrupted night’s sleep—always a win at sea—especially knowing we weren’t docking but instead tendering into Vava’u (Neiafu) in Tonga. No mad morning rush for us; we cleverly let all the organised, excursion-bound passengers head off first while we enjoyed breakfast in the room, keeping a casual eye on the balcony to judge when the tender chaos had eased.
Eventually, we made our way down to the Vista Lounge to collect our tender tickets—essentially a colourful ticket system where you wait to be summoned. The weather was lovely—slightly overcast but properly tropical.
We boarded the tender, sat down… and I, through no fault of my own whatsoever, managed to pick the seat directly under a blazing patch of sun. Fifteen minutes later, I disembarked looking like I’d just came out of a sauna. Absolutely drenched. Delightful.
Once ashore, we found a taxi driver and asked for the usual essentials: beach, bar, toilets, shade, and somewhere to pretend we’re more glamorous than we are. He recommended Tonga Beach Resort. After a bit of friendly haggling—and recruiting another couple to share the ride—we got the fare down to $25 per couple, one way.

About 20 minutes later we arrived… and initial impressions were, let’s say, “rustic chic meets mild concern.” But once inside, we were warmly welcomed by a lovely lady who explained the $10 entry fee included access to a guest room for changing, showers, a restaurant, bar, a somewhat optimistic swimming pool, and—most importantly—a perfectly decent beach.
The sun was out, beers were acquired, and all was right with the world. I did attempt to use their Wi-Fi, which teased me by being surprisingly fast… for about 20 seconds at a time before dropping out completely. Uploading videos remains a distant dream at this point. Before long, we started spotting familiar faces from the ship and ended up chatting with Randy and Alan—great company and a good laugh. We ordered lunch, which somehow took over 30 minutes to produce a toasted ham and cheese sandwich.
Not entirely sure what journey that sandwich went on, but it did eventually arrive and was actually very nice. At some point we realised the couple we shared the taxi with had vanished—either they found a better deal or gave up waiting for their sandwich—so we cheekily asked Randy and Alan if we could hitch a ride back with them, which they kindly agreed to.
We made it back to the ship right on 4pm, just as Waves was closing. Naturally, this triggered a completely rational decision to panic-order a drink and a hot dog. Now, we hadn’t tried the hot dogs onboard before… and in hindsight, there was probably a reason. It was enormous. Impressive, yes. Wise choice before dinner? Absolutely not. Dinner is now… under review.
Back to the room, quick shower, and ready again by 6pm—slightly overfed, mildly sunburnt, and wondering how the evening is going to go.

More to follow…