Getting Around New Caledonia

If you don't have your own vehicle, hitch-hiking will at some point be necessary around Grande Terre.
Thankfully, the locals, both French and Kanaks, tend to give rides relatively easily.
As usual, you may meet some interesting characters, but few drivers speak English so your communication may be limited.
If you do speak French, you may even be invited to have meals and stay with people who pick you up though!
Unlike in many other countries, payment is never expected.

Grande Terre has a decent bus system that can get you to the main towns around the island at least a few times weekly.
Your fellow-passengers will be almost all Kanaks - the French all seem to have their own cars, and the tourists just don't seem to get around.
The buses are good and cheap enough when and where they do run - elsewhere and at other times, you will have to hitch!

New Caledonia is one of the few Pacific nations to have regular ships carrying passengers to a neighbouring country. That country is Vanuatu, and the ship is the Havanna, actually a cargo ship that takes passengers as well. Unfortunately it runs only about once a month.

There are of course plenty of expensive cruises coming over here from Australia, too.

Within New Caledonia, ships serve all but one of the inhabited outer islands.
The main one used by tourists is the comfortable, high-speed Betico that runs to both the Isle of Pines and the Loyalty Islands a few times weekly.
There are also cheaper cargo ships going to the Loyalty Islands less frequently.

The main Tourist Office in Noumea can get you the schedule and fares for all these.

The other option of course is by going on a cruise ship. This option is very popular and the ports of Noumea, Poume and Lifou are met by large cruise ships on a weekly basis.
P&O have regular ships travelling here such as the Pacific sky and the Pacific Sun as well as the Pacific Princess. Unfortuntely you only get to see each destination very briefly but i suppose if gives your a preview of what the country is like.

There are several ferry trips to the loyalty islands and the iles of pines from Noumea.
The ferry is called the Betico and is quite fast and efficient, as well as being a cheaper option that flying.
From Noumea to The iles of pines it costs about $60 and from Noumea to any one of the 3 main loyalty islands it costs around $90.
Its a nice and cheaper alternative.

Flying is your only option if you want to come to New Caledonia (the other option is cruise, but the port of call duration is less than a day).
The main airline of New Caledonia is "air calin" and does several weekly flights from Sydney. Other air carriers which fly to the island are Air France, Qantas and AOM.

Subsequently there are flights which fly to the loyalty Islands next to "la grande terre", these flights also leave several times a week and are undertaken by the smaller carrier "air caledonia"

The buses are quite nice and the roads are of reasonable quality around the island. A good option to get to new caledonia various provinces would be to take the bus.
for deatils on pricing and distances look at the following website
http://www.bugpacific.com/transport/busnc.html

The bus travel in Noumea itself is also very good and efficient.

Hitchiking was a breeze all over New Caledonia and the locals did not find it unusual at all. I met some wonderful people by traveling in this manner and felt that it was very safe and well worth the hassle of uncertainty and long waits (which were never long, anyway).