In a nutshell

This exciting half-day excursion is ideal for history and legend enthusiasts - a sightseeing tour of the city of Nuku’alofa and various stops on the island's eastern region.

Main stops

Nuku'alofa, Royal Palace, Royal Tombs
Capitan Cook's landing point, monument
Ha'amonga 'a Maui trilithon, Maka Faakinanga stone, Langi Keheta

The programme

Our first stop is the Royal Palace, a white Victorian building whose components were sent over from New Zealand and assembled in Nuku’alofa in 1867. It is currently only used for ceremonies.
We then visit the Royal Tombs, resting place of the father of modern Tonga King George Tupou I and his descendants, among whom the lamented Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, who died in 2006.
We then head towards the south-eastern area of Tongatapu to visit Captain Cook’s landing point and admire the large monument erected to commemorate the spot where the famous British explorer landed in 1777.
Another sight not to be missed is the Ha'amonga 'a Maui trilithon, a huge megalith made up of three coral limestone slabs that is 5.2 metres tall, 5.8 metres wide and weighs around 80 tons thought to date back to 1200.
The Maka Faakinanga stone is located in the same area. It is 2.4 metres high and probably dates back to the same period as the Ha'amonga 'a Maui trilithon. According to legend, the eleventh King of Tonga, Tu'i-t_-tui, used to lean against it and look out towards the sea and threatened to hit anyone who approached him for fear of being murdered.
Nearby, we find Langi Keheta, the tomb of King Tu'i-t_-tui - a wonderful historic monument. The ancient Royal Tombs of Tonga represent a real engineering marvel and date back to 1200 AD.

Good to know

Transfers are on local buses which are basic with no air conditioning or speaker systems.
The toilets may be rather spartan.
We recommend wearing comfortable flat shoes and clothing suitable for the weather conditions.
We recommend that you book early because only a limited number of places are available.
We recommend asking permission before taking photos of the local population.