Getting to Niue

11 December 2010, will see the first official Air NZ A320 flight to Niue and will remain as the regular service from that point. Although Niue has had a few land already due to large waitlists to get to this Island paradise. Passengers can now travel in comfort in just over 3 hours. The crew even loves the welcome you get on arrival to Niue from one of the local dance groups.

Enquire here for your airfare options »

Romantic Niue.

Niue has always been a destination for romantics – but it’s not just for the human kind. Every year at the start of summer, white tip reef sharks gather around sites like Snake Gully and Gothic City for a romantic rendezvous. Their courtship isn’t for the faint hearted – without going into specifics let’s just say it involves a lot of biting and bumping. But for scuba divers, it’s a chance to try out their voyeuristic tendencies. The usually shy white tips will come within a metre of divers as they search for that someone special. Luckily for us, we don’t appear to be their type so we enjoy a front row seat for all the action. The sea snakes too become very amorous during the warmer months. They follow snorkellers and divers about in their search for a soul mate. And when the guys do find the girl of their dreams, they engage in an orgy of sorts with up to half a dozen blokes targeting one female. As they get more and more excited, the ball of snakes rises to the surface and six little heads pop up for a breather before returning to their romantic ritual.

Clear as can be

Every South Pacific Island has a claim to fame for diving – Niue’s is its visibility. Even on a rainy, windy, miserable day, the vis on Niue generally exceeds 30-40 metres – and on a good day reaching distances of up to 80 metres! On dive sites like Snake Gully and Limu Twin Caves, it’s like being on the top of a mountain and gazing down to the valley below. The great thing about great visibility is it allows everyone to see the marine life well before it sees you. Humpback whales don’t like the bubbles from scuba so they rarely come close on a dive, but we can see them as clear as day if they pass us 40 metres away. Likewise, we can get a good view of the occasional hammerheads, sailfish or even whale shark if they choose to keep their distance. Good vis also makes it virtually impossible to lose your buddy underwater and navigating back to the line is not much of a challenge when you can see it 50 metres away!

Mesmerising Mammals

It’s pretty hard to maintain that cool, calm exterior you’ve worked so long to perfect when a 15-metre humpback whale is swimming slowly towards you. And it’s understandable you want to hold your breath as the whale surfaces just metres away to catch its breath before diving down again. Interactions with humpback whales happen virtually every day between July and early October in the waters around Niue. No two interactions are the same but it’s guaranteed to be a personal experience with no more than a handful of people sharing the moment with you.  Niue doesn’t do things in big ways; it prefers to keep things more intimate and memorable. Niue’s spinner dolphins deserve their share of adoration as well. They may not be as attention grabbing as the humpbacks but they manage to swim their way into the hearts of anyone who gets in the water with them. No matter how many times you’ve seen dolphins before, nothing compares to gliding along with the spinners in the warm, clear water of Niue. They stay just beyond reach as the swimmers become immersed in their pod – look for the eyes watching you as you begin to realise we are as much of a curiosity to them as they are to us.

Lonely Planet recently posted Snorkeling with whales in Niue as the #1 Adventure activity in the pacific Islands. Go and see why.

Captivating caverns

Coasting thru an underwater cavern on Niue is like entering another world. Streams of sunlight illuminate the floor of the cave, small torches help to pick out the fish hiding in the darker corners and the amazing visibility makes cavern diving on Niue a pleasure, even for the most claustrophobic. Photographers can’t get enough of the classic silhouette shots of divers at the entrance, the endless blue behind them. Go deeper into some of the caverns and find hidden treasures such as chambers where you can surface and find coconut crabs climbing the walls or sea snakes sleeping curled up around stalagmites.

Decent sized painted crayfish also lurk in some of the darker caves – smug in the knowledge they can’t be taken on scuba!

Large schools of mahi-mahi and yellow fin taking up camp and being nailed in the last few months. While 8 – 10kg has been the norm for both species; a good number of large mahi-mahi to 27kg has made for some very lively action. Large barracuda and frequent attacks by dogtooth have been a welcome seasonal addition, with one of the highlights being a superb 62kg doggy landed by some visiting anglers.

Some fantastic Wahoo fishing has been experienced so far this season with large catches (up to 18 fish per boat!) and some excellent 40 – 45kg fish.

A couple of visiting spearo’s from Oz out aboard SARAH were treated to a great week mixing it up with mahi-mahi, dogtooth and Wahoo culminating in a beautiful 40.5kg personal best Wahoo being tapped.

Fishing icon Geoff Thomas was up recently in Niue and managed some amazing land and water based fishing with 30 + kg Wahoo being the norm.  The fishing was so good he’s going back next year with an international tournament in mind….more to come on that next year.

Yellow fin tuna, dogtooth and barracuda and all in abundance and as the skipjack start to arrive with the warmer water temperatures, so too are the billfish with nice sailfish being landed by boats and local vaka (canoe) look alike.

Charter boats continue to be busy with anticipation running high for the expected arrival of the yellow fin and billfish “BIG BOYS”, as the weather warms up.

Being an isolated Island means you have to get clever – an interesting, fast and effective way to launch your boat will certainly add to the excitement!

Namukulu Cottages & Spa

Has three beautifully appointed self-contained studio rooms set in lush tropical gardens with sweeping sea views from the deck & lounge.  The units are complete with kitchen facilities and are well geared up for self catering. A breakfast starter pack is provided on arrival. 

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Matavai

In Niuean, the name “Matavai” means "to look at the water," and water plays a major role in the character of the Resort, with 2 freshwater swimming pools and spectacular views of the clear, blue Pacific.
This magnificent resort is located on a cliff top with dramatic, panoramic, 180-degree view of the South Pacific Ocean. 

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Car Rentals

Exclusive Rental offer for Dive Fish Snow Travel clients^#

Alofi Rentals – book and rent a car for 7 days and receive a FREE Orientation Tour of the Island

Other Activities

• Caving
• 4x4 Tour
• Reef walks
• Cultural Experiences
• Mountain biking
• Exploring

Enquire here »

^# All bonus offers expire 31 May 2011 unless otherwise specified

Word on the streets is that over night accommodation in and around Auckland is hard to get and seats on domestic flights will all be at a premium price (sept/oct).

2011 is a huge year for New Zealanders what with the Rugby, Pacific Heads of Government Forums, Elections, etc - and the success of such major events is always reliant on so many people as part of their job or as a volunteer. So if your job will ensure that being involved will reduce your opportunity to escape to your warm tropical paradise next winter, we urge you to think about and plan your escape now before you get caught up in the hype!

OR if your plan is to escape all the madness and mayhem we highly recommend that you do this now as aircraft seats into and out of New Zealand plus main trunk domestic flights are going to be at a premium through September/October 2011 in particular, and don't forget, the cheapest seats always sell out first.

Remember - dreams don’t just happen overnight. They need nurturing and planning Early so you can reap the rewards.

Other 2011 dates where aircraft seats will sell out early!

• April 15 - May 1 - School Holidays
• April 22 - 25 - Easter
• July 16 - 31 - School Holidays
• October 8 - 24 - School Holidays
• Early September - Pacific Heads of Government Forum in Auckland
• Then its the Rugby!

So Call one of our Specialist Dive Travel Consultants, Plan early for next year and reward yourself with the holiday you want. Enquire now » and don't pay a premium, because you got onto it Early

Are you a keen fisherman or fisherwoman? Sign up now for our Reeltimes newsletter and get the heads up on some great fishing holidays in the South Pacific. Sign up here »

Plus fill in our Fishing Survey and be in to win a Bradley Smoker.

Click here to start our Fishing Survery »

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Regards - "THE DIVE TEAM" - Dive Fish Snow Travel Auckland
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