by Peter Curilla

Located almost directly between Australia and Fiji, New Caledonia is the South Pacific’s best kept secret.

New Caledonia boasts a combination of experiences that are found nowhere else in the world, making it the ultimate island holiday, whether your budget is at the lower end of the scale or if you are looking for a luxury honeymoon; New Caledonia is designed to cater for everyone’s needs with a taste of Europe in the middle of the Pacific.

Blessed with surf year round, the best time to catch waves here is between April and September. New Caledonia is surrounded by a 1700 km barrier reef, which includes 200 passes with surfing potential. The most consistent region is the south west barrier reef, as it offers the best swell and wind conditions. This area has waves for all levels and with a maximum of 8 guys in Nekweta Surf Camp or the Surf charter boat, you can be assured you won’t be crowded out.

ONLY 2.5 HRS FROM EAST COAST AUSTRALIA, THIS MAGICAL SURF DESTINATION GUARANTEES UNCROWDED WAVES!

THESE PRICES ARE AS CHEAP AS WE HAVE SEEN IN YEARS AND SALE FINISHES ON 5 FEB, SO DON’T MISS OUT!


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Nekweta Surf Camp – from $1,910 per person / 7 Nights (based a 8 persons) (conditions apply to sale price see below for details)

Nekweta Surf Camp is run in a guest house style fashion and your host/surf-guide Emmanuelle Hernu (Manu) provides an intimate service in a homely fashion with his girlfriend Stephanie. Manu has been one of New Caledonia’s top surfers for years and has been surfing the surrounding reef breaks for years and will always get you to the best surf on offer at the time of your stay.

Note – Price is based on 8 person group and subject to flight availablity on special fare with Aircalin. Airfare sale is vaild until 5 february and must be paid in full before this date. All Travel must be completed by 30 June 2012.

Inclusions

• Return flights with Aircalin including all taxes EX BNE or SYD
• 7 nights accommodation at Nekweta Surf Camp (Sunday to Sunday).
• Meet & Greet with group airport transfers.
• 7 days full board – Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner.
• 6 days surf sessions with expert surf guide including one day trip to Ouano.

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New Caledonia Surf Charterfrom $2646 per person for 8 nights / 7 days (based on 8 person charter) (conditions apply to sale price see below for details)

Bahia is a 46-foot catamaran, which is ideal for groups of 6-8. They have a Macintosh in the common area for multimedia purposes, so you can watch DVDs, videos and pictures of your trip, and listen to music. The catamaran is equipped with a sound system which allows you to switch on the music in either cabin, on the deck or in the common area. Bahia is equipped with 2 double cabins and 2 twin cabins. She can comfortably cater for 8 passengers, but for an all-male charter you might want to limit numbers to 6 so each surfer gets their own bed.

Note – Price is based on 8 person group and subject to flight availablity on special fare with Aircalin. Airfare sale is vaild until 5 february and must be paid in full before this date. All Travel must be completed by 30 June 2012.

Charter boat trip inclusions

• Return flights with Aircalin including all taxes EX BNE or SYD
• Meet & Greet with group airport transfers.
• 3 meals daily and snacks. (excludes meals whilst in harbor  – dinner on first and last night and breakfast or lunch on the last day at guests own expense)
• Bottled water, soft drinks and hot drinks.
• Accommodation on board of 2 x twin bed cabin and 2 x double bed cabin.
• Services of English-speaking skipper/surf guide with extensive local knowledge.
• Use of all onboard equipment including basic fishing and snorkeling gear.

Client Testimonials:

Brikken (July 2011):

The trip was amazing! Couldn’t have asked for anything better. The people at Nekweta, Manu and his Partner Stephanie were very nice and friendly. They accommodated to everything I needed and more. Will definitely have to go back and visit them one time. I had perfect weather, the swell wasn’t the best at times, but there was so many other things to do, fishing and snorkelling. The swell kicked up on the weekend, a beach break popped up out of nowhere which was fun and also got to see a secret spot going off. I couldn’t say a bad thing about the trip, the people and the place was terrific!

Cameron (2009):

Hi Gina, The trip was great, we got some excellent waves and met some wonderful people. The left hander at the first surf camp (ouano lefts), was amazing, a two to three hundred metre wave that got wrapped in around an off shore reef. As the wave wrapped around it walled up creating some tube sections. we surfed for 6 hours on the first day at double head height, 8 hours on day two at 1.5 head height and 7 hours on day 3 at head height. The wave was easy to surf as our group had varying levels of surfers and everyone got plenty of waves. There were 8 of us and we pretty much surfed this wave on our own except for 3 locals who came out in the arvo. Nekweta was the 2nd place and a pleasant reprieve as we were greeted with smiles and treated like we were wanted there. Manu and his wife provided excellent food and service. The waves at the nekweta were not as good on the first two days there as the wind was up a little. We surfed a right these two days. It was around chest height and short ride on the first day and the second the swell picked up and early in the morning there were some double to triple head height sets rolling in. At this size the wave was hollow and had a difficult take off and potential tube section just down the line. Day 6, the 3rd day with Manu we surfed secrets. This wave was a tubing left hander at just over head height on the take off. You simply stood up and pulled in for a barrel. Very makable wave and would be quite a spectical when the right swells were hitting it. Overall it was an excellent holiday with some of the best waves of my life ridden. In fact halfway through day 2 of the trip after catching a near 300m screamer i was quoted saying to one of the guys “I’ve got the best wave of my life 7 times today”. Thank you again for the holiday, we had a blast.

Photo Gallery – Surfing in New Caledonia

Written by:
Ben Horvath

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