Ecotourism & Relaxing

Village Visits

During a cruise, Princess II usually visits some villages in the Florida Islands , Russell Islands or Marovo Lagoon. The big 5.8 metre Naiad RIB is used to quickly carry our guests to shore. It seems that everyone in the village is there to meet us when we land on the beach.

The grass huts are clean and tidy and well spaced. These generally have a timber floor which is elevated about .5 metre above the ground. The roofs and walls are made of closely platted leaves which are stitched together. The larger villages have a brick church building and sometimes a separate wooden school building with bare floors.

Meet the People

The chief makes a speech welcoming the visitors and introducing them to the villagers. Young girls come over and give each person a necklace of frangipani petals. The visitors are then invited to sit down on benches where they can see the entertainment. At some villages, fresh coconuts are skinned, a hole cut in one end, and then given to any visitor who wants a refreshing drink.

Carvings, baskets, fruit and vegetables may be available for sale and you may be invited to visit their schools and churches.

Gifts of pens, pencils, crayons and writing paper are greatly appreciated by the local chiefs and school teachers as these items are generally very scarce in the islands.

Custom Dancing

The welcoming ceremony is usually followed by traditional (or ‘custom') dancing where some of the villagers will sing and dance in ceremonial dress. The men usually appear first and may wear loincloths and distinctive white lines which make them look quite fierce. During some dances, they carry replica fighting axes and shields.

The women then came out in long skirts and grass blouses and perform a completely different set of songs and dances to the men. Each village has a band with drums and home-made pipe instruments. The band plays energetically and everyone is invited to join in the dancing.

Trading with Villagers

Children from the villages come out to the Princess II in their dugout canoes to sell garden produce or to watch the divers in action. Our chef usually takes the opportunity to buy fresh fruit, vegetables and even mud crabs for the dinner table. Although the villages are largely subsistent, they need the SI dollars to buy outboard fuel, kerosene, gas and staple foods such as rice.