South Pacific

The Villages

THE FISHING

For anglers, we feel that The Villages is the nicest lodge on the island to base from, for the week. Aside from the comfortable accommodations and good food, the lodge’s biggest asset is its excellent location. Situated right on an inner lagoon beach, the boats come right up to the front of the lodge to pick up and drop off anglers each day. Other facilities require a half hour truck ride to the ramp over in London. This translates into more time on the water for guests when staying at The Villages, with longer fishing days, and it also ensures that our guests are always on the water before guests who are staying at other facilities. We see this as a huge advantage!

Teannaki is the head guide at The Villages and he is in charge of the daily fishing program for all guests. His vast experience guiding on the waters in and around Christmas Island are put to work for the benefit of all anglers during the week when he factors in such things as tides, wind, sun positioning and weather, when organizing the daily fishing plan. Each day anglers will leave from the beach in front of the lodge in their assigned skiff with their guide and boatman. The normal guest to guide ratio is 2 to 1, with the boatman in charge of the skiff.

The runs out to the flats will range between 5 and 20 minutes and some of the very best flats are less than a 10 minute boat ride from the lodge. The flats at Christmas are a site fisherman’s dream, with enormous hard packed white sand flats stretching for as far as the eye can see. There are not many places in the world that offer better wading for bonefish, with the average fish running between 2-4 pounds. Much larger fish, some in double digits, are seen and caught every week. All of the bonefishing is done while wading, with the average water depth on the flats between 6 inches and about 3 feet. Similar to Los Roques Venezuela, the boatmen at Christmas stay with the skiff and will move it as the guide and guests work their way down the flat. This ensures that the skiff is always close by should an angler need his pack, a drink or water, a change of rods, or just a rest.

Part of what makes Christmas Island such a special place to fish is that this is one of the few places in the world that offer quality flats fishing and blue water fishing during the same trip. The blue water possibilities at Christmas are hard to fathom and guests should come fully equipped for GT’s wahoo, sailfish, tuna and a host of big reef dwelling species. You just never know what might show up and we’ve had guests encounter huge tuna blitzes, bait balls encircled by sailfish, and even curious whalesharks that come in for a quick inspection. The design and stability of the skiffs really comes into play when you get out into the channels and drop offs and when you’re fighting a big fish. The blue water option here is highly productive and requires very different gear than that used for bonefish on the flats. Our comprehensive gear and fly/spin list for Christmas Island is sent to each guest upon receipt of the trip deposit. Fly and spin welcome

BOATS AND EQUIPMENT

Versatile South Pacific skiffs are used to transfer guests right from the Villages beach to the many productive bonefish flats and reef drop offs. The pick-up trucks used by other lodges have all but been eliminated here, enabling anglers to maximize their time on the water each day. When fishing the “Korean Wreck” or other waters that can only be reached by land, pick-ups will be used.

GETTING THERE

From Honolulu, guests will fly Fiji Air to Christmas Island and return the following Tuesday. To accommodate the once weekly flight schedule to Christmas, guests will need to make arrangements to arrive in Honolulu on the Monday and depart Honolulu the next Wednesday. We can assist with the flights to and from Honolulu as well as the overnights in Honolulu, upon request. The per person cost of the round trip flight from Honolulu to Christmas Island is $1042 USD as of spring 2011. Once the trip is booked, all guests will need to immediately send payment for the Christmas Island flight and a clear photocopy of their passport photo and information page, along with the trip deposit to our office. The photocopied passport is a prerequisite for the seat on the charter flight to Christmas Island. Upon arrival at Christmas Island, all guests will clear customs and then be met by the staff from The Villages, for the transfer to the lodge.

Slipstream is a full service travel company that can handle a variety of services relating to your trip. For assistance, please contact us directly at 1 866 644-7703.

RATES FOR 2024

$3,290 USD Single guide per guest shared room.

$460 USD for single room supplement

 

  • XCH - Christmas Island
  • This is a year round destination
  • Bonefish, Giant Trevelly…
  • 12 rods per week guests
  • Wifi: Yes
  • Language: English
  • Physicality: Low
  • CC Payment at Facility : Yes
South Pacific

The Villages

Tour Location

LOCATION

Kiribati consists of the 16 former Gilbert Islands, 8 Line Islands, 8 Phoenix Islands and Ocean Island (Banaba). Part of the Line Islands Group, Christmas Island is the largest coral atoll in the world with an area of 248 square miles, half of which is land, while the other half is lagoon and sand flats. The Christmas Island Atoll is located approximately 1200 miles south of Hawaii and 145 miles north of the equator. It is 2015 miles from Tarawa, the capital of the republic of Kiribati.

PRIMARY SPECIES

Bonefish, Giant Trevelly, Queenfish, Triggerfish, Wahoo, Yellowfin Tuna, Sweetlips, sharks and snappers

SEASON OF OPERATION

This is a year round destination

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE LOGISTICS

While the travel logistics to Christmas Island can appear daunting at first glance, it’s actually pretty straight forward once you have a good look at the whole process. Fiji Air makes one round trip flight every Tuesday from Honolulu to Christmas Island and back. This is the only option to Christmas Island. What this means is that guests will need to arrive in Honolulu and over night in Honolulu on the Monday before the Tuesday departure to Christmas and should plan to overnight again back in Honolulu, on the Tuesday night once your week at Christmas is over. Doing this eliminates the stress of delays and cutting arrival and departures too close for comfort and potentially missing the flight to Christmas as a result.

Space is limited on the flight to Christmas Island so please make sure that you send your deposit, flight payment and photocopy of your passport immediately upon booking the trip.

ACCOMMODATIONS

The Villages of Christmas Island is a small beautifully situated lodge, overlooking the stunning vista that is Discovery Beach. Perched on the ocean, with only 6 double occupancy rooms, the lodge is informal and comfortable. This is not a 4 or 5 Star resort by any stretch of the imagination, as that kind of facility simply does not exist anywhere on Christmas. However, in areas that are most important to destination anglers, from comfortable beds, good food, working A/C, private bath with hot and cold water, The Villages really shines for such a remote and isolated outpost. Each room has double twin beds, a screened porch, a wonderful view of the lagoon and the all important mini fridge, for cold beers and water.

There is a comfortable “Maneaba” which means “angler gathering area”, right in the middle of the facility, which features a pleasant lounge with a laid back, South Seas vibe to it. Meals are served adjacent to the lounge and guests can expect traditional seafood dishes and local meats and poultry, prepared and served by the lodge chef and staff. The bar serves beer, assorted liquors, wine, and soft drinks. If you have a favorite single malt or vodka, pick it up at the duty free at the Honolulu Airport.

DESTINATION CAPACITY

12 Rods Per week
South Pacific

The Villages

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Value for money
South Pacific

The Villages

INCLUDED IN PRICE

  • Round trip transportation from the Christmas Island Airstrip to the lodge on arrival and departure days
  • 7 nights’ accommodation at the Villages Inn (Double occupancy)
  • All meals (Breakfast, lunch and dinner)
  • 6 days of guided fishing

NOT INCLUDED IN PRICE

  • International Airfare to Christmas Island
  • $34 USD Christmas Island fishing license
  • $20 USD Island Departure Tax
  • Alcohol
  • Fishing equipment

TRAVEL DOCUMENTS REQUIRED

It is necessary to have a Passport that is valid for 6 months from the end of your trip to Christmas Island. American and Canadian guests no longer need a tourist visa to visit the Island.