A 'super El Niño' — described by the region's climate science programme as one of the strongest ever recorded — is now hitting Pacific island nations hard, with impacts that travellers to the region this season should take seriously.
At the 19th Pacific Islands Climate and Oceans Forum in Port Moresby, national weather services laid out the damage. Papua New Guinea has declared drought and water shortages in all four regions, including the capital, where around 3 million people live. Schools have closed, rivers have dried up, the main hydropower plant is under strain, and the giant Ok Tedi copper and gold mine has had to switch to boats and planes for logistics as the Fly River drops. Bushfires are throwing haze over the approach to Port Moresby's Jacksons International Airport, and destructive frosts in the highlands have wiped out crops.
Elsewhere, Fiji is facing critical water shortages around Rakiraki, Nagigi and Labasa, with schools and clinics closed on Malolo and Yanuya. Vanuatu is battling wildfires — including one affecting the Iririki Island resort — plus a whooping cough outbreak on Ambae (276 cases) and dengue on Tanna. Tonga has declared drought in Ha'apai, where rainfall has been below normal since April 2026, and recorded coral bleaching in Vava'u. The Cook Islands, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Palau all report water stress, fish kills or storm damage, and rough seas have caused maritime accidents that killed 57 people across Melanesia.
The takeaway for anyone planning a Pacific trip: check conditions destination by destination, not region-wide. Some islands are in drought while others — Naoero, and parts of the Federated States of Micronesia such as Pohnpei and Kosrae — have had the opposite problem, with heavy rain, landslides and flooding. Forecasts suggest the pattern will influence rainfall, temperatures and cyclone activity into 2027. Travellers should expect possible water rationing at resorts, affected boat and ferry schedules, and health advisories for mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue.
In other regional news from the same bulletin: Fiji voted at the UN General Assembly in favour of ending the US embargo on Cuba (adopted 130-17 with 25 abstentions), framing it as a matter of multilateralism and its 'Ocean of Peace' vision, though the vote was symbolic — the embargo can only be lifted by the United States. Also flagged: Palau's Angaur island is in a drinking water crisis, a US company is eyeing deep-sea mining exploration between Guam and Wake Island, and the World Bank warns Fiji's debt could exceed 90 per cent of GDP by 2028.
For holidaymakers, the El Niño story is the one that changes plans — build flexibility into bookings, heed local weather warnings (the MV Matui capsize in Vanuatu shows the cost of ignoring them), and consider destinations less affected before committing to outer-island stays.
