Ouvéa, located to the north of the new-Caledonian archipelago of the Loyalty Islands, is one of the most beautiful atolls in the South Pacific. It owes its nickname “the Island closest to paradise”, to Japanese author Katsura Morimura. You won’t be disappointed with this enchanting land: a beach rimmed with coconut palms and pines stretches 25 kilometres along an endless strip of white sand where the delicate foam from a clear, luminous sea, laps against the shore. The inhabitants will teach you about the Polynesian and Melanesian traditions which shaped this culture.