Nouméa

Nouméa is the capital of New Caledonia and the largest French city in the South Pacific, with around 100,000 inhabitants intra-muros and 180,000 in Greater Nouméa — close to a third of the territory's population. Located on the south-west tip of Grande Terre, in a peninsula ringed with bays and secondary peninsulas, Nouméa offers urban geography of miniature fjords and spectacular panoramas. The city is dominated to the south by Ouen Toro (132 m, urban park offering a 360° panorama on Nouméa bay, the UNESCO lagoon and Maître islet), and to the north by Mont Coffyn.

The old town organises around Place des Cocotiers — its historic heart since the 19th century, shaded by huge banyans and palms, animated by the Saturday morning market. All around, the centre unfolds its French colonial architecture: Saint-Joseph Cathedral (1888, tropical neo-Gothic), town hall, old trading houses. The Port Moselle marina and its adjacent municipal market (one of the most beautiful markets in the South Pacific, open every day except Monday) is one of the most authentic spots in the capital.

The urban beaches — unique in the South Pacific — are concentrated south of the city, on the Anse Vata peninsula: the Anse Vata beach (1.5 km of white sand, seafront restaurants, the tourist epicentre and main high-end hotel zone), the Bay of Citrons (protected lagoon ideal for family swimming), the Kuendu Beach (Nouville peninsula). These beaches allow swimming in the UNESCO lagoon directly from the city.

The contemporary cultural emblem of Nouméa is without contest the Tjibaou Cultural Centre, opened in 1998 and designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano (Pritzker Prize laureate). Located on the Tina peninsula 10 km from the centre, the complex includes 10 large 'cases' in iroko wood inspired by traditional Kanak architecture, housing permanent and temporary exhibitions on contemporary Kanak art and culture. A tribute to Jean-Marie Tjibaou, Kanak independence leader assassinated in 1989.