Further to my report below which Sue posted, the fees for clearing into Tonga are still the same as on noonsite, however, they did not charge us for trash removal when we cleared in at Vava’u.

Berthing Note – the first dock as you enter the harbor in Vavau is the one they expect you to tie up to (it has some people selling fish and the odd other boat tied up there and it has huge tires on the wall now).

However we did ask them if it was alright not to tie to the dock, and they said if we felt it was unsafe to do so for the boat that was fine as long as we flew the Q flag and proceeded to the customs office ASAP during working hours.

I would say that if there is any onshore component to the wind, that it would be unsafe to tie to that dock… and I expect they would also be fine with that definition. We arrived at about 7 am Tuesday morning to calm conditions, so tied up to the dock.

At about 9.30am the officials started to show up and by ten we had them all aboard and we were filling out documents. None of them asked for a gift or bribe etc. It was more professional than many of the Caribbean places we had visited.

I’m guessing someone had talked to them. There was no answer from the Harbormaster on 26 or 16. The officials also explained that we could extend our boat stay up to 12 months and we needed to do this before we hit the original 4-month clearance limit.

The Boatyard Vava’u – http://www.boatyardvavau – where we have Brisa hauled out for bottom painting while we are in NZ, does all the paperwork for that. With regard to the warning about Alofi on noonsite – he is still around.

But I can honestly say that he is about the same as most of the Caribbean boat boys when it comes to his approach. At no point did I nor the Admiral feel intimidated by him and his bread was very, very good…

Of course, delivered and homemade to the boat it was always going to be more expensive than the supermarkets. He asked us for some rope to tie up his cow… I feel maybe the last review was a bit skewed making him sound dangerous…

He may be a little annoying … but in our opinion, he is definitely not dangerous. We simply talked to him for a little while, explained we didn’t need anything and gave him about ten feet of crappy rope and off he went.

Says hi to us every morning and I wouldn’t say he is worse than what we have seen in Panama and the Caribbean. Certainly not a “bad” apple, but more of a location character! ? His little flags were nice, we supported the local community a little, but I wouldn’t ask him to build me a dinghy.. if you get my drift?

All in all the clearance, the interaction with customs and the experience there was almost 10/10….. the dock sucks still, but the officials were excellent and friendly.

One tip… we went and got a digital phone card. $2 top for the card and put $50 on it and we have had great internet, free incoming calls, and connection almost all through the islands around Vava’u. Will let you know how it goes as we get further through the islands. Cheaper there than in NZ.

On another note: the guys in Boatyard Vava’u have been hugely active within the government departments making sure it is improving every year. I am certain they have influenced the approach of the officials there.

We don’t lock our dinghy and we don’t lock our boat…. so far only truly positive vibes in an amazing location!

Following Seas.

Royce.

Anyone visiting Vava’u for cyclone season I recommend contacting http://www.boatyardvavau.com. My insurance company searched them and gave me the all clear to haul there as part of my cyclone plan.

I pre-booked with them for a haul out if the weather looked bad. I was island hopping and they contacted me on VHF warning of Gita. They hauled me the next day.

A great yard, excellent service, good hauling unit and fantastic service. The best boat yard experience I have had….and I’ve had a few. Highly recommended.

Some people are getting 90-day visitor visas on arrival for free it is worth asking for it. For most people, you then won’t need to renew.

Feedback from Peter Bould:

There has been a change in the allowed time a visiting boat may stay in Tonga. They are refusing extensions beyond 4 months. There is considerable upset both from local businesses and from visiting boaters about this.

It is possible the reverberations arising from this change may result in the policy being reversed back to what it was, which was about one year with extensions.
Watch this space.

Confirmation from Tonga Customs:

As per the normal procedure, you have to apply for your yacht temporary import permit after 4 months and it can be granted for up to 12 months total stay at the discretion of customs.

Re. leaving your yacht in Tonga unattended, as temporarily imported yachts are technically under customs control (as in most countries) Tonga customs department are working out a system to be able to have a better way of keeping track of these boats.

There are currently two options for leaving your boat in Tongan waters unattended:
1) Leave your yacht on a managed mooring (cyclone rated if in cyclone season) and sign a standard ‘Master in Charge’ letter with the owner of the moorings so that someone has responsibility for the boat while they are overseas.
2) Haul your boat out of the water and sign a standard ‘Master in Charge’ letter with the managers of the boatyard.

For more information see the Customs section under Formalities.

Anyone who is arriving into Tonga on a one-way airline ticket such as joining crew need to know the old advice about having a refundable ongoing air ticket from Air New Zealand may NOT be sufficient to allow a smooth entry into Tonga.

A crew member arriving to join Prince Diamond in Tonga in September 2016 had such a ticket, but was required to buy another ticket (changeable but not refundable) all the way back to her home in Toronto, Canada before she would be allowed entry.

And it was still required that the captain (me) type an email to Air New Zealand proclaiming that we would definitely be leaving Tonga by boat before they would issue a refund on Tonga to New Zealand air ticket!

The correct procedure for entering a crew member into Tonga on a one-way ticket is to type an email to tongapermit@gmail.com no more than one month before arrival proclaiming the incoming crew will be leaving by boat on a specific date and giving the following information:

Crew name
arrival date
date and booking number of flight into Tonga
passport number and date of expiry
full name and date of birth
Captain’s name
Boat owner’s name
Boat name, registration number, country and port of registry

There are probably other details required which I have forgotten. Just put the kitchen sink into that email!

A letter will be issued to be carried by the traveler. The cost is $34.50 TOP payable on arrival. As I said the letter is valid for one month. This procedure is a pain in the neck but is, in the end, the easiest way to do the entry.

We had a real problem trying to get the refundable ticket refunded, as they would cancel the refundable ticket, but not refund the money!

And in addition, the extra ticket back to the home country may not be usable for you depending on your situation. In our case, we were returning home from New Zealand, so it worked out for us. Comments and questions welcomed.

Posted on behalf of Clare Sudlow:

Vava’u Bluewater Festival

Calling all South Pacific Cruisers! – Don’t miss the 2016 Vava’u Blue Water Festival! A fun-filled week in Vava’u, Tonga from October 1st- 8th.

Enjoy the friendliest of welcomes & a week of local festivities, parades, informative talks & parties centered around a mid-week fun cruisers race day.
For full info visit: http://www.vavau.to/bluewaterfestival

Re: Hunga Tonga volcano – From Wiki
20° 34′ 12″ S, 175° 22′ 48″ W

Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai is a volcano located about 30 kilometres (19 mi) south-southeast of Fonuafoʻou (also known as Falcon Island). A new eruption began at Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai on December 19, 2014.

The eruption continued into 2015, with a tall ash cloud rising 3 kilometers (9,800 ft) into the sky on January 6, 2015. The eruption entered a new stage on January 11, 2015, when the volcano began sending ash plumes as high as 9 kilometers (30,000 ft) into the sky.

An ash plume reached 4.5 kilometers (15,000 ft) on January 13, and the large amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus released underwater caused an explosion in the growth of algae causing a red tide.

Officials identified two vents, one on Hunga Haʻapai and another about 100 meters (330 ft) offshore and underwater. By January 16, a new island had been formed by the explosion, although geologists said the new island would probably exist only a few months until ocean waves wore it down.

Tongan officials declared the eruption at an end on January 26, after observing no new gas, ash, or rock emerging from the island vent. By this time, the island was 1 to 2 kilometres (0.62 to 1.24 mi) wide, 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) long.

And 120 metres (390 ft) high. The island had joined with Hunga Haʻapai, and was about 200 metres (660 ft) away from joining with Hunga Tonga. Locals visiting the island said seabirds were nesting.