TESTIMONIALS

“Our whale swim trip in Tonga was extraordinary in all aspects and is one of our most favourite adventures ever! This is an effortless holiday with sensational rewards.

Amanda’s excellent organisation and communication ensured a hassle free trip. Sandy Beach resort was relaxed with delicious meals and friendly staff, in a truly magical tropical island location. No crowds, deserted palm fringed sandy beaches with lovely reefs to snorkel through off the beach – especially at Matafonua.

However, it is the whale swims that are truly magical. We had high expectations and these were surpassed. You have full days out, with experienced guides and small numbers. The knowledge of the guides combined with their ethical practice ensures you have an intimate experience with the whales. Every day out with the whales provided unique memorable experiences - from whale songs vibrating through your body, cheeky calves chasing and playing with you, momma humpbacks gliding past eye to eye and incredible fluke viewing. Majestic, yet humbling.

Amanda’s inclusion of rest days ensured that you were always refreshed and ready for the next whale adventure. This also provided an opportunity to snorkel the nearby reefs and borrow bikes to ride to the nearby village and other beaches.

The added bonus of travelling with Amanda is you have your own professional expert with you. Amanda gave us a fascinating presentation based on her considerable knowledge and experiences, and patiently answered all our queries – thank you! You also have access to Amanda’s underwater photography expertise. Amanda’s photos are breath-taking, several of which she generously shared with us, capturing our memorable moments.”

“My original intention was that this trip would be a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience. After the ‘beyond my wildest expectations’ trip with Mandy and our little group, I simply have to return to the tranquility, beauty, exhilarating, and totally mind-blowing humpback whale trip in Tonga. It is an absolute privilege to swim with these beautiful creatures, and the way that Mandy and the crew organise the trip, you don’t feel like you are intruding on the beautiful whales with their calves. Overall, this trip was perfection ... comfortable accommodation on the lagoon’s edge where you snorkel in warm tropical water around reefs teeming with tropical fish. The food was aplenty, delicious, with variety to meet all needs and tastes; and the hospitality of the locals was warm, welcoming and a great opportunity to experience their lifestyle and villages. Absolute 5-star trip from beginning to end.”

“I've joined Amanda on three separate tours to Tonga to swim with humpbacks. It has become an annual adventure that I look forward to every year. I couldn't imagine travelling with anyone else. This is a hassle free trip, with beautiful beach-front accommodation, great food (the world's best brownies!), and is guaranteed to deliver a lot of fun and laughs. Swimming with humpbacks is a humbling experience, I don't think I'll ever find the right words to do it justice. So much of their lives take place below the surface, I love that we get to peek beneath the waves for a different perspective of these gentle giants, and to do it on their terms. One of my favourite past encounters was floating above a singing humpback, hearing AND FEELING his song.

I love staying at Matafonua! Darren and Nina make you feel like part of the family. The food is delicious (it's worth the trip just to sample Nina's brownies) and staff are always friendly and helpful. Matafonua's beachfront location makes time at the lodge as enjoyable as time on the water. Sunset drinks on the deck are a great way to relax after a day swimming with humpbacks, and the beach offers access to great snorkelling.

Being in the water with the whales is amazing, but the people I share that encounter with makes it even more special. The people that your tours attract are the best. It's a small operation, and most people are friends or friends-of-friends- even though we don't know each other at the start of the trip, there is always a common thread that links everyone, whether through knowing you or a friend kicking off the tour on common ground means the groups always gel really well. I've made lifelong friends through this tour.”

“After doing a couple of trips with Amanda to the Maldives I decided to try one of her advertised trips to swim with the humpbacks in Tonga. Having previously tried swimming with the humpbacks on the Sunshine Coast, I was hoping for something better and I was not disappointed. Firstly, the logistics of actually getting to our base camp at Matafonua was quite complex, but managed seamlessly and without a hitch by Amanda. This is not to be understated as almost nothing runs on time or to schedule in Tonga. Matafonua was a breathe of fresh air and one of the most beautiful and rustic resorts I’ve ever had the privilege of staying. Oh and did I mention the food is to die for!! Whilst the main attraction (the migrating humpbacks) were unbelievable and nothing short of amazing, it was also fun snorkelling on days of in the fantastic lagoon and reef at our doorstep at Matafonua. The whale swims were particularly well run and designed to have the least amount of impact on the mothers, calves, juveniles and mating males with a limit of 4 snorkellers at any one time in the water on a rotation basis until the maximum time of 45 minutes with any individual pod was reached.

Did I mention the happy-go-lucky locals, the sunset drinks at Sandy Beach resort or the bike ride around the local village on Sunday listening to the competing choirs. Tonga is a very special place and difficult to reach and to source information of the best places to swim with the whales, so booking through Amanda was the the sensible option and one I would recommend to anyone. This is a laid back trip with the most amazing whales swims you could ever imagine and one I would recommend to anyone as a true bucket list item.”

“Well I didn’t know what to expect from a bunch of coral atolls in the Indian Ocean, but to say the least I was very pleasantly surprised by the people, the transport, the accommodation, the boat/ship and naturally all the snorkelling and diving….beautiful, so memorable. Hanifura Bay was the highlight of my trip snorkelling with the manta rays.

Diving group was well sized and I felt totally secure at all times, that if I got a problem there was someone there to assist. Excellent.”

“Great detail went into the preparation and communications that was provided by the tour organiser. From snorkelling with the giant mantas; night dives with beautiful sharks; picnics on private sandy islands and great laughs and fun with new and old friends at a private day resort, made it a once in a lifetime experience in one of the most beautiful locations in the world. The accommodation both on the island and beautiful vessel was safe, clean and very comfortable and there was always an abundance of food and drinks. I cant wait to go back and do it all over again!”

“After seeing an advert for the Maldives trip I reached out to Amanda for details and was somewhat shocked to be invited to a face-to-face to ensure I was given all of the information first hand. I couldn’t ask for better communication throughout the process and I had no problem paying a deposit to ensure I was going to be a part of this trip of a lifetime. Whilst airfares and logistics for getting to and from the Maldives was not included in the pricing, Amanda was able to offer detailed help for the best and most efficient routes and airlines. The land accommodation on arrival and for the first few days of Manta swims was right on the beach on the beautiful island of Dharavandoo and high quality. This was a great way to spend the lead-up to the liveaboard serious diving component of the trip on the Carpe Nova and the few days of snorkelling in Hanafura Bay with the large masses of feeding mantas, as well as the local reef was just perfect.

On boarding the Carpe Nova, it was immediately evident that this was a very professional outfit and the quality of the boat, food and dive equipment and services was first class. Who has a full size Dhoni Dive boat following around the luxury accommodation boat? That’s pure indulgence and perfect for having the Carpe Nova as the base for meals and fun and the Dhoni for serious diving…..and serious diving we did!! At no stage did I think the diving was difficult and it was never boring as we visited beautiful corals, large pelagics, massive schools of fish, night dives with Tawny Nurse Sharks and Rays (my favourite) and the list just goes on and on.

I’ve done a lot of liveaboards in my long time as a recreational diver and this is right up there with the best of them. Great organising, great communication, great boat and dive sites. Would I do it again….I did the very next year and it was great as well.”