Nouméa feels like a small French provincial city that was picked up and set down on a Pacific peninsula, and the combination is oddly charming. About ninety thousand people live here, almost half the territory of New Caledonia, and the town sprawls around a set of bays on the south-western tip of Grande Terre, with the lagoon, the second-largest in the world by reputation, stretching out in the turquoise light.
You can read the layers of its past in a short walk. The French founded the settlement in the 1850s and it grew as a base for the penal colony and for the nickel industry that still shapes the island's economy. The place has a Melanesian Kanak heritage that is older than any of it, and the Tjibaou Cultural Centre, designed by Renzo Piano and set among the trees outside the centre, is one of the more interesting buildings you will see on a motorbike trip. Baguettes and strong coffee are everywhere, and the market in the morning is worth an early visit for fruit, fish and flowers.
For a rider the town is a starting line, and a busy one. The traffic leaving along the main road is heavy at rush hour, with roundabouts, scooters and drivers who treat lane markings as a suggestion. Once you are past the suburbs, though, the road settles into a long coastal run north-west towards Païta and then on to the interior plains of the west coast. The climate is tropical, humid in the wet season from roughly January to March and drier and more pleasant from about May to October. Cyclones can disrupt travel in the warm months, so check the forecast before committing.
Fuel and services are no problem at all in Nouméa. The city has a proper range of stations, shops and workshops, and Mont-Dore, just along the coast, adds more. After this, the supply thins out, and while the west coast has villages with pumps, it is wise to refill whenever you pass a station. Watch the speed limits, which are enforced, and keep an eye on dogs and cattle on rural stretches.
Eat well before you leave. French-Pacific cooking is a joy, with fresh fish, coconut and good bread, and the sun sets early near the equator, so plan your day accordingly.