Tonga beaches are a hit and miss affair. The popular tourist destination of Vava'u, for example, has few good beaches on the main island, but some gorgeous palm fringed beaches on the surrounding coral islands. Similarly, Tongatapu, the main island, has only a couple of nice beaches, but there are some stunning beach locations on the uninhabited offshore islands. Only Ha'apai, the seldom visited group in the centre of Tonga, has good beaches on its main island. There are only a few holiday beach resorts in Tonga and none of these cater to more than 30 guests at a time.
The best beach on Tongatapu is at Ha'atafu on the western tip of the island. Here the slightly coarse sand stretches for almost a mile and makes a great place for strolling. Swimming and snorkelling are good and there's excellent off shore surfing.
Haatafu Beach, West Coast
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Keleti Beach, South Coast
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Tongatapu is a large uplifted coral island. On its southern coast, which has been raised 30 feet in places, are some gorgeous cove beaches with natural swimming pools, although the reef is very close to shore which rules out snorkelling. You'll need your own transport to get here as its some way off the main road. There are a few isolated beaches on the eastern side of Tongatapu which are nice to visit but difficult to find. Nuku'alofa, the capital, does not have a beach.
Some of the best beaches in Tonga lie a few miles off the main island, most of which are visible from Nuku'alofa. Fafa Island has a gorgeous palm fringed beach and can arrange for day cruises to the uninhabited islands within the lagoon where you'll find deserted beaches and sandbanks with excellent snorkelling.
more on these uninhabited islands
Fafa Island
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Sandbank off Nuku
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A couple of beaches can be found on the large island of Eua off the south-eastern coast of Tongatapu. These include Tufuvai Beach, on the east coast near the wharf and Ha''aluma Beach on the south east coast. Both have dangerous currents and are not advisable for swimming.
The beaches on Lifuka and neighbouring Foa Island (connected by land bridge) in the Ha'apai Group are some of the most accessible in the country. The island is small and flat and although the only way to get about is by push bike, the road follows the coast making the beaches easy to find. Unfortunately tourism is very low key - just a handful of budget guest houses in Pangai Village on Lifuka a beach front budget resort on the east coast, and a more up-market resort on Foa Island.
East Coast Lifuka Island
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Sandy Beach, Foa Island
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The beach at the northern point of Foa Island is the pick of the bunch with fine white sand and excellent swimming. The southern point of Lifuka too has a nice swimming beach and it is possible to wade a mile or so across the reef at low tide to Uoleva Island which has a gorgeous white sand beach. On the east coast of Lifuka, the beach stretches for almost two miles and is great for beachcombing, although this is the windy side of the island and currents can make swimming difficult. Several picturesque beaches can be found to the south and north of Pangai Village although there is no decent beach in the village itself.
The popular tourist destination of Vava'u has some lovely beaches, but to get to them you'll need to join a boat tour or hire a kayak. The main island of Vava'u where most of the accommodation is has only a two nice beaches, and these are both in isolated spots in the north east of the island, about a 30-minute drive from Neifu Town. Join a day cruise, though, or charter a yacht, and you'll find plenty of isolated spots on the offshore islands with swaying palm trees. Mounu and Ovalau Islands in the south of the group have the nicest swimming beaches, Mounu being a private island with a small resort. Vaka'eitu has a nice cove beach which is popular with yachties and there is excellent snorkelling on the far side of the island.
Otea Beach, Vavau
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Niuatoputapu
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Some of the most idyllic palm fringed white sandy beaches are in the utterly remote Niuas in the far north of Tonga... more on these islands
Tonga Beach Resorts
Readers may also be interested in the following destinations:
Fiji Beaches
Cook Islands Beaches
Samoa Beaches
Tonga Beaches
Tahiti Beaches
Hawaii Beaches
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