Ngaa Pureariki is not convinced he'll spend an eternity burning in hell, though others might disagree. His apparent sin comes from wanting his people to return to the traditional ways of their ancestors, before missionaries introduced Christianity to t...

Our inestimable French friend threw up his hands when told we had booked a week's holiday in New Caledonia. His verdict: "It is 'orribly expensif and full of pretentious French people."

What a difference a day makes. Twenty-four hours ago I was standing in line for a loaf of sliced supermarket bread. Today I'm standing on the back of a yacht, breathing in salt air and collecting an armful of warm baguettes from a smiling Frenchman. Wi...

It's well-known that French Polynesia offers some of the most expensive digs in the Pacific, but that needn't stop you making like a cashed-up Kardashian and supping cocktails in Bora Bora with the best of them.

It's well-known that French Polynesia offers some of the most expensive digs in the Pacific, but that needn't stop you making like a cashed-up Kardashian and supping cocktails in Bora Bora with the best of them.

On remote Mangareva, in the Gambier Islands in French Polynesia, they're planning a celebration, the biggest the island has ever seen.

On remote Mangareva, in the Gambier Islands in French Polynesia, they're planning a celebration, the biggest the island has ever seen.

''Who wants to hold the family pet?" asks the chief of the Futuna tribe. There's quiet in the small crowd seated on logs in the jungle.

''Who wants to hold the family pet?" asks the chief of the Futuna tribe. There's quiet in the small crowd seated on logs in the jungle.

Watching a giant humpback whale breaching the ocean surface is one of those goosebump moments which also sends a shiver down your spine.

Watching a giant humpback whale breaching the ocean surface is one of those goosebump moments which also sends a shiver down your spine.

This is not one of my better ideas. After watching fellow passengers swim back to our tall ship rather than wait for the tender, I've decided in a moment of middle-age madness to follow suit and show these young things how it's done.

This is not one of my better ideas. After watching fellow passengers swim back to our tall ship rather than wait for the tender, I've decided in a moment of middle-age madness to follow suit and show these young things how it's done.

The tropical Cook Islands - a nation of 15 volcanic and coral islands spread across 2 million square kilometres in the middle of the Pacific Ocean - is a place to which people escape when they need a break from the rush of life, to forget about the wor...

The tropical Cook Islands - a nation of 15 volcanic and coral islands spread across 2 million square kilometres in the middle of the Pacific Ocean - is a place to which people escape when they need a break from the rush of life, to forget about the wor...