What can you recommend for Pacific island hopping?

I’m a Kiwi and I visited Samoa in 2011. I stayed at the Taufua Beach Fales, Lalomanu Beach (Aleipata). It was a few months after the big tsunami had come through, but the place was fully functional, although they had some sad stories, of course.

It was a holiday holiday, so I didn’t take a laptop. If I had, I think I would have been frustrated by the infrastructure. Most of the people seemed very poor and most of the money seems to go into building churches. It didn’t seem like a place that was catering to digital nomads.

But if you’re just looking for a place to chill, I’d definitely recommend it. The interior is really lush, the people and visitors are friendly and it has a very different pace of life to New Zealand. It seemed a little edgy in town in the evenings, so I’d keep your wits about you there. I didn’t run into trouble, but I didn’t go looking for any. Also, the waves breaking on the reef are really loud, so take some earplugs to really make the most of your beachfront fale

I haven’t been to any other Pacific Islands yet, maybe one day. I have avoided Fiji on principle, due to the military’s involvement over the years.

The rates at Taufua (in June 2011) were:

• The rate for one person to be in a fale is 120SAT per night with breakfast and dinner.
• If you stay one week, you get a 10% discount.
• If you can share with another person, the rate drops to 90SAT
• If you can share with 2 people, the rate drop to 70SAT per night.

In 2017, 120 SAT (WST) = 65.1227 NZD. So yeah, not very cheap, but cheap enough for someone that was working full time for the man at the time.

It’s a long way from the airport, so when you book your transfer, remember to take into account the time difference

Consider Indonesia or the Philippines. Both have lots of islands & reefs. Prices are relatively low & Internet service is good in at least some places. Here’s one area worth a thought:
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Bohol

Depending on a lot of things you might also consider booking a round-the-world or round-the-Pacific flight. Those aren’t cheap but may not be hugely different than cost for a round trip to NZ plus flights to various Pacific islands. That might ley you get to more places and/or to some that are otherwise expensive to reach like Easter Island.

Hey - we spent a few months in Fiji (my husband is originally from Fiji, left when he was 10). It’s a beautiful place. Go to Savusavu where theres lots of yoga retreats and so on starting to happen.

Price wise - there are lots of hostels and homestays, but you don’t get as nice a place as you would in SEA. Resorts and hotels can be found cheaply also (way cheaper than Aus/NZ anyway).

Local food in the markets is dirt cheap, fresh produce, etc. Anything that has to be imported is expensive.
Data is good - Vodafone put up towers all over the islands so no issue with coverage and its nto dirt cheap but its ok priced.

Local wages are very cheap ($100 AUD a week). You can definitely hire someone to take you diving, snorkelling etc and the beauty and possibilitie are just incredible.

The problem with Fiji and a lot of similar islands is that its basically either resorts or local accom (more or less slum) so there’s not the budget but nice accom you can get in SEA which is very digital nomad friendly. Renting a place on airbnb for a couple months is possible but you get nowhere near the bang for your buck you do somewhere like Bali. Have a look on airbnb I guess. If yuo just want a few nights, then there’s hostels and cheaper hotels.

Fijian people are super nice and (something I find extremely refreshing as cmopared to Bali, where I spend most of my time) nobody will try to hustle you.

Hmm, the South Pacific tends to be priced at the bare minimum the pricing Australia/NZ has, and if it’s not, it tends to be much higher.

But not to worry, there is absolutely many alternatives.

If you want beautiful lagoons that are uncrowded and out of this world, head to Vanuatu (I’ve heard samoa is good for this too) - Vanuatu will keep you awe-inspired and adventure seeking for a solid few weeks at least, as there are 3 main islands (Efate, Esperitu Santo and Tanna)

On Efate you’ve got the incredible Mele Cascade falls, I’d do a helicopter ride there as well as it’s just dam magical, visit the blue lagoon too. As for snorkelling on Efate, you’ve got Hideaway Island which is OK, not that great. But It’s a definitely spectacular Island Efate. Also wrap your trip up with a round island day trip (hire a local, It’s like $100 of the whole day for up to whoever can fit in their car).

Esperitu Santo, you’ve got the blue hole, champagne beach, and many more stunning spots.

Tanna Island you’ve got this volcano that just dominates the whole island, creates the mood of the island - there is also magical caves there.

– Vanuatu truly is right now a more so untouched gem, It has only a small amount of tourism per year.

The magic of the paradise of Vanuatu is that it doesn’t have that busy feel many Asian islands have.