Located in the Fiji Island chain and right on the International Dateline, the island of Tonga is known as "The land where time begins." Tonga is the Pacific's last surviving monarchy (King Taufa'ahua Tupou IV still reigns) and the only island group never to be colonized by outsiders. Which means that a surf trip here really is a trip here, and not merely to some Western concepts of what a tropical island retreat would be like.
This trip was comprised of a group of high school surfers on Spring Break, and were accompanied by the surf team coach and a handful of parents. We stayed at the Ha'atafu Beach Resort, with its eight traditional-style fales, or bungalows, situated directly in front of the Tongatapu coast's best reef breaks.
Over nine breaks lie within walking and paddling distance of Ha'atafu, which is located on the island's northwest coast. This region gets waves year-round, with south swells dominating from March through October, swells generated out of the North Pacific best from November through February. The air and water temps are slightly cooler in Tonga than its neighboring island nations due to its close proximity to the Tongan Trench, the deepest trench in the Pacific.