Index of Vanuatu Pictures

[Pictures] [Travelogue] [Useful bits] [Conclusions]

	JPEG 800x600x16M [90 KB] Entering Port Vila's downtown on a sleepy Sunday afternoon, the feeling is that of a typical south pacific island capital. A difficult compromise between the local traditions and the dominant influence of western business and tourism.
	JPEG 1600x271x16M [74 KB] After a tropical downpour, the view over the bay is not quite enough to wake up the jet-lagged tourist.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [62 KB] Nothing like getting away from Port Vila's package vacationers, and trying some adventure on the other islands. The national air carrier is perhaps basic, but reliable.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [35 KB] My first view of Espiritu Santo from the air, through the scratched glass of the airplane window. Coral reefs, and deep blue: exactly what I was looking for.
	JPEG 1200x409x16M [97 KB] Most of the dives on Santo start from here: where the blue begins, the wreck of the Coolidge rests. The american ship is the largest wreck accessible to recreational scuba divers. And to freedivers, like this writer.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [103 KB] Million Dollar Point deserves its name. In the shallow water, the departing US military dumped incredible amounts of supplies at the end of World War II. From vintage coke bottles, to jeeps and whole trucks: the occasional turtle goes well unnoticed.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [94 KB] Blue holes are one of the attractions on Santo. This one at Malevulu is crystal clear and permits joyful splashing as well as Tarzan-like tree-diving.
	JPEG 1600x318x16M [113 KB] On a bay in North-Eastern Santo, Elephant Island shapes the horizon over the canopy of the rainforest.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [83 KB] Another attraction, and one that you cannot avoid even if you try to, is Champagne beach. Indeed, a sparkling beauty.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [103 KB] Shade from sunshine or umbrella against rain: you choose.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [178 KB] Rainforest around Hog Harbour. Within a short distance, the vegetation changes from grass to fruit trees to a thick curtain of trees which soon becomes basically impassable. Just sit down and let the animals get used to you: the sound of the forest is incredible.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [194 KB] No crowds at the Lonnoc Beach bungalows. In fact, I was the only guest. And didn't stay long either: after two days during which the "staff" forgot about me, I had to find a way out in search for food.
	JPEG 1200x481x16M [59 KB] The Santo airport is quite advanced for a secondary south Pacific island. Flight all booked out? No worries, just sit down and hope. It worked for me.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [112 KB] With a few days left and little diving except the repetitive Coolidge, I decided to follow the advice of an aussie expat and tried my luck at Hideaway island. I did not regret it. Drop offs and corals in the water, enough people around on land without being a crowd.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [104 KB] The ferry shuttles visitors to the island during day, and luckily takes them away in the evening.
	JPEG 1600x288x16M [87 KB] Hideaway Island coastline. Little beyond the moored boats, the bottom drops to 50 m and more. And closer to shore, the one and only (for now) underwater post office.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [81 KB] Early morning, waiting for another dive.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [111 KB] You can't have a south pacific island with any decent number of tourists, without traditional dances. Whether you fancy warrior themes...
	JPEG 800x600x16M [114 KB] ... or legends and story-telling...
	JPEG 800x600x16M [101 KB] ... it all ends inevitably with the one thing that unites all people on this planet: food.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [55 KB] It's been a strange, intense, amazing holiday on Vanuatu.
	JPEG 800x600x16M [52 KB] As always, the time comes to leave.

[Pictures] [Travelogue] [Useful bits] [Conclusions]

I visited in July 2003. My intention was to visit the northern part of the archipelago, but I soon discovered that this small nation is quite difficult to travel. Reaching Espiritu Santo is quite easy, but north of that flights are less frequent and it becomes almost impossible for an independente traveller with only just two weeks available to travel on. Boat connections are surprisingly scarce too. Unless you want to visit the usual tourist spots (volcano here, "traditional" village there) with the usual organized tours, it is hard to move around. Espiritu Santo is a relatively small island, but most of it is covered by rainforest and road access is very limited. I imagine that with sufficient time on your hands, backpacking and camping in these islands should constitute still a fabulous adventure away from the world.
In my case, I had to be content with more standard venues but it was still a wonderful experience. My main goal was diving (freediving actually, i.e. without scuba gear), and after trying the ever boring Coolidge and a few other spots on Santo, I was beginning to be tired and disappointed. Tracing my way back, I discovered that on Mele island, a stone's throw from Port Vila, there's a dozen dive spots and all the depth I wanted.

[Pictures] [Travelogue] [Useful bits] [Conclusions]

The unit of currency in Vanuatu is the Vatu (1 US dollar was about 115 Vatu in July 2003). Here is a site where you can find an updated table of currency conversions. Alternate site .
Here is a few maps, collected from the excellent PCL map collection:

General location (JPG 242x215x24 [23 KB]).
Detailed map (JPG 1027x1288x24 [162 KB])

Here are some useful links:

Discover the Islands of Vanuatu Official site of the Vanuatu Tourist Office. Well designed and reasonably fast, mostly oriented towards Australian and New Zealand visitors.
Vanuatu Maps and Island Information As the name says. Maps and information for each main island.
Air Vanuatu The web site of the national air carrier.
Hideaway Island Resort and Marine Sanctuary The web site of this small island resort. Overcrowded during the day with short-time visitors, but idyllic the rest of the time and quite decent diving.
Aquamarine, Ltd., Scuba Diving, Santo, Vanuatu, South Pacific The site of one of the main dive operations on Santo. The main fare is diving the Coolidge, and I was frankly fed up after three days with only that on the menu. I was also shocked by the price they charged me for a lost weight belt. Otherwise, reasonably friendly.
The CIA World Factbook (scary as it may sound) is a useful summary of information on the politics and economy of world nations.

[Pictures] [Travelogue] [Useful bits] [Conclusions]

My special thanks to the folks at the dive shop on Hideaway (Mele) island, who regarded with suspicion this strange freediver at the beginning but soon turned to kindness and patience. Thank you Mike and Maggie for the dolphins and the whales and the weights!
A special hallo to the Mansfields from Sydney, who kept trying to take pictures of corals, bat fish and freedivers.
This page was created using a photo camera, a scanner, some freeware, and lots of patience. Click here for a list of details and acknowledgments.

Created by A. Richichi, last modified: 01-May-04. Here is my homepage. If you want to know more details (such as places to stay, to eat, to avoid, and other travel tips) send me an e-mail, but first make sure to remove nospam_ from the address. If you liked this page, wouldn't you send me a postcard from the place where you live? Thanks!