Nuku’alofa – Cabinet has today approved the progressive opening of the country’s
borders, with conditions and subject to review, from August 1, 2022.
The Prime Minister, Honourable Hu’akavameiliku, and Cabinet met earlier
this afternoon and approved recommendations from the National Emergency
Management Committee (NEMC) on the ‘Open Border Policy Framework for
Tonga’.
“All travelers entering Tonga must comply with all requirements and
conditions that have been approved,” Hon Hu’akavameiliku said.
“While we are progressively opening the borders we must emphasize that
compliance with the conditions is important to ensuring the safety of
all travelers and our people.”
Flights
Flights from and to Fua’amotu International Airport from New Zealand will
increase to two (2) flights per week between August 1 to August 28,
2022. That will increase to three (3) flights per week from August 29 to
October 31 and further increase to six (6) flights per week after that.
Flights from Fiji will be increased to two (2) from August 1 until October 31
while flights from Australia will continue with one per week.
Review of the number of flights and ships, including cruiseliners, will be at the discretion of the NEMC.
Travelers
All travelers aged 12 years old and above must have been vaccinated twice before they will be allowed to travel to Tonga.
All foreign travelers will need to have travel insurance, which can be
bought when purchasing tickets. Confirmation of hotel booking or
accommodation in Tonga must be sent to the email address
travel@health.gov.to 48 hours before flight.
All travelers will also need to have a legitimate vaccine certificate sent
to the email address and have a copy of the same for check in purposes
and on arrival in Tonga.
Passengers who have medical conditions that stops them from having vaccination
will need to provide proof with a written medical report sent by email
to travel@health.gov.to. But the Ministry of Health has the right to
deny boarding of flight to Tonga if they are not satisfied with the
medical report provided.
Tests
All incoming passengers will need to have a negative Supervised Rapid
Antigen Test (RAT) result within 24 hours of departure, including all
those in transit over 24 hours at any airport on the way to Tonga.
Those who do not present the RAT test result will not be allowed to board flights to Tonga.
Citizens who have not completed their vaccination but wish to return to Tonga
must pay for five-days of quarantine at a government approved facility.
This must be communicated via email to travel@health.gov.to prior to
booking. This is subject to review in October.
Arrivals
Arriving passengers will need to wear face masks at all times when they arrive
at the airport and follow National COVID-19 Restrictions Directions in
place.
All passengers must fill in the Health Arrival Declaration Form and will
also be encouraged to download the Tonga ‘Atautolu contact tracing app.
A supervised PCR test will be required between Day 3 to Day 5 of
quarantine for quarantined passengers, and results need to be sent to
the Ministry of Health.
Passengers who return positive results will need to self-isolate at home for five days from the date of being tested positive.
Tonga is currently Orange under the Tonga COVID-19 Traffic Light Framework.
This is the second highest level. You need to quarantine for 5 days when
entering Tonga. A curfew is in place from 12am to 5am. Tonga has
extended its COVID-19 restrictions nationwide until at least 4 June.
Facemasks and social distancing are required in public, including at
hospitality venues and on public transport. All businesses are open
except for night clubs. Mobile phone and internet connectivity has been
restored within Tongatapu, following the eruption of the Hunga
Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano on 15 January, and work continues to improve
communications in the outer islands including the Vava’u and Ha’apai
groups. Monitor media for the latest developments and follow the
instructions of local authorities. A state of emergency remains in place
due to COVID-19.
Thanks to Chris on Lead vessel SEAGLUB and
several other local yachts we have 38 saved GPS track to explore the
over 370 islands in Fiji avoiding the many uncharted reefs
If you sail in Fiji please save yoru tracks and send them to us.
You
can also download them in GPX form right into OPENCP this is an
invaluable aid to navigation in addition to the sat carts – overhead
sunny skies and your depth sounder .
SY SEAGLUB 🇺🇸 Chris – Hylas 46′
3) THE NEW “COURAGE AWARD
we are adding a new award this season based on the feedback of SY INDIGO MOON
touching live sharks in the Tuamotus
at any age this is an unforgettable moment which takes COURAGE
A very calm anchorage
Floating the anchor chain to avoid coral damage
SY INDIGO MOON 🇩🇪 Kay, Beata & Crew of courage – Lagoon 42′
4) ENTRY INTO HIGHEST WIND RECORDED AWARD
Ibex’s Entry
Squall on Radar
Florian in his Foul Weather Gear
Arrival in American Samoa 🇦🇸 Pago Pago harbor !
SY IBEX 🇦🇹 Florian & Vicky – Sunbeam 42′
5) SY SEAGLUB VISITING THE LAU GROUP 🇫🇯 FIJI
Exceptional anchorages and visually stunning anchorages in the Lau Group
In the route back from the Lau Group you can visit Kadavu.
Kadavu
still has 75% of its original rainforest cover and a rich bird
diversity, including four species endemic to the island, the velvet
dove, the crimson shining-parrot, the Kadavu honeyeater and the Kadavu
fantaill. Offshore, stringing around the south, east and then away to
the north, is the Great Astrolabe Reef, a large barrier reef that is one
of Fiji’s premier scuba diving resorts.
A
7,800 hectares (19,000 acres) area covering the interior of the eastern
part of the island is the East Kadavu Important Bird Area. It contains
populations of the vulnerable Shy Ground-dove, Crimson Shining-parrot
and Collared Petrel.[
LAU GROUP FIJI IS IN GOOD NAUTICAL in GOOD NAUTICAL
This
is also a hot spot for bigger species of marine life, with plenty of
schooling fish, sharks and manta rays during the season.
John Martin principal
of Ocean Tactics has been assisting skippers with weather and passage
planning in the Pacific for many years is now an official sponsor
of the South Pacific Posse.
10) SHIP WRECKS OF WWII 🇻🇺 VANUATU
The SS President Coolidge Wreck one of the top 10 dive sites in the world Vanuatu
is up there with one of the biggest accessible shipwrecks in the world
sitting at 198m long and 22,000 tons in weight. Situated a short
distance offshore, all the dives are shore based, with the front of the
boat in just 18 meters of water.
A
large military base and harbor had been established on Espiritu Santo
and the harbor was heavily protected by mines. Information about safe
entry into the harbor had been accidentally omitted from President
Coolidge’s sailing orders, and on her approach to Santo on 26 October
1942, President Coolidge, fearing Japanese submarines and unaware of the
mine fields, tried to enter the harbor through the largest and most
obvious channel. A mine struck the ship in the engine room, and moments
later a second mine hit her near her stern.
Captain
Henry Nelson, knowing that he was going to lose the ship, ran her
aground and ordered troops to abandon ship. Not believing the ship would
sink, troops were told to leave all of their belongings behind, under
the impression that they would conduct salvage operations over the next
few days.
Navajo (AT-64) during rescue operations
Over
the next 90 minutes, 5,340 men from the ship got safely ashore. There
was no panic as they disembarked; many even walked ashore. However, the
captain’s attempts to beach the ship were thwarted by a coral reef.
President Coolidge listed heavily on her side, sank stern first, and
slid down the slope into the channel.
USS Tucker was one of 18 Mahan-class destroyers built for the United States Navy.
First
assigned to the United States Battle Fleet in San Diego, California,
Tucker operated along the West Coast and in the Hawaiian Islands.
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, Tucker
was undergoing an overhaul and was not attacked.
Soon
afterward, she began escorting convoys between the West Coast and
Hawaii. Tucker was then tasked with escort duty to islands in the South
Pacific.
Tucker
steamed out of port on 1 August 1942, escorting a cargo ship to
Espiritu Santo. They entered its harbor three days later, where the
destroyer unknowingly entered a defensive minefield laid by the US Navy.
Tucker struck at least one mine that tore her almost in two, sinking
her and killing three sailors; the rest of the crew survived.
Captain Dietmar @ Wreckdive of USS Tucker near Luganville / Espirito Santo / Vanuatu
Schools
of snapper and jacks circle the exterior, and under the wreckage you’ll
find huge gatherings of tiny glassfish in the smaller cavities.
Batfish, angelfish and coral trout populate the larger overhangs.
Purple
soft corals cling to parts of the engine, winches and superstructure,
while sea fans brighten up the darker parts of the deck and hull.
Million Dollar Point Located off the southern end of Santo, just 6 kilometres from Luganville, is Million Dollar Point
The New Hebrides
archipelago had been a British-French condominium since 1906. In the
spring of 1942, Japanese troops reached the nearby Solomon Islands . As a
result, American troops landed on the New Hebrides in May 1942 to
prevent a conquest by the advancing Japanese.
Since
nothing had been prepared by the British and French to defend the
islands, the Americans set up two military bases on the islands. The
larger of the two, Buttons on Espiritu Santo, was built by 100,000
soldiers in a short time, which doubled the island’s population. Then
large amounts of material were brought to the island in order to supply
the South Pacific forces from there.
In
fact, the quantities required for the war in this region were
calculated too generously, since the New Hebrides were already far from
the front six months later. The airfield, the southernmost of the
American troops in the Pacific, served mainly as a target for flights
with the wounded and as a trans shipment point for combat material.
At
the end of the war there were about nine million tons of material
valued at nearly four billion dollars on the island. [ Because shipping
back to America would have been expensive, there were only a few
soldiers on the island and the material had been damaged after years in
the tropical climate, it should not be transported back. An offer by the
Americans to the condominium administration to buy the vehicles,
construction machinery and other work materials for a fraction of their
real value (ten US cents per kilogram) was rejected because it was
speculated that once the Americans had left, they would be sold Possess
items left behind without paying. Instead, the Americans destroyed
the devices and sank them into the sea between August 1945 and December
1947. The local population could only watch as the Seabees , the
construction troops of the US Navy , poured material over a ramp into
the sea, an estimated 90% of which consisted of non-military objects and
could have been used by the residents.
11) YACHTING WORLD MARINA 🇻🇺 VANUATU SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE
Half price for all moorings for a period of up to 15 days during Yacht season
Marina is closed Jan – Feb – March * cyclone season
Monohull – vt 2,800 /day
Catamaran – vt 3,000 /day
117.74 VT = 1 USD ( Jul 22)
CONTACT
Elsie
Yachting World
PO Box 1507
Port Vila
Vanuatu
Phone/Fax: International + 678 23273
(if a phone call, ask for Lemara, the office manager)
VHF Ch. 16
email: welcome@yachtingworld-vanuatu.com
12) MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE
🇺🇸 Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista – USA
🇲🇽 Marina Chiapas – Mexico
🇨🇷 Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica
🇵🇦 Shelter Bay Marina – Panama
🇪🇨 Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador
🇫🇯 Vuda Point Marina – Fiji
🇻🇺 Yachting World Marina – Port Vila – Vanuatu
🇳🇿 Marsden Cove Marina – New Zealand
🇦🇺 Rivergate Marina – Brisbane – Australia
🇫🇯 Denarau Marina – Fiji
🇫🇯 Royal Suva Yacht Club – Fiji
🇫🇯 Savu Savu Marina – Fiji
Royal Suva Yacht Club in Suva Fiji
13) TRACKING THE 22′ PACIFIC POSSE FLEET BROUGHT TO YOU BY PREDICT WIND
Sevenstar
Yacht Transport is proud to continue as a sponsor of the Panama Posse.
True sailing communities with real world cruising experience, such as
the Panama Posse, always inspire us and drives us to provide regular
sailings on established routes as well as expanding into new markets and
ports. Providing professional logistics solutions for sailors and
cruisers all over the world is our core business and the Posse sailing
communities are a true example of what can be possible this day in age
when it comes to flexibility and connectivity. We thank you for the
privilege to be your logistics supplier.
16) PANAMA 🇵🇦 CANAL AGENT CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ
To
arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse
