A kingdom awaits at the end of the pier. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the South Pacific, and Nuku'alofa, its capital on the island of Tongatapu, bears its discreet signs: a white palace facing the sea, churches packed to bursting on Sundays and schoolchildren in traditional uniforms. Ships dock at Queen Salote Wharf, the commercial pier, about a twenty-minute walk from the centre; shuttles often shorten the trip.

The palace and the waterfront

The most natural walk follows the shoreline west to the Royal Palace, a white wooden Victorian residence topped with red roofs, built in 1867. It cannot be visited, but the gate and the lawn facing the open sea make up the country's best-known image. Nearby, the Mala'ekula royal tombs, a vast grassy enclosure right in the centre, have received the sovereigns since the 19th century; they are viewed from the fence, as custom dictates. Throughout this walk, the sea stays on one side, with churches and government buildings on the other. If your port call falls on a Sunday, expect an almost motionless capital: shops closed and streets quiet, but church hymns drifting from the windows that are worth any show.

Talamahu Market

On weekdays, life converges on Talamahu Market, a few streets from the waterfront. The stalls overflow with yams, papayas, pineapples and kava roots. Upstairs, artisans sell tapa, a cloth made of beaten bark and then painted with geometric patterns, as well as pandanus mats woven with a patience passed down from mother to daughter. These objects still accompany every major moment of Tongan life, from weddings to funerals. Fruit is sold in piles at low prices; taste the green coconut decapitated in front of you, with a machete and no ceremony.

The blowholes of Houma

Tongatapu's south coast holds the island's most spectacular phenomenon. At Houma, about fifteen kilometres from the capital, the swell rushes into a coral reef flat pierced with chimneys: with each wave, dozens of jets of water shoot several metres high, along kilometres of coastline. Tongans call the place Mapu'a 'a Vaea, "the chief's whistle." In a heavy swell, the ground trembles underfoot. The phenomenon grows even stronger at rising tide; local drivers know how to pick the moment.

King Tu'itatui's trilithon

At the other end of the island, to the east, stands Ha'amonga 'a Maui, a coral stone gateway erected in the 13th century during the reign of King Tu'itatui: two uprights of about five metres supporting a lintel, the whole weighing several dozen tonnes. It is sometimes compared to Stonehenge, and how it was built still fuels speculation. The site combines well with the blowholes on a tour of the island lasting a few hours.

Before heading back

Local taxi drivers offer tours combining the south and east coasts; agree on the price before setting off. The local currency, the pa'anga, is easily exchanged in town, and English is spoken everywhere alongside Tongan. If time allows, add a stop at Kolovai, where colonies of flying foxes sleep hanging from the trees in broad daylight.

Captain Cook, received here with such consideration, named the archipelago the "Friendly Islands." The name has not aged. You leave Tongatapu with the memory of a country that has never belonged to anyone but itself, and that quiet pride stays on the pier long after the ship has left.