Luxury New Caledonia: Noumea & Isle of Pines

A day to enjoy Noumea in refined style. A private tour takes in the city's unique blend of French and Kanak culture, the elegant boutiques and vibrant markets, the striking Tjibaou Cultural Centre with its dramatic architecture and rich Kanak art, and the beautiful bays and beaches. You savour the city's gourmet French-Pacific cuisine, perhaps a fine lunch at an excellent restaurant, and enjoy the sophisticated buzz of this cosmopolitan capital. Back at your hotel, a spa treatment or relaxation by the lagoon awaits. Noumea's cosmopolitan atmosphere, superb cuisine, beautiful setting and cultural attractions, experienced in the finest comfort, make for a delightful and cultured day. As the sun sets over the lagoon, enjoy a gourmet dinner in one of the city's fine restaurants, savouring the distinctive French-Pacific flavours and elegant sophistication that make New Caledonia so special, a refined prelude to the barefoot luxury of the Isle of Pines.

A day exploring the world's largest lagoon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in private luxury. A private lagoon cruise carries you across the shimmering turquoise water to a coral islet, such as Amedee with its historic lighthouse, where you snorkel over vibrant coral gardens alive with tropical fish, turtles and rays, relax on the white sand, and enjoy a gourmet picnic, all at your own pace and away from the crowds. The sheer beauty and marine richness of the lagoon are breathtaking, and experiencing it privately, in comfort and style, is a wonderful indulgence. Back in Noumea, an afternoon spa treatment or relaxation by the lagoon awaits, or perhaps some elegant shopping. As the sun sets over the turquoise water, enjoy a gourmet dinner, and rest ahead of tomorrow's flight to the incomparable Isle of Pines, where four nights of barefoot luxury at a beautiful beachfront resort, with the magical natural pool and world-class beaches, await as the crowning highlight of your escape.

This morning you transfer for the short, scenic flight to the Isle of Pines, the 'jewel of the Pacific', one of the most beautiful islands in the world. As you approach, the island's signature landscape unfurls beneath you, blinding white beaches, towering dark pines, and impossibly turquoise water. On arrival you are welcomed and privately transferred to a luxury beachfront resort near the beautiful beaches of Kuto and Kanumera. Settle into your elegant beachfront bungalow or suite, opening onto the white sand and turquoise lagoon, and spend the rest of the day sinking into barefoot luxury, swimming in the warm, calm lagoon, enjoying a spa treatment, or simply relaxing on your terrace as the sun sets over the water, silhouetting the tall pines. The Isle of Pines combines extraordinary natural beauty with refined luxury and tranquillity, and you settle in for four blissful days on this incomparable island, the beautiful heart of your escape.

Today you experience the crowning glory of the Isle of Pines, the magical Oro natural pool, in privacy and comfort. Reached by a lovely walk through fragrant pine forest and along a shallow, crystal-clear river, the natural pool is a stunning tidal lagoon enclosed by rock and reef, filled with water of the most extraordinary, luminous turquoise imaginable. Here, in sheltered, calm, crystal-clear water, you can snorkel among coral and shoals of brilliant tropical fish, or simply float and swim in the warm, dazzling pool, surrounded by towering pines and white sand. The setting is idyllic and utterly tranquil, and experiencing this hidden natural paradise, at your own pace, is profound. Back at your resort, a couples' spa treatment or relaxation on the beach awaits. Floating in the Oro natural pool, in water of such astonishing beauty, is a highlight of the whole escape. As the sun sets, enjoy a gourmet dinner of fresh lagoon seafood beneath the pines.

A day to indulge in the beauty of the Isle of Pines. In the morning you sail Upi Bay aboard a traditional wooden outrigger canoe, gliding silently among dozens of towering limestone rock pinnacles that rise from shallow turquoise water, a surreal and unforgettable experience. The rest of the day is yours to relax on the world-class beaches, enjoy a couples' spa treatment, snorkel the coral, or simply relax on your terrace. This evening brings a highlight, a private candlelit dinner on the beach, your table set beneath the pines or by the turquoise lagoon, the stars overhead and the gentle sound of the water, a truly magical romantic celebration, prepared and served with refined French-Pacific care. The combination of the surreal beauty of Upi Bay, the world-class beaches, and the intimate luxury of the private dinner makes this an unforgettable day. It is the kind of experience, indulgent, private and utterly idyllic, that becomes a treasured memory of your luxury escape.

A final full day to savour the barefoot luxury and extraordinary beauty of the Isle of Pines. Spend it swimming in the warm, turquoise lagoon, snorkelling the coral, enjoying a last spa treatment, relaxing on a world-class beach, or simply relaxing on your terrace, taking in the endless beauty of the water and the towering pines. The gentle, refined service and the incomparable natural beauty are deeply restorative. You might take another walk to the natural pool, or visit a Kanak community for a warm welcome. As your luxury escape draws to a close, a special gourmet farewell dinner celebrates the days of pure indulgence and beauty, from cosmopolitan Noumea to the incomparable Isle of Pines, and you watch one last spectacular sunset over the turquoise water, silhouetting the tall pines, cocktail in hand, deeply content and reluctant to leave this rare and beautiful island paradise, the memory of its beauty and the refined French-Pacific luxury etched forever in your mind.

After a last barefoot-luxury morning by the lagoon, perhaps a final swim in that warm, turquoise water beneath the pines, you are privately transferred for the flight back to Noumea and your onward international departure. You leave rested, radiant and quietly transformed, having experienced the finest of New Caledonia, the cosmopolitan sophistication, gourmet cuisine and culture of Noumea, and the barefoot luxury and incomparable beauty of the Isle of Pines. The combination of French-Pacific elegance, spectacular natural beauty and refined comfort has delivered a truly idyllic and distinctive escape, and you depart already dreaming of a return to these beautiful French-Melanesian islands, and to the refined luxury of a beachfront resort beneath the towering pines of the Isle of Pines, one of the most beautiful and elegant corners of the entire Pacific.