Tonga travel guide

July–October for whales and dry-season weather; May–June and November are quieter and still pleasant. Tonga has a warm, humid climate softened by its southerly latitude: Tongatapu's winter from June to September brings highs around 25 °C and lows near 19 °C with lighter rain, while Vava'u and the Niuas stay warmer and wetter. The wet season from November to April brings highs near 29 °C, heavy showers and the cyclone risk that peaks between January and March. Humpback whales are present from July to October, which is also the dry-season sweet spot, so those months carry the highest prices and the earliest sell-outs.

The places that earn their nights, most important first, with how long each deserves. Nobody needs all of them on one trip.

Domestic flights are the only practical link between Tongatapu and Vava'u or Ha'apai and the sole reasonable way to reach the Niuas; the national carrier's schedule is thin and prone to cancellation, so never book a domestic flight on the same day as an international one. The inter-island ferry is slow, basic and weather-dependent but reaches every group. On the islands themselves, taxis, hire cars, bicycles and boats do the rest, and nothing at all moves on Sunday.

A mid-range trip usually needs about €70–€170 per person per day, before long-haul flights. Tonga is not cheap for what it offers: imported food, fuel and domestic flights inflate costs, and whale-swim days are priced per person at premium rates. Guesthouses and local restaurants are reasonable. The biggest budget lever is choosing one northern group rather than two and accepting that flight and ferry buffers cost nights.

Each of these is a real request you could hand to Menta as written. Change the people, the month and the pace; the structure will hold.