Any Travels

New Caledonia is the fourth largest island in the beautiful Pacific. New Caledonia is made up of a series of islands. The beaches are to die for with pure, white sand to give your feet a holiday. New Caledonia's best kept secret is the array of reefs, which lie just off the coast.

New Caledonia was initially settled by the Melanesians 2000-3000 years ago. The first European to sight New Caledonia was Captain James Cook in the 1770's on his way to New Zealand.

The island wasn't sighted again until 1853 when French Admiral Febvrier-Despointes claimed it as French territory. From then on French settlers and convicts flooded into the new island.

The people of New Caledonia are multi-cultural with 42.5% Melanesian, 37.1% European, 20.4% other in population. The official language is French but at least 33 Melanesian dialects are used. The prominent religion is Roman Catholic with 60% practicing it.

With New Caledonia claiming the world's second biggest coral reef, the diving and snorkelling are spectacular. In summer the water may not be as clear with wet season runoff from the land, but on calm, windless winter's days underwater visibility can reach 50m (165ft). Some of the best dive sites are on 'le des Pins, Poindimi', Am'd'e Islet, Mar' and southern Grande Terre. Swimming, of course, is an option in most places with so many fine beaches, and the best are on the east coast, Loyalty Islands and 'le des Pins. Trekking on foot and horse trekking are both popular, and you can arrange two or three day horse rides into the interior of Grande Terre.

There are plenty of possibilities for caving on Grande Terre, 'le des Pins and the Loyalty Islands. If John Denver's sticky end didn't deter you, you can also try ultra-light flying from Noumea or Lifou in the Loyalties, and to really loosen your bowels there's parapente (parasailing). You run down the edge of a hill or mountain dragging a rectangular parachute behind you till it opens (you hope) by the time you launch off into thin air. Being an outpost of France, the cycling is manic, and they even stage their own version of the Tour de France in September.

Places to go:

Noumea
Since the bombs and riots of the 1980s, Noumea has begun a swag of new developments unparalleled since the heady days of the nickel boom. Political rallies today are more likely to be protesting forced redundancies and cuts to services than demanding an end to French rule.

From Anse Vata in the south, Noumea's most prestigious beach, to the northern suburbs of Koutiou and Yahoue, the town measures little more than 15km (9.3mi). The city centre spreads along Baie de la Moselle to the west, a fine harbour with cruise liners, fishing boats and a fleet of private yachts.

Bourail
With a population of only 4350, Bourail is a lively colonial-era settlement and New Caledonia's second largest town. And don't worry - it does get a little more lively than the Arab Cemetery and New Zealand Pacific War Cemetery. Huntin' and fishin' are the main pastimes among the local Caldoche community, and an unusual rock formation, La Roche Perc?e, is the most famous landmark in the area. Locals say it's shaped like a face (if you've had a few drinks or are blessed with a good imagination), and you can clamber all over it at low tide. Early risers can see the turtles nearby at Baie des Tortues. The best beach in the area is the Plage de Po?, with fine, white sand, colourful shells and good snorkelling.

Hienghene
Hiengh?ne has two main drawcards: it's the site of the massacre of 10 independantistes in 1984 and also the Linderalique Cliffs - dramatic, black limestone cliffs, rising in some places to 60m (197ft) above the sea, topped by razor-sharp pinnacles, and dotted with caves inhabited by flying foxes.

A Club Med south of Hiengh?ne offers luxury accommodation and a cutesy imitation Melanesian village. The Goa Ma Bwarhat Cultural Centre contains a small museum and a performance room, where there are occasional theatrical, musical and legend-telling performances. You can hike the Chemin des Arabes across Grande Terre's central mountains to the west coast, a trip of three days with water en route. Hiengh?ne is on the northeast coast of Grande Terre, via a paved road that crosses the mountains and then hugs the coast through a spectacular coastal landscape.

Poum
At the end of the RT1 on the northern tip of Grande Terre, Poum is a windswept community of 1300. If the weather's wild, Poum can be uninviting, and while there's not much to see in town, if you have time and your own transport it's worth making a trip to Boat-Pass, also known as Pointe Naherian. This wild and desolate peninsula is exposed to the sea and bordered by palms, grasslands and araucaria pines.

Tiga
Few travellers reach this tiny raised coral atoll in the Loyalty group. On the island's protected side, underwater cliffs abound with coral and fish, making for great diving. Deserted beaches are ideal to kick back and relax, and although there's no formal accommodation you can camp at the airport or on most private property if you get the owner's permission. The 380 Tigans live in the north-west corner of the island, where the reef is most accessible and the island least exposed to the elements. Tiga's airstrip is just south of the village, and there are four inter-island flights a week from Mare and Lifou, or one a week from Noumea.

Places to go:

Among the Kanaks, dance has developed into a high art form. The traditional pilou dance tells the stories of births, marriages, cyclones or preparations for battle, although colonial authorities banned pilous in in 1951 for the high-energy and trance-like state they induced in the dances. Music is a fundamental element of every traditional ceremony, and the range of instruments includes conch shells, rhythm instruments and bamboo flutes. The Caldoches, or white New Caledonians, are mostly descended from French convicts and have forged their own culture, more akin to that of rural Australians or rural Americans than the metropolitan French.

Rodeos and country fairs are popular. Mitros are the more recent immigrants from France, and you're more likely to see them dining in fine restaurants or shopping for the latest fashions. French is the official language, and you'll need to speak some if you venture out of Noumea (where at least some of those working in the tourist industry speak some English). An estimated 27 Kanak languages coexist in New Caledonia, but after being actively discouraged - or at least ignored - by the French, there is no single unifying Kanak language. The clan, not the individual, was the most important element of traditional Kanak culture, and la coetume, a code encompassing rites, rituals and social interaction between the clans, is the essential component of Kanak identity today. It also maintains a crucial link with the individual's ancestors. Kanaks are Melanesians, the black people of the Western Pacific with links to Papuans and Australian Aborigines, and call themselves Ti-Va-Ouere, or 'Brothers of the Earth'.

New Caledonia's traditional staples are fish, coconut, banana, taro, sweet potato and yam. Lobster, coconut crab, dugong and turtle are also traditional food sources, as is roussette, the local flying fox. Unfortunately, much traditional fare is being superseded by canned and processed goods, although you will still come across the bougna, a delicious combination of taro, yam, sweet potato, banana, and pieces of chicken, crab or lobster wrapped in banana leaves and cooked in a ground oven. Many restaurants serve standard French fare with all its eccentricities, although the Vietnamese, Chinese and Indonesian restaurants generally serve up better value. The French, of course, take both their coffee and their wine seriously, and both are excellent.

elephants
watch out for elephants near the beach