30 minutes ago
3
It’s wet season in the South Pacific, a time that can play havoc with itineraries, shore excursions and – as I soon discover – my hair.
I’m on a 14-day cruise in April aboard the grand Celebrity Edge, looping from Sydney to New Caledonia, Fiji and Vanuatu and back, with the added spice of not one but two cyclones hovering nearby for much of the journey. Still, the captain and crew steer us through the swell with only gentle rolls to remind us occasionally that we are actually deep at sea and not in a five-star resort.
It helps, of course, to be aboard a luxury 15-level cruise liner rather than a dinghy. The Edge has been designed to withstand whatever nature throws at it, while keeping 3000 passengers with high expectations entertained, well fed and comfortable throughout two weeks of island-hopping. Thankfully, it does this very well.
Departure ports don’t get more spectacular than Sydney Harbour on a golden autumn afternoon. With three straight days at sea ahead, there’s plenty of time to explore the cruise ship. That’s fortunate, because Celebrity Edge is huge. With 29 restaurants and bars, plus pools, theatres, lounges, artworks and quiet, hidden corners, it can take days to properly navigate the luxury liner, let alone experience all it has to offer.
At first, my Infinite Veranda Stateroom is actually too-comfortable, making it difficult to venture out. The roomy cabin is decked out in soft neutrals, with a cloud-soft bed and crisp sheets tightly tucked in twice daily. The retractable window spends more time down than up, the sound of crashing ocean providing all the entertainment I need.
Eventually, FOMO drags me outside and I head directly to Celebrity’s signature feature: the Magic Carpet, a striking orange cantilevered platform that glides up and down the ship’s exterior, transforming from bar to dining area to tender boarding station.
Inside, the heart of the action is the Grand Plaza: the glitzy, three-storey atrium is my pick for people-watching, live music, silent discos and golf putting comps. Bartenders shake their thing under chandeliers and back it up with decent cocktails at the Martini Bar, while coffee and petits fours draw crowds to Café Al Bacio, which overlooks the action.
Pool-lovers gravitate towards the sprawling Resort Deck, complete with martini glass-shaped spas and in-pool loungers. For freckly people like me, the indoor Solarium pool offers a welcome alternative to slowly roasting in the tropical heat. Of course, the pool swims are just a warm-up for the real deal – dips in that impossibly turquoise sea that the South Pacific is famous for.
It’s time to island hop. At each port, passengers can choose between booking a third-party shore excursion through Celebrity, researching and booking their own, exploring the port area at their leisure or simply staying on the ship. Booking through the ship guarantees a refund if an excursion is cancelled, as my planned waterfall visit in Suva is, due to torrential rain. A day spent toes-up onboard in the Edge’s peaceful SEA Thermal Suite makes for a strong plan B.
By day six, however, the weather finally eases. Docked in Fiji’s “Sugar City”, Lautoka, our small tour group boards a modern coach with guide Bill, who entertains us with stories during the 90-minute drive past lush mountains, small villages, wandering horses and waving kids.
Our destination is the community-run Bula Coffee factory, followed by the Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park. In order to reach the ancient site, we are cheerily informed, we’ll first need to hike through a steep and thickly forested park. Bill whips off his shoes and sets off barefoot. How hard can it be?
Turns out, very. Especially if you’re not the hiking type and are wearing unsuitable footwear. We climb a narrow, slippery track to the summit, where we are offered two options: continue to the dunes or take the shorter route back to the bus. Gasping quietly, sweating profusely, I choose the latter. The return journey is noticeably quieter, apart from Bill serenading us with Fijian love songs. Bula indeed.
A highlight is Mystery Island in Vanuatu. Pulling up to the jetty on the tender is like seeing a postcard come to life: powder-white sand, leaning coconut palms, clear blue sky and water so vividly cerulean it barely looks real. I am euphoric. Five swims and one leisurely lap of the island later, I finally feel relaxed. My bathers barely have time to dry between swims.
In Lifou, in New Caledonia’s Loyalty Islands, we travel by bus to remote Luecila Beach, where slate-grey clouds make the ocean appear even brighter. Heavy rain begins hammering down mid-swim. I’m not complaining. This is special.
Our final stop is Vanuatu’s Port Vila, where a packed excursion includes visits to Aelan Chocolate Makers factory and a traditional cultural village complete with dancing, firewalking and performances delivered for the benefit of camera-wielding tourists.
The real highlight comes afterwards at the Blue Lagoon. After signing a waiver, I brace myself for the possibility of being forced into some sort of terrifying rope-swing situation. Mercifully, gentle entry platforms allow the less adventurous among us to slip into the deep aqua water with bathers intact.
I could have stayed there happily for hours. But we have a ship to catch, so it’s back to the minibus and back to the Edge and three more full days at sea. I give up trying to tame my now wild hair, plump up my pillows and settle in for a final stretch of refined grazing and ocean gazing, safely cocooned from the wild but beautiful South Pacific storms.
