Tonga
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
257km²
Area
193km
Coastline
71m
Highest point
71,260
People
28°C
Warmest sea
March
3,301km
To the mainland
When to go to Tongatapu
Best for the beach from May to July and from September to October.
The sea is warmest in March (28 °C) and coolest in August (24 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Main island of Tonga
Tongatapu is an island in Tonga. It covers 257 km², with 193 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 71 m. About 71,260 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 3,301 km away.
Getting there
- Fua'amotu International Airport (TBU)airport on the island, with scheduled flights
- FerriesPangaimotu Ferry, Fafa Ferry, 'Atatā Ferry, Nuku'alofa - 'Eua Ferry
- 3,301 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From May to July and from September to Octoberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Tongatapu.
- 38beachesKeleti Beach, Veitongo beach, Kolongatahi mo e 'Utulongoa'a and 35 more
- 7viewpointsPupu'a puhi, Fanga Popao and 5 more
- 4ferry terminalsFerry to Islands, Friendly Island Shipping Agency and 2 more
- 3named peaksSia ko Veiongo, Mata ki 'Eua, Holohiufi
- 3castles and fortsRoyal Palace
- 31ruins and archaeological sitesHule Kolotau, Makatolo-'A-Maui, Otuhaka Beach Resort and 28 more
- 34hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 54restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Tongatapu in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Tongatapu, each with its own numbers.
10beaches and covesCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
27.6°C
Monotapu Beach
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
10 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Oholei Beach27.5°C
- Monotapu Beach27.6°C
- Laulea Beach27.6°C
- Hufangalupe Beach27.6°C
- Anahulu Beach27.6°C
- Finehika Beach27.6°C
- Ha‘amalo Beach27.6°C
- ‘Ahononou Beach27.5°C
2 more on CoastyaOpen Coastya ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 18 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 98 %0–50 m
- 2 %50–200 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Nuku‘alofa22,400 people
- Mu‘a3,900 people
- Haveluloto3,473 people
- Tofoa-Koloua3,467 people
- Vainī3,295 people
- Ha'ateiho2,627 people
- Popua2,335 people
- Nukunuku2,104 people
- Pea1,991 people
- Lapaha1,974 people
- Houma1,932 people
- Tatakamotonga1,840 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| Sea (°C) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Rain (mm) | 197 | 197 | 196 | 170 | 112 | 100 | 67 | 81 | 83 | 88 | 111 | 115 |
| Wet days | 19 | 17 | 20 | 17 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| Sun h/day | 8.1 | 7.9 | 7.3 | 6.8 | 6.3 | 6.0 | 6.3 | 6.6 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 8.4 | 8.5 |
| Wind (km/h) | 22 | 22 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 24 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.3 | −0.3 | +0.2 | +0.3 | −0.2 | +0.9 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.5 | +0.4 |
| 2021 | +0.7 | −0.2 | −0.1 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.3 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +0.9 |
| 2022 | +1.2 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.5 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.6 |
| 2023 | +1.6 | +1.0 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.1 | −0.1 | −0.6 | −0.2 | +0.7 |
| 2024 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.6 | +0.3 | +1.0 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.6 | +0.1 | +0.2 |
| 2025 | +1.0 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.5 | ±0.0 | +0.8 | +0.7 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q620452) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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