Review of Noordam - Dec 2018 cruise

[Kangakid]

Brilliant review love the photos and glad you enjoyed HAL have sailed them to NZ and also in the Med and have enjoyed both cruises.

[aussielozzie18]

My plan for Kitava after looking at all the locals wares for sale was to go snorkeling.  I assumed that PNG would have the same issues with stingers as FNQ and as I knew I would not have access to a stinger suit on these remote PNG islands, I did not pack my snorkel gear.  No mention was made of stingers on board and cruisers were happily snorkeling so I decided to join them.  Luckily, I had thrown my lap swim goggles in my suitcase at the last moment and I used my white sneakers as reef shoes.  On Kitava, the locals stayed behind their "fence" and did not venture on the beach and HAL had set up a canopy for shade with a dozen seats. I noticed that my fellow cruisers were leaving there bags there so after watching for quite a while I decided that was the best option for leaving my bag on the beach.

[aussielozzie18]

The most popular spot for snorkeling seemed to be just to the left of the tender wharf.  I am a strong swimmer but I still think snorkeling is safer with others so I joined those that were already in the water next to the tender wharf.  It was quite shallow but reedy.  Once I started snorkeling, I was very glad I had worn my reef shoes aka sneakers as there was ALOT of black urchins were long black spikes in the shallows.  There was also coral, blue star fish, Nemo fish, sea cucumbers, something with tentacles (not octopus) don't think they were sea snakes either but I am happy to be corrected and lots of other fish.

[aussielozzie18]

I snorkelled out as far as the end of the tender wharf where it suddenly got alot deeper.  I watched a couple who were snorkeling together head towards to the island that the sail boats were sailing to.  I was tempted but I chose not to because I was solo, I didn't know the waterway and I definitely didn't want to get hit by one of the sailboats.  I read afterwards that there is a strong current in that deep section so I am glad I trusted my instincts.

 

Nevertheless it was absolutely lovely snorkeling around next to the wharf.  Lots to see and the water was so lovely.  I think I was snorkeling for about 2 hours.  Only got out reluctantly because despite covering myself in sunscreen and wearing a Rashie I was worried about sunburn .

[aussielozzie18]

[aussielozzie18]

[aussielozzie18]

32 minutes ago, Kangakid said:

Brilliant review love the photos and glad you enjoyed HAL have sailed them to NZ and also in the Med and have enjoyed both cruises.

Thank you Kangakid.  Your cruises sound lovely.  I am sure I will be back on HAL at some point in the future.

[aussielozzie18]

I believe you could walk into the villages on this island although I stuck entirely to the beautiful beachfront which had plenty of seats and shade btw.  There was also sandy path that led to an orchid garden according to the sign.  You passed this solar powered hut which raised a few chuckles.

[aussielozzie18]

Our next port was Conflict Island.  This is another beautiful island but it is completely different to the previous PNG ports as it is privately owned.  The very wealthy owner of this group of islands, Ian Gowrie-Smith came onboard the Noordam to give 2 talks about his island.  

 

Whilst our previous speakers dressed the part, Mr Gowrie-Smith came onboard looking like a beach bum living off the grid.  If you saw him at guest services, as I did, you would no idea of his wealth. 

 

He gave a rather rambling talk about his group of islands. One of things he mentioned is that you can't pay cash for souvenirs/drinks.  You must buy coupons.  Then you exchange coupons for souvenirs/drinks.  Also, Kina is not accepted on the island.  I knew this advance so not a problem.

 

Conflict Island was also the first tender port that we needed tender numbers for the tenders.

[aussielozzie18]

Forgot to add that I saw angel fish too whilst snorkeling at Kitava.  

[aussielozzie18]

As you can see from this rough map, the Conflict Islands are a group of islands on an atoll.  Only one island had been developed so far which is the one we visited.  No locals live on the island.  They have to travel by boat a fair distance to work on the island when the cruisers arrive.

[aussielozzie18]

Another beautiful morning and another day of calm seas in Papua New Guinea.  We were SO fortunate with the weather on this cruise especially since it is cyclone season from November onwards.

[aussielozzie18]

[aussielozzie18]

There were lots of different activity/tour options available for Conflict Island.  You could book a variety of tours through the ship or you can just spend the day relaxing and swimming in the beautiful waters.

[aussielozzie18]

[aussielozzie18]

I decided to book the turtle sanctuary tour in the morning.  This tour is only for 45 mins and operates multiple times throughout the day.  I booked for 10.30am online but the ticket in my statement was confirmation for the first tour at 8.30am.  

 

[aussielozzie18]

The turtle sanctuary is located a very short distance from the tender disembark point on the island.  Our small group was taken into a large "tent" with a sand base where the young sea turtles that have been rescued from the waters surrounding the island are temporarily housed and cared for. 

[aussielozzie18]

After treating our hands, we were permitted to hold a baby turtle briefly.  There were 2 pools containing 4 week old turtles and another 2 pools containing slightly older baby turtles.

 

After being given lots of interesting info from our guides we were able to feed the turtles.  This was fun as the little guys were very hungry.

[aussielozzie18]

The staff and volunteers had an ice-cream tub containing toothpicks with a square of turtle food on the end.  We were told not to even think about tasting them as they were definitely not for human consumption. 

 

The little turtles loved this stuff and it was fun to feed them and we had plenty of time to do so whilst the staff continued to provide info and answer questions on the turtle program on the island.

[aussielozzie18]

Because of the tents close proximity to the tender wharf, I had read complaints from P & O cruisers that people who had not paid for the tour had just walked in.  HAL charge $49.95 USD for the tour and despite a sign out the front saying "no entry - tour in progress", we did indeed other have cruisers enter.  However, several ladies of our group were seated under the fans near the door way and each time someone wandered in, they were greeted by a polite but firm "this is a PAID tour" and those cruisers made a hasty exit.

 

There is an option to "adopt a turtle" during the tour for an additional $50 paid directly to the staff.  For this you are given a certificate and a way to track your turtle once it is released back in the ocean.

Edited December 29, 2018 by aussielozzie18
typo

[aussielozzie18]

We then exited the tent and walked to the water's edge with one of the rehabilitated turtles, carried by a cruiser who was a turtle adoptee, past the turtle nesting site to a quiet part of the beach to release said turtle safely back into the ocean.

[aussielozzie18]

This was a lovely, informative short tour which I thoroughly enjoyed.  

[aussielozzie18]

Once the tour was over, it was time to explore the island.

[aussielozzie18]

On disembarking the tender, the majority of cruisers walked the sandy path through the middle of the island to the other side where the water activities and tours departed from, where you could hire glass bottom canoes, or rent a chair for $5 a day or simply relax or snorkel in the gorgeous waters.  

 

This path was not pram or wheelchair friendly but didn't seem to stop anyone.

[aussielozzie18]

After a quick dip with my fellow cruisers, I decided to walk the full length of this side of the island to the western end, stopping frequently to jump in the water to cool off.