RTW Ticket stop off?

I met a fair number of people on RTW tickets stopping over on Fiji (myself included). Partly, this is a matter of convenience, since it seems to be easiest to slot in Fiji on a cross-Pacific flight. However, this may depend on the RTW ticket you have (participating airlines, etc).

Fiji is also relatively cheap, as compared to other island groups, and it has a lot of islands to visit, giving you a lot of variety in what to do and where to go.

If you are coming from Asia, you would have to go to Australia before any of the Pacific islands on a RTW ticket, otherwise you would be backtracking, which is generally not allowed in the ticketing rules. It also wouldn't make much sense, if you are intending to go to Sth America as well... :-)

I don't know much about RTW tickets but if your interested in diving and seeing the widest cultural diversity in one place you can hardly go past the Solomon Islands. Best diving and snorkeling in the world from reefs and marine life to world war 2 wrecks. 996 islands, 7 major regional groups in the population, 3 distinct ethnic groups plus Australian, European, Chinese, + other expatriates a true melting pot of cultural diversity. Try the web site www.fatboysgizo.com resort web site but with links to many other useful sites. Enjoy.

And January is cyclone season throughout the South Pacific - but it is actually my favourite time for more eastern islands (like Cooks and Tonga) as it is warm and the seas are calm (assuming you miss the cyclones). Samoa is also easily accessible and not too expensive. Vanuatu is great - lots of things to see, but it is quite expensive. I didn't think Rarotonga was any more expensive than some of the other islands, but I guess getting to other islands in the Cooks may be.

ok lots of things to keep in mind- thanks xx