Oceania

Oceania

Oceania, the smallest land mass of all continents, is a region compromising Australasia, Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia located in Southeast Pacific. Culturally, it’s the continent of extremes; from the developed modern and multicultural cities of Sydney and Auckland to far flung island villages where ancient dialects are spoken only by a few. English will be understood in the majority of countries, but French does come in handy in multiple locations. The climate of Oceania varies widely, but for the most part, it’s tropical weather. Oceania gets incredible waves and is home to some of the world’s best surf spots including Australia’s Gold Coast, Hawaii’s Pipeline and Tahiti’s Teahupoo to name but a few. There are also unknown islands with fantastic waves that have never been bodyboarded, where access is restricted by boat.

Tavarua Bodyboarding

The small 29-acre heart-shaped island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean has captured the imagination of travelling surfers for the last 50 years. Legend has it that a couple of exploring sailor/surfers stumbled upon this island paradise in the late 70s and early 80s, surfing the island’s bounty of perfect waves alone, before the resort was launched and Tavarua became a bucket list destination and surfing’s rite of passage. Boasting three-world class waves—Cloudbreak, Restaurants and Tavi Rights—there’s no coincidence that bodyboarders like Damian King are so infatuated with the place.

However, there’s more to Tavarua than its perfect, razor-sharp reef breaks for advanced surfers. The Tavarua resort is just as much a beach lover’s paradise and an awesome family-friendly environment, with bath-warm water, incredible food, pristine waves of all sizes for all ability levels as well as an abundance of activities including fishing, snorkelling, SUP, tennis gym, and local music and dance.

Other destinations

Australia Bodyboarding

Australia is definitely the most famous surf destination of Oceania, where surfing and bodyboarding is as much of a citizen’s DNA as football is in a European. With 34,000 km of coastline, Australia has every kind of wave you can think of. From the long sand bottomed points of Kirra, Snapper, Byron Bay, Lennox head on the East to the heavy yet perfect reef breaks on Australia’s West coast.

Fiji Bodyboarding

Fiji is one of every surfer’s dream destination. This archipelago of more than 300 islands is postcard territory with palm trees on white sandy beaches and crystal-clear waters. World class heavy left barrels break over shallow reef in this tropical paradise and is home to the friendliest people.

French Polynesia Bodyboarding

Teahupoo is French Polynesia’s most famous wave and rated as one of the heaviest waves in the world. However, there is a wide variety of surf spots throughout these idyllic islands to suit all levels and abilities.

New Zealand Bodyboarding

New Zealand is often overshadowed by its more famous surfing neighbour Australia, and many traveling surfers overlook it as being too cold. Despite the comparatively cooler water temps than the rest of Oceania, New Zealand makes up for this in consistent swell, empty breaks, world class waves and outstanding natural beauty wherever you turn. It’s also one of the few places you can surf and snowboard in the same day. Taranaki and Raglan are the most known surf areas.

Samoa Bodyboarding

Samoa is located about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand. The main two islands of Savai’i and Upolu are blessed with incredible surf spots and get consistent swells year-round. All the spots are reef breaks, most of which are located a boat ride offshore. You can expect plenty of power and very few crowds.