Matt and I have dreamed of visiting the flawless Ringgold Isles for years. However, we could not make it do to poor weather conditions during our last two visits to Fiji. Our luck was about to change as we had super light winds and calm conditions, which were perfect for the trip to the Ringgold Isles.
The Ringgold Isle is located on the North Eastern fringe of the Fiji Islands. Civilization and developments have yet to touch this area.
The orange dots are possible anchorages for us based on different wind directions.
There is only one village in the Ringgold Isle and it is located on the east side of Yanuca Island.
The Ringgold Isle
The Ringgold Isles
7 islands, several islets, and 3 reefs (Budd Reef, Nukusemanu Reef, and Heemskercq Reef) make up the Ringgold Isle.
This group of islands lie to the North of the main Fijian islands and are largely uninhabited. They are known for their beautiful coral reefs, rich marine biodiversity, and pristine natural beauty.
Most of the islands are volcanic in origin and are generally small, with lush vegetation. The islands are surrounded by crystal-clear, turquoise waters.
There is not much information about the Ringgold islands.
Several sources list the names of the 7 islands as Naqelelevu, Vetau’ua, Nukubasaga, Nukupureti, Nukusemanu, Tainibeka and Tauraria
However, those names do not match the names on Navionics, No Foreign Land, Noonsite, or even google maps.
Our sailing resources and charts list the Ringgold Islands as:
Yavu, Yanuca, Cobia, Maqewa, Beka, Tovuka, Raranitqa. For ease of understanding, we will use the names listed on our charts.
Photo courtesy of www.tropicalislands.net
Yanuca serves as the main island and is the only one that is inhabited. Roughly 60-100 people call this island home.
There is one village located on the east side of the island. Yet, the school is located on the north side of the island.
The kids either walk 30-minutes to school or take a 5 minute boat bus ride over the reef.
Conservation
Fiji includes the Ringgold Isles in its efforts to protect marine and island ecosystems. Thus, hoping to preserve their unique biodiversity and natural beauty.
A 218-hectare (540-acre) area covering the archipelago is the Ringgold Islands Important Bird Area.
This area supports globally and regionally significant populations of marine turtles, humpback whales, seabirds and semi-nomadic reef fish. The Ringgold Isle may even hold concentrations of cold-water corals
Fiji Tourism has a great shot of Cobia – click here.
Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual live events.
We visited the Ringgold Isle toward the end of May 2025.
