South pacific cruising season

[kristineashby]

My husband and I are about to start a trek around the world. When we get to the South Pacific we would like to get some crewing experience between the islands. What is the best time of year to try to accomplish this? And is it better to work our way from East to West or visa versa?

[svmoose]

In the south Pacific, the best time for cruising is outside the cyclone season, which starts more or less in November and finishes in about April.
Most people leave New Zealand for example in May and come back not later than November, but we also know lots of people who sail outside these months....
We went from Tonga to New Zealand in November and had a good passage. From New Zealand we took off in August to arrive 8 days later in Fiji, we had a super fast passage, but it was not really fun, we left in the middle of winter and winds can be strong (we had around 60 knots for a day).
You have ample time to sail the south Pacific islands, but be aware that July and August are their winter months and winds can be strong all over the place, which makes for good sailing but passages can be a bit more exciting .

It is a fascinating area and we loved our visits to the Cook islands, Tonga, Fiji etc.
Have a great time! Irene, SV MOOSE