EAST NEW BRITAIN & TRIBES

When you arrive in Rabaul, East New Britain, you will be welcomed by your guide who will show you Mount Tavurvur—a volcanic first taste of this fascinating destination. Tour some key historical sites in the city, from Melanesian seafarers to Admiral Yamamoto’s bunker, building up a picture of the country’s patchwork past. Following this, meet your captain and crew and board your yacht. Enjoy dinner on deck after settling in.

Wake early and, accompanied by a local guide, cruise in a tender to a nearby bay for a morning swim with Pacific spinner dolphins. Return to your yacht for breakfast before spending the rest of the morning with local tribespeople, mastering the skill of spearfishing and maneuvering outrigger canoes. Climb a coconut tree to harvest coconuts, afterward using the fruit and its milk in a local delicacy served with leafy greens and barbecued fish.

Meet the Tokai tribe and witness their impressive initiation ritual. Snorkel over Japanese tanks sunk just 13ft beneath the waves.

Take a chopper into the interior until you arrive at the Baining Mountains. You and your family will take part in the Baining Fire Dance—an initiation ceremony for young men who dance in masks beside a raging fire. Return to your yacht exhilarated by your experience.

VOLCANO CLIMB & NAKANAI

The next morning, after a refreshing breakfast, embark on an ascent of Mount Tavurvur. At the top of this moonscape, you and your family will throw a customary sacrificial coconut into the bubbling lava in the crater.

Once you reach the foot of the volcano, you’ll join Matupit hunters digging for scrub fowl eggs buried in the sulphuric soil. Satiate your appetite with lunch alongside these locals, before catching your tender back to your yacht.

Take the helicopter next to the southern tip of New Ireland. You’ll explore the remains of the ill-fated 19^th-century La Nouvelle France Marquis Del Rey settlement. The afternoon is spent exploring in tenders and fishing before rendezvousing with your yacht at a new anchorage.

Fly by helicopter to the forested Nakanai Mountains to discover the Mysterious Rivers of New Britain. In this barely explored region, see volcanoes spewing ash and waterfalls cascading from the sides of mountains. You’ll trek alongside the Pomio river until you arrive at the Blue Hole for a swim and a wild picnic lunch.

Discover volcanic crater lakes, learn about the island’s obsidian mines, and take a dip in the lakes’ ultra-blue waters. Pass over one of the world’s largest sinkholes as you fly back to your yacht. There’s a chance to go kitesurfing, kayaking, or jet skiing when you return.  Local tribespeople will then arrive to teach you and your family how to perform in their Sing Sing, before you take part on the sun deck or on the beach.

THE SOLOMON ISLANDS

Your final morning in Papua New Guinea, rise early for a paddleboard, kayak, or jet ski before your yacht sets off on its 24-hour voyage to The Solomon Islands. Have the chance to hear talks and lectures about local cultures and ecosystems from nature experts and local anthropologists, or just rest and recharge.

When you arrive in Gizo, customs and immigration will be handled by your captain and crew as you relax over breakfast. Venture out in a helicopter and circle the forested Kolombangara crater, the early hour helping with the visibility. Your guides will inform you about how the island struggles with unscrupulous timber companies and learn how you can support and assist in efforts to save Kolombangara.

Hike the crater, following a ridge before arriving at a river and a secret waterfall for swimming in. Refresh yourself with a wild picnic before walking back to your yacht via a different, but no less gorgeous, route, swapping to a canoe for the final stretch.

Accompanied by a local expert, take your tender into the scenic Vonavona Lagoon, where you’ll make your way to an islet that doubles as a shrine for the skulls of Rendovan chiefs. Following this, travel to Tetepare island and join the Tetepare Rangers to see first-hand the conservation work happening across the island. Amid some of Melanesia’s last remaining lowland rainforest, you’ll have a chance to spot this natural haven’s intriguing wildlife.

You’ll be welcomed into a tiny village for a lunch cooked on hot rocks. Come the afternoon, and take a dip in the sheltered lagoon, see giant clams, rare green turtles, and bumphead parrotfish. If you’re fortunate enough to coincide with turtle nesting season, you may see a nest hatching. At twilight, snorkel beside dugongs feeding on the seagrass meadows.

Have dinner back on the yacht, before a guided moonlit walk to spot and feed the giant, sneaky coconut crabs. Spend the night in a traditional Melanesian leaf house, relaxing amid its natural simplicity.

MAROVO LAGOON & CANNIBALS

After breakfast back on board, take the helicopter over UNESCO-protected Marovo Lagoon—the world’s largest saltwater lagoon. Explore this natural phenomenon by kite surfing, jet skiing, and snorkeling. Next, fly over the world’s only active underwater volcano, Kavachi. Snorkel safely nearby, while still able to hear its geothermal grumbling.

Have an onboard lunch, before a guided tour of the region’s most culturally intact village, where the inhabitants practiced cannibalism deep into the 20^th century. See the birthing cave, skull shrines, and sacrificial altars.

See the Marovo master woodcarvers working beautiful and rare hardwoods with their famed skill and precision. To the sounds of a traditional Solomon Island Bamboo Band, enjoy a delicious dinner on the beach before learning how to play the band’s unique instruments. The next morning, journey to Munda where you’ll say goodbye to your captain and crew before beginning your trip home.