When I knew that a running race was organized in Noumea, I thought it was time for me to discover “le caillou” 😉

• Arrival in New Caledonia

I took a plane ticket directly into the Air Calin website. FYI the flight is operated by Air New Zealand. There are no direct flights every day. It takes 3 hours to connect La Tontouta (the international airport north of Noumea) from Auckland.

Once there, two options are available to you :
– the bus from Monday to Friday only. The disadvantage is that it does not run on weekends and does not stop in front of your door ! I don’t know the price, sorry
– a shuttle that you can book in advance or not. The average price is 3000F. If you book in advance on the “Arc en ciel” website (which I did) it’s only 2000F. The advantage is that they run every day depending on flights hours and they drop you in front of your door, even if it’s an Airbnb😊. I went to Jane place, an English, I really recommend you! Very nice, offer to take you shopping if you need, you can serve as a drink and coffee. View for the Sunset :

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• Anse Vata

It is the popular beach of Noumea, really beautiful! You can go windsurfing there. Although we are in winter I was able to walk quietly with my feet in the water 💜

Opposite you will find shopkeepers (there is a bakery for those who like me have not eaten French bread for a while), bars, restaurants, snacks, etc. It’s really nice to walk around !

For information after my run I tested the restaurant Pizza & Pasta, I had for 4000F with drink, pizza and dessert. I did not find it incredible but not bad anyway. (On my second visit I went back to taste the britain pizza dessert, so good!)

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• Lemon bay

It is a bay which is north west of Anse Vata. I found it a bit less pretty especially on the beach side. Here again you can find a few bars, restaurants and shops across the road. I was recommended the creperie “la Gavotte” but I finally did not have the opportunity to go.

• The city

The city has rather disappointed me. I do not really recommend spending time there. What shocked me the most is having all the same French stores / brands found in France. It completely denatures the Pacific Island. In my opinion, rather to satisfy the French who come and want to keep their pace of metropolitan life. It’s a shame because blending into the local culture is so much more rewarding! Be careful to take a lot of leeway if you take a bus (or even a taxi) to get to the airport! Even having ordered it, I got a taxi that arrived with 25 minutes of delays…

After these 3 days I took a domestic flight to the Isle of Pines !

PS : Unfortunately the weather made me go back to Noumea one night (my host Airbnb welcomed me for free by the way).