The returning castaways arrived on board four Royal New Zealand Air Force UH-1 Iroquois helicopters.^[42] After initial assessments about the tribe division, the contestants launched into a Reward challenge.

• Reward challenge: The tribes would face off in pairs. The four castaways would race along the beach to dig up a single bag in a designated lane. The castaways would then have to race back to their respective finish mat. The first person to be touching the bag and their finish mat would score a point for their tribe. The first tribe to score three points would win flint. Battle Dig challenge from Panama.

During the aggressive challenge, two Heroes were injured. Stephenie dislocated a shoulder, which was fixed, and Rupert broke a toe. Neither injury resulted in evacuation. The Heroes won the challenge, obtaining flint. At both camps, the castaways found fishing gear. Russell made "top two" alliances with both Danielle and Parvati; still, they both questioned his loyalty. Rob was quick to organize the Villains camp and helped them to create fire using a fire saw. At the Heroes camp, Rupert failed to start a fire while wasting much of the flint's magnesium, but Colby, J.T., and Stephenie were successful. Tom also found four wild chickens that he and his tribemates captured to use as food. Loose alliances between castaways that were previously on the same season were made, while Coach and Jerri formed a separate alliance and J.T. formed pacts with James and Tom. During the night, Sugar disrupted her tribemates' sleep with her chatting.

• Immunity challenge: Six members from each tribe would race to assemble a boat from seven pieces and seven planks and then paddle the boat out into the ocean to light their torch from the raft. Once the six members return with the fire and the seven planks, the remaining four tribe members would assemble a puzzle. The seven planks from the boat would then be used to assemble a ladder to the top of a platform and place the completed puzzle in a slot halfway up. The first tribe to have their whole tribe at the top of the platform and light their fire barrel would win. Should the Villains tribe win the challenge, they would receive flint. Lock, Load and Light challenge from Cook Islands.

At the Immunity challenge, the Heroes lost a significant lead due to their conflicting puzzle strategies, and the Villains won, earning their flint. Back at the Heroes camp, Sugar targeted Amanda, but the rest of the tribe wanted to eliminate Sugar. Tom brought up voting for Cirie for strategic reasons. Amanda, Candice, and Cirie talked about voting for Stephenie or Tom to break up a potential alliance that rooted from their season in Palau. At Tribal Council, the vote went against Sugar, and she was unanimously voted out.

Frustrated from his tribe's lack of work ethic and cooperation regarding their shelter, Rob wandered off into the jungle. Jerri found him collapsed on the jungle floor and called in the Survivor Medical Team, who, as they found nothing to concern them, cleared Rob to continue.

• Reward/Immunity challenge: In pairs, the castaways would race across a field to retrieve six large crates painted in their tribe's colors. Once all six crates were retrieved, the tribes would have to stack the crates into a staircase with the name of their tribe properly aligned along the sides. The first tribe to complete the staircase and get all of their members up the staircase to the top of a platform would win immunity and a tarp. A Crate Idea challenge from Tocantins.

During the combined Reward and Immunity Challenge, the Heroes initially gained a healthy lead but, again, ended up stumbling as they solved the puzzle staircase. Russell felt threatened by Rob's rise in power amongst the Villains tribe and tried to demonstrate his own power by catching a chicken with a spear. James vented to his tribe about their lack of cooperation during the challenge and not following J.T., who had performed the challenge in Tocantins. Having mostly stormed on Stephenie for their loss, he pointed that her doings might have contributed to her original tribe's losing streak in Palau. Meanwhile, the trio of Colby, Stephenie, and Tom tried to convince Candice and Cirie to join them in voting out Amanda, who had previously played with Cirie, Courtney, James, and Parvati during her tenure as a contestant. After a heated Tribal Council, Candice and Cirie decided to join Amanda, James, J.T., and Rupert in voting out Stephenie.

James apologized to his tribemates for his behavior at the previous Tribal Council. The next day, the men of the Heroes tribe "bonded" over re-capturing two chickens that had escaped. Meanwhile, at the Villains camp, Coach and Rob warned Russell about his alliance with Parvati and how it could be dangerous. In retaliation, Russell decided to show the two who was in control by hiding the tribe's machete during the night. Randy became frustrated when he seemed to be the only one providing food for his tribe, thrusting the role of the tribe's main provider on him and Rob. Surprised by Candice's strategic gameplay, J.T. planted some distrust in Candice and Cirie's alliance by fabricating a story to Cirie that the former didn't trust her. When Cirie confronted Candice, the latter scrambled to figure out who had made up the lie, which aggravated James.

• Reward/Immunity challenge: The tribes would face off in a series of one-on-one sumo-style battles. The castaways would use padded duffel bags to knock their adversaries out of a ring and into the mud. The first tribe to win eight bouts would win immunity and a reward of coffee, sugar, rice for one week, and a luxury item for each castaway. Sumo at Sea challenge originally from Palau, version used was the adaptation from Fiji.

At the combined Reward and Immunity Challenge, the Heroes destroyed the Villains in an 8–0 blowout win. Discussions over whom to vote out focused on Parvati and Randy: Parvati for being a social threat and having four potential allies on the Heroes tribe, and Randy because he was one of the weaker competitors. At Tribal Council, the vote went against Randy, and he was unanimously sent home.

Coach vented his disappointment to Tyson about being singled out by Sandra at the previous Tribal Council. He considered quitting the game, but Rob assured Coach that his position in the tribe was secure.

• Reward challenge: A member from each tribe would slide across a slippery surface and grab a ball with a certain color and number suspended above them. They would have to toss it into a basket to score a point. First tribe to score four points would win two selected items from a Sears catalog. The Heroes tribe chose cooking equipment and additional fishing gear. The Villains tribe chose additional materials to set up camp and a tool kit. Slip, Slide & Score challenge from Fiji.

After winning the Reward Challenge, the Villains selected tools, twine, and a tarp from the catalog. While unpacking their reward, Russell accidentally discovered a clue to a Hidden Immunity Idol in front of the tribe. After Rob read the clue out loud, Sandra made the point that whoever found it would be voted out next in order to flush out the idol. The rest of the tribe agreed and decided not to go look for the idol. Despite this warning, Russell went out to search, much to the anger of his tribe. At the Heroes camp, Tom discovered their clue in the jar of coffee beans. J.T. read the clue out loud, and several members of the Heroes tribe went looking for the idol. Tom succeeded in finding the idol and slipped it in his shoe. Amanda saw this and notified the others that it was in his possession.

• Immunity challenge: One castaway would be strapped into a wooden spherical cage and would have to guide two blindfolded castaways in rolling the cage through a maze through the forest. At the end of the maze would be a labyrinth-like table maze. The castaway inside the cage would then have to guide four blindfolded castaways in solving the table maze. The first tribe to finish the table maze would win. Roll With It challenge from Samoa.

When the Heroes lost the Immunity Challenge, the majority alliance decided to split their votes between Colby and Tom, thus flushing the idol and sending Colby home. Tom reached an agreement with Amanda, James, and J.T. to vote out Candice after offering to give up the idol, but Cirie disagreed and convinced the majority to follow through with the plan to split the vote and flush the idol. J.T. was torn between going with the majority alliance and joining Colby and Tom in voting out Cirie. At Tribal Council, Tom played the Hidden Immunity Idol; therefore, the three votes against him were negated. In the end, J.T. turned on the majority alliance, and Cirie was voted out.

When the Heroes returned to camp after Tribal Council, J.T. explained that his vote against Cirie was for the tribe and not for "personal reasons". However, Amanda and Rupert still questioned J.T.'s loyalties. At the Villains campsite, Russell continued his lone search for the Hidden Immunity Idol and soon found what he was looking for.

• Reward challenge: In a walled off arena, three members of each tribe would battle for control of three balls. Once a castaway gets control of a ball, they would pass the ball to three other tribe members standing on a platform who would attempt to throw the ball through the opposing tribe's basket at the other end of the arena. One point would be scored when a ball is made in the basket. After every point, the tribes would change who was in the arena and on the platform. The first tribe to score two points would win a trip to a swimming hole and a feast of chocolate bars, chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies, and chocolate milk. Schmergen Brawl challenge from Samoa.

Shortly into the Reward Challenge, James went down with an injury to his left knee. After the Villains won the challenge by a score of 2–1, James's knee was braced by the Survivor Medical Team, and he was cleared to continue in the game. While on their reward trip, Russell told both Coach and Parvati that the Hidden Immunity Idol was in his possession, and a potential alliance brewed.

• Immunity challenge: One castaway from each tribe would work as a caller to direct their tribemates, who would be blindfolded and teamed up in pairs, in collecting ten large puzzle pieces from a field. Once all of the puzzle pieces were collected, the entire tribe would work together to assemble the puzzle. The first tribe to complete their puzzle would win. Tiki Towers challenge from All-Stars.

James lead the Heroes to an early lead but they all struggled at the puzzle. Rob then lead the Villains to another immunity win. Before Tribal Council, Rupert gunned for Candice for being the weakest, while Candice wanted to vote out James due to his injury. Meanwhile, J.T. vacillated between voting for James or Tom. At Tribal Council, Candice and J.T. voted against Tom, and he was sent home.

Both tribes were surprised when Jeff announced that both tribes would be going to Tribal Council, and that the challenge was individual.

• Reward/Immunity challenge: The tribes would compete separately for individual immunity. The castaways would be attached to a rope threaded through obstacles which they would have to climb under, over, or around. The first Hero and the first Villain to win will be immune from the vote. Then the two winners will be competing in the final round. The final round's challenge would be the same, but with a single obstacle three levels high. The first castaway to complete the obstacle would win reward for their tribe consisting of hot dogs and soft drinks to be enjoyed at the opposing tribe's Tribal Council. Around the Bend challenge originally from Guatemala, version used was the adaptation from Tocantins.

Candice defeated JT to win for the Heroes, and Rob defeated Tyson to win for the Villains. When Candice and Rob battled it out, Rob ultimately won the reward for his tribe. Upon arriving at the Heroes' camp, Colby believed it was his time to go; however, the rest of the tribe members talked about voting out James instead of Colby to keep the tribe stronger. To try to prove he could still be strong to the tribe by speed, he challenged JT to a race. But JT defeated James by much even after running backwards halfway through the race. Another consideration for voting out James was how he was told by Amanda that he hogged all the bananas he could find. Amanda told him that if he gets a banana, he has to get one for everyone else. She called it a "banana etiquette". At the Villains' camp, Rob, assuming that Russell possessed the Hidden Immunity Idol, organized his alliance members to split their votes between Russell and Parvati, so that they would hopefully flush out the idol and remove one of the two. As a strategy to put the numbers against Tyson and not himself, Russell approached Tyson and convinced him to vote for Parvati. Tyson, believing Russell would also vote Parvati, opted to switch his vote to her as well, when, in reality, Russell would be voting for Tyson. At their Tribal Council, Russell presented the Hidden Immunity Idol to Jeff but gave it to Parvati. When she played the idol, the four votes cast against her were negated, thus blindsiding Tyson with a vote of 3–2–0. Afterwards, the Villains enjoyed their reward at the Heroes' Tribal Council, where James castigated Colby for not performing as well in challenges like he used to in Australia. But ultimately, despite stating his desire to continue on the competition, the tribe ultimately agreed that James' knee injury and brutish demeanor were too obvious to ignore, and, in a unanimous vote, he was next to go, to ensure he would receive immediate medical treatment for his injury.

Rob was stunned by the results of previous Tribal Council and was suspicious of his alliance's loyalties. With Jerri wavering about her alliance with Rob, Parvati promised Jerri that she would go to the final four with Danielle and Russell.

• Reward challenge: Competing in rounds, the tribes would face off three to a side in the ocean to get control of a ball and shoot it into their basket to score a point. The first tribe to score three points would win a trip to a waterfall with a feast. Basket Brawl challenge from Tocantins.

Sensing that he needed to step up at the challenges to prove to his tribe that voting James off was not a mistake, Colby led the Heroes to a 3–0 win at the Reward Challenge. When the Heroes arrived at the waterfall for their reward, they received a note that there was another Hidden Immunity Idol at their beach. The five Heroes agreed that they would find the idol together and use it against the Villains instead of against each other. At the Villains' camp, Russell told Coach and Jerri that he wanted to take them to the final three. Jerri accepted the offer and aligned herself with Russell, while Coach was skeptical of Russell's promises. Coach was hurt by Jerri's equal loyalties to himself and Russell as he thought he had a greater level of trust and loyalty from Jerri.

• Immunity challenge: One at a time, three castaways from each tribe would race across a platform and a rope net and then climb up a rope web to retrieve six bags of puzzle pieces. Once all six bags were retrieved, two other castaways from each tribe would assemble the puzzle. The first tribe to assemble their puzzle would win. Caught in the Web challenge based upon one used in Africa, and in Guatemala, with the puzzle part inspired from a challenge from Cook Islands.

At the Immunity Challenge, the Heroes finally won a challenge with a puzzle component. Back at camp, Russell told Rob that either Courtney or Sandra, both of whom were sitting right beside, had to go home next. Rob tried to convince Coach to vote for Russell by appealing to his respect for loyalty, and Coach gave him his word. Russell devised a plan to blindside Rob while talking with Coach, Danielle, and Jerri, and although Coach disagreed, he eventually stated that he was with them 100%. Coach was torn because he didn't want to betray his promise to either Rob or Russell. At the Villains' Tribal Council, the votes were cast; while Coach tried to sit in the middle by voting for Courtney, Jerri joined Russell's alliance thus eliminating Rob.

At the Heroes campsite, J.T. went off looking for the Hidden Immunity Idol by himself in his own self-interest, even though the tribe had promised earlier to look for it together. Just after he found the idol, Amanda came across him before he could hide it, putting J.T. into a position in which he had to tell the whole tribe about the idol in order to sustain trust. Before the Reward Challenge, the Villains misinterpreted the day's tree mail as a hint to an impending merge. In response, they brought all of their camp equipment to the challenge, only to have Jeff announce that the tribes were not merging. After seeing Rob voted out, the Heroes assumed an all-girl alliance in control—the true power being with Danielle, Parvati, and Russell.

• Reward challenge: The castaways would be compete in a bowling tournament. Each castaway would be matched against another castaway and given two rolls. The castaway who knocked down the most pins won the round for their tribe and scored one point. The first tribe to score three points won a feast of pizza, garlic bread, brownies, and drinks. Fauxconut Bowling challenge from Samoa.

The Heroes continued their winning streak by defeating the Villains at the Reward Challenge. Feeling that they were on the outs with their tribe, Sandra plotted to trick Russell into believing that Coach was gunning for him, in order to save Courtney. Russell, who seemed immediately convinced, conspired with Parvati to vote out Coach, a move they hoped would further strengthen the misconception of an all-girl alliance.

• Immunity challenge: Competing in rounds, two castaways from each tribe would be belted together and would have to race across a mud pit and over obstacles to retrieve a flag to score a point for their tribe. The second round would be a one-on-one competition, while the third round would be back to two-on-two. The first tribe to score two points would win. Mud Slide challenge from Survivor: Guatemala.

The Heroes extended their winning streak to four at the Immunity Challenge. Russell and Danielle had a heated discussion over whether they should vote out Coach or Courtney, with Russell ultimately voting for Courtney. At Tribal Council, Sandra and Courtney's plan came to fruition, and Coach became the first member of the jury.

At the reward challenge, the Heroes continued to believe there was a women's alliance on the Villains tribe due to the departure of Coach and silent signals that Russell made to J.T.

• Reward challenge: The castaways would compete in an endurance contest in which castaways were ranked strongest to weakest in their tribes. These rankings would be used to determine the matchups between each tribe. Each castaway would stand on footholds. After ten minutes, the castaways would move to smaller footholds. After another ten minutes, they would move to the smallest footholds and stay there until the challenge was over. A castaway would score a point for their tribe by outlasting their opponent. The first tribe to score three points would win an all-you-can-eat feast courtesy of Outback Steakhouse. Chimney Sweep challenge from Fiji and Tocantins.

The Villains would go on to win the Reward Challenge. During the feast, Parvati discovered a clue to another Hidden Immunity Idol tucked into her napkin at the dining table. Parvati secretly showed the clue to Danielle in order to strengthen her loyalty to Parvati versus Russell; they successfully found the idol the next morning and kept it secret from the rest of the tribe. Over at the Heroes camp, J.T. shared his plan to give Russell their tribe's Hidden Immunity Idol at the next Immunity Challenge in order to protect him from the next vote and gain his loyalty post-merger, hoping he would use it to eliminate Parvati; Amanda and Candice thought this would be a bad idea but would also keep the idol out of J.T.'s hands and agreed to it.

• Immunity challenge: One at a time, five castaways from each tribe would maneuver a bag of puzzle pieces attached to a rope through an obstacle course in the ocean. The first tribe to retrieve all five bags and assemble the puzzle (a totem pole) would win. Strung Out challenge from Vanuatu.

At the Immunity Challenge, the Heroes dominated throughout and won the challenge. J.T., with Colby's help, successfully gave the idol, wrapped in a letter to explain his reasoning, to Russell during the post-challenge congratulations. Back at the Villains camp, Russell shared the letter and his possession of the idol with Parvati, Danielle, and Jerri, acknowledging the Heroes fell for the woman's alliance plan. Courtney, knowing she was likely to be voted out, attempted to pledge her loyalty to Parvati in an effort to stay in the game; Parvati lobbied her alliance to keep Courtney in the game, but they opted to eliminate her anyway, and Courtney was unanimously sent to the jury.

The tree mail on day 25 announced the merge of the tribes, with the Villains moving to the Heroes campsite and enjoying the traditional feast, eventually naming themselves "Yin Yang" in keeping with the theme of "good vs evil". Russell, Parvati, and Danielle conspired to share the same false story to explain Parvati's survival of the previous Tribal Council; that both Russell and Parvati played opposing hidden immunity idols and voting out Courtney in the revote. Russell maintained the trust the Heroes had with him to eliminate the supposed Villains' "woman's alliance" through its leader, Parvati. However, Sandra was able to pull aside Rupert and explain the truth of the former Tribal Council; Rupert reported this to the other Heroes, and together they decided to test Russell's loyalty by informing him they were voting for Parvati while they would vote off someone else. Parvati secretly told Amanda about her Hidden Immunity Idol in order to get information on who the Heroes were going to vote out.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would hang onto a pole as long as they can. The last person left hanging without touching the ground would win. Get a Grip challenge from Vanuatu, Cook Islands, and Tocantins.

The challenge came down to Danielle and Parvati but the latter agreed to step down, knowing she still had her Hidden Immunity Idol, giving Danielle the win. Following the challenge, Russell gave Parvati his Hidden Immunity Idol, believing her to be in trouble at the vote. The Heroes decided to make Jerri their target, believing the possibility of Parvati having an idol and would use it if she felt vulnerable. Amanda, following up on her previous conversation with Parvati, told Parvati she would be the target, but Parvati distrusted her statement. At Tribal Council, the Heroes voted for Jerri and the Villains voted for J.T as planned. Before the votes were read, Parvati surprised the whole tribe by giving a Hidden Immunity Idol to both Jerri and Sandra. They both played the idols, negating the five votes cast against Jerri. J.T. was sent to the jury.

Russell worked on getting Candice to join his alliance as he correctly thought Sandra would flip to the Heroes alliance.

• Reward challenge: The castaways would be split into teams of three and would play a version of shuffleboard. Each castaway would be given two pucks which they would try to slide closest to the target. The team whose puck ends up closest to the target would win an overnight trip to the former home of Robert Louis Stevenson and a screening of the 1934 version of Treasure Island. Shoot 'n' Shuffle challenge originally from The Amazon also used in Vanuatu and Tocantins.

The Reward Challenge was won by the team of Amanda, Colby, and Danielle. While on the reward, Danielle found a clue to a Hidden Immunity Idol in a bowl of popcorn. Amanda grabbed the clue after Danielle tried to hide it. The two women fought over who should have the clue until Colby intervened and said that Danielle should have it since she found it. When the trio returned to camp the next day, Danielle related the story of the fight for the idol clue to her alliance and they set off to find it. Russell found the Hidden Immunity Idol without the girls noticing and hid his discovery from them. In order to secure her loyalty, Russell showed the idol to Candice and told her that they would go to the final three together. Sandra discussed flipping to the Heroes alliance with Colby and Rupert in order to get rid of Russell. Russell told Sandra that one of the Heroes had already flipped to the Villains alliance and warned her about flipping to Heroes alliance, foiling Sandra's plan of flipping to the Heroes.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would attempt to build a tower out of 150 wooden tiles to a height of 10 feet (3.0 m). The first castaway to finish building the tower to the required height wins immunity. House of Cards challenge from Gabon.

The Immunity Challenge was won by Jerri. Russell wanted to vote out Amanda and he told Candice to vote for Amanda, which she agreed to. She then told Russell that the Heroes along with Sandra were planning to vote him out. Russell confronted Sandra about what Candice told him, but Sandra denied any switch in alliances. Sandra then confronted Candice about her telling Russell about the Heroes plan and that they had to stick to the plan in order to vote out Russell. The Heroes agreed to vote for Parvati in case Danielle or Russell played a Hidden Immunity Idol. At Tribal Council, Russell played his Hidden Immunity Idol, but no votes against him were cast. Candice flipped to the Villains alliance and Sandra stuck with the Villains, resulting in Amanda being sent to the jury.

Back at camp after Tribal Council, Colby and Rupert were upset about Candice's flip to the Villains side, while Jerri was ready to vote her out now that her vote was no longer needed and was worried she would flip back to the Heroes side. Rupert and Russell confronted each other in front of the entire tribe, which made Russell target Rupert for the next Tribal Council. When the castaways arrived for the challenge, Jeff announced that they would be playing for immunity instead of reward. After explaining the challenge, Jeff stated that there would be a twist at the end.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would stand on a perch, one arm above their head with their wrist tethered to a bucket of water on top of a platform. The castaway who could stand there the longest without tipping the bucket would win. During the challenge, Jeff would tempt the castaways to quit with offerings of cookies and milk; donuts and iced coffee; peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips, candy, and milk. When It Rains, It Pours challenge from Africa, All-Stars and Micronesia.

Just as she had done when she last played this challenge during Survivor: Micronesia, Parvati outlasted everybody to win Individual Immunity. The twist was that Jeff read a clue to a Hidden Immunity Idol to the entire tribe. When the castaways returned to camp, everybody went looking for the Hidden Immunity Idol. Sandra found it and hid it from the others. Rupert stuck a rock in his pocket to feign finding the idol. Russell fell for the deception and his alliance plotted a way to get Rupert to play the idol by splitting the vote at the next Tribal Council. Colby and Rupert knew that the Villains alliance would split their vote between Rupert, Colby or Candice, so they agreed to vote for Candice, hoping the Villains would pick her for the split. At Tribal Council, the Villains ultimately chose Candice and split their votes between her and Rupert. According to plan, Rupert and Colby voted for Candice, sending her to the jury.

When the tribe returned to camp, Russell criticized the girls in his alliance that they should have split their votes between Colby and Rupert instead of focusing on Candice.

• Immunity challenge: In the first round, the castaways would dig up a wooden peg and then guide the peg through a table maze. The first five to finish would move on to the next round. In the second round, the castaways would use four pegs to climb a wall. The first three to reach the top of the wall would move to the final round. The final round would be a sliding puzzle. The first castaway to finish their puzzle would win. Wall to Wall challenge from Panama.

At the Immunity Challenge, Rupert, Sandra, Russell, Parvati, and Danielle moved on from the first round. Russell, Parvati, and Rupert moved on to the final round. Russell finished his puzzle first to win Individual Immunity. Parvati wanted to vote out Rupert. Russell was concerned that Parvati was more loyal to Danielle than Parvati was to Russell, so he decided to break them up by discussing voting out Parvati with Danielle and telling Parvati that Danielle wanted to vote her out when it came down to five or six remaining. Danielle and Parvati discussed Russell's stories to them and they figured out that Russell was trying to break them up. The two begged Jerri to vote for Rupert to foil Russell's plan. Meanwhile, Russell decided to get Danielle out of the game so that Parvati would stay loyal to him by telling Colby and Rupert that Danielle needed to go out next. Russell threatened Jerri to vote out Danielle by telling Jerri she would be voted out next if Danielle didn't go. At Tribal Council, Danielle and Russell argued over what the other had said to each other. Danielle broke into tears and unintentionally revealed that Jerri was not included in the Final 3 alliance of herself, Parvati and Russell. Russell's plan came together when Jerri switched her vote and Danielle was sent to the jury, becoming the first villain voted out since the merge.

The tree mail on day 34 was a Sprint Palm Pre loaded with videos from family members (Parvati's dad, Mike; Jerri's sister, Jennifer; Russell's wife, Melanie; Colby's brother, Reed; Rupert's wife, Laura; and Sandra's uncle, Fernando) announcing that they had arrived on the island and were looking forward to reuniting with the castaways at the next challenge.

• Reward challenge: The castaways would use a bucket to scoop water from the ocean and then toss the water to their loved one who would use another bucket to catch the water. The loved one would then pour the water into a bucket hanging from a see saw. The first pair to fill their bucket with enough water to tip their see saw would win a plane trip with their loved one to see the Alofaaga Blowholes along with a meal of hamburgers, soft drinks, cookies, and donuts. Pass the Bucket challenge from Cook Islands.

After emotional introductions to the castaway's loved ones, the challenge was won by the team of Jerri and her sister Jennifer. After winning the challenge, Jeff told Jerri that she could pick another castaway and their loved one to go along with them. Jerri chose Parvati and her father Mike. Jerri then asked Jeff if she could take one more pair. Jeff agreed and Jerri picked Sandra and her uncle. Russell was angry that Jerri did not pick him and his wife to join them on the trip. During the trip, Jerri voiced concern that Russell would seek revenge on her for not selecting him for the trip. Parvati and Sandra said they would protect her from any retaliation and that Russell had to vote out either Colby or Rupert in order to stay in the game. Back at camp, Russell was indeed plotting to seek revenge by making an agreement with Colby and Rupert to go to the final three with them. Russell thought he could swing Jerri over to this new alliance and vote out Parvati if she did not win the next Immunity Challenge. During the night of day 35 after the three women returned from their reward, Rupert angered Jerri by making a racket while the rest of the tribe was trying to sleep and she wanted to vote him out next.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would hold two poles on the tops of their hands up against a board over their heads. Any movement in their hands would cause the poles to drop to the ground. If the castaway drops their poles, they would be eliminated from the challenge. The last person who does not drop their poles would win immunity. Keep It Up challenge from Gabon.

Russell's new alliance's plan was spoiled when Parvati won the Immunity Challenge. With his plan spoiled, Russell decided he had to flip back to his original girls alliance and vote out Rupert. Sandra told Rupert that she wanted to vote out Russell. Rupert told this to Russell, and Russell then confronted Sandra in front of Parvati asking if she was with him or against him. Sandra replied that she was against him and then yelled out to Rupert about revealing her plan to Russell. Russell scolded Parvati and Sandra about being dumb when they made fun of him and changed his mind yet again to vote out Sandra. At Tribal Council, the argument between Russell and Sandra was discussed. Before reading the votes, Jeff stated that this is the last time the Hidden Immunity Idol could be played. Though Sandra thought she was safe going in and wouldn't need to play her Hidden Immunity Idol, she decided to play it since she had mixed feelings after the discussion. The Heroes’ votes against Sandra were not counted. The rest were all cast against Rupert and he was sent to the jury.

Back at camp after Tribal Council, Russell was upset at Sandra's use of the Hidden Immunity Idol and accused Parvati and Sandra of lying to him about Sandra having a Hidden Immunity Idol.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would balance ceramic dishes on the end of a balancing arm. As the challenge progresses, Jeff calls out different dishwares that the castaways would stack on the far end of the balance. Should any part of a castaway's stack fall, that castaway would be out of the challenge. The last castaway in the challenge would win. Offer It Up challenge from China.

Parvati won the Immunity Challenge by outlasting Colby. After returning from the challenge, Colby gave his "surrender speech" to the Villains and told them they should just enjoy the day and he would not scramble to stay in the game. However, Colby made one final attempt to stay in the game by approaching Russell about voting out Sandra in an effort to defeat Parvati at the next Immunity Challenge. At Tribal Council, the Villains voted out the last of the Heroes, unanimously sending Colby to the jury.

The final four received treemail announcing that they would take the traditional journey honoring the castaways voted out before heading to their final Immunity Challenge.

• Immunity challenge: The castaways would have to navigate through a maze blindfolded. The first castaway to retrieve four necklaces at stations within the maze and then find the immunity necklace at the end of the maze would win. Blind Maze challenge from The Amazon.

Russell won the final Immunity Challenge by edging out Parvati and Jerri by mere inches. After the challenge, Russell told Sandra that he was going to take her to the final three as he thought he could beat her at the final vote as she would get maybe only one vote. Parvati disagreed and told Russell that getting rid of Sandra would be best as she would get votes from the jury. At Tribal Council, Jerri was eliminated and became the final member of the jury.

Parvati, Russell, and Sandra celebrated with the traditional Day 39 breakfast. Unknowingly paying homage to something Russell once did, Sandra tossed Russell's hat into the camp fire in an attempt to throw him off his game at Tribal Council. The three burned down the camp and set off for the final Tribal Council. At the final Tribal Council, the jury questioned and lectured the final three on their strategic plays, their perceptions among the jury, what they would have done differently during the game, their loyalties, and how they played the game. The members of the jury made their dislike of Russell and his unlikelihood of receiving votes very clear; the other two finalists used this in their attempts to sway the jury. Parvati told the jury that she used Russell and "kept him as her pet" while Sandra said that she lobbied for Russell's removal since day one.

Months later, Sandra was revealed as the season's winner after receiving votes from the five Heroes and Courtney, while Parvati placed second with Coach, Danielle, and Jerri's votes, and Russell placed third after not receiving any votes. The castaways discuss the season with host, Jeff Probst.