Vanuatu travel guide and things to do: 20 reasons to visit

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2. STAY: ERATAP RESORT

Vanuatu is not a country of mega-resorts or worldwide chains, but one of character-filled boutique hotels, often set in secluded locales. One of the best is Eratap, a beach resort tucked away about 40 minutes outside of Port Vila. With only 12 luxurious villas facing on to Teouma Bay, the staff are friendly, the service is personal, and it's often easy to imagine that you have the entire place to yourself. Settling back with a cocktail to watch the sunset here is about the best thing you can do.

See eratap.com

3. BE STUNNED BY MOUNT YASUR VOLCANO

The world's most accessible live volcano, Mount Yasur, is constantly bubbling away on Tanna Island, a 45-minute flight from Port Vila. Just how accessible is it? You can drive almost to the top – it's about a 10-minute walk from the car parking area to the lip of a constantly erupting volcano. The experience up the top is one you won't readily forget, as molten rock glows red when it's thrown into the air, and the boom and hiss of escaping gases causes one of the best natural shows on the planet.

See whitegrassvanuatu.com.vu

4. DO: MARKET SHOPPING

There are two ways to do markets in Port Vila. You could head up to the new handicraft market, which is a tourist-focused place selling paintings, carvings, and a few slightly less authentic items like tacky T-shirts. Or you could wander down Port Vila's main street to the fresh produce markets for a truly local experience. Dine on freshly grilled fish and rice, wander through the fruit and vegetable stands, or check out the live produce – you can buy packs of five live crabs, all strung together, or "chicken in a box". It's a live chicken. In a box.

See vanuatuhandicraftmarket.com

5. EAT: PALM COVE BEACH BAR AND GRILL

The South Pacific isn't exactly known for its world-class cuisine, but Vanuatu has some of the best food in the region. At Palm Cove Beach Bar, a beautiful waterfront eatery that has recently opened in Port Vila, you can dine on locally caught lobsters and fish, as well as Vanuatu beef, which is of surprisingly high quality for an area you'd more readily associate with seafood. Kiwi owner Kevin Bradshaw started Palm Cove after losing everything he owned in Cyclone Pam – the restaurant is a testament to locals' desire to get Vanuatu back on its feet.

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6. DRINK: KAVA

Warning: this is serious stuff. You might have tried kava – the mildly sedative brew made from the ground root of the piper methysticum plant – in Fiji and thought to yourself, "meh". What's the point? But kava in Vanuatu is a different beast, and one that's not treated with quite as much reverence as it is elsewhere. You don't have to go to special ceremony to try it – you can go to a kava bar. Just look for the bare light globes outside certain buildings that indicate there's a kava bar inside. It's a great local experience, but go easy. This kava is strong.

See thekavaemporium.com

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7. DO: WRECK DIVING

For lovers of the underwater world, this is heaven. Not only are the natural environments some of the best around, but Vanuatu offers some very easily accessible wreck diving – there are sunken ferries, yachts, cargo ships, sea planes, and perhaps the most famous site of them all, the wreck of the SS President Coolidge off the island of Espiritu Santo. The Coolidge is more than 200 metres long, and it's possible to do more than 20 different dives on the site.

See santodive.com

8. SEE: THE BLUE HOLES OF ESPIRITU SANTO

There are you in a kayak, paddling through one of Espiritu Santo's pristine waterways, when the riverbed just drops away beneath you, and you're suddenly in a 30-metres-deep "blue hole". These geological phenomena can be found throughout the island: large, karst-formation springs, anywhere from three to 30 metres deep, filled with stunningly blue water. People leap from overhanging trees into the deep pools, while others go snorkelling to properly marvel at the unique underwater landscapes.

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9. DO: BUGGY FUN RENTAL

Like to combine your cultural tourism with a touch of adrenalin? Then try Buggy Fun Rental, which offers half-day, self-drive buggy tours through some great little villages near Port Vila that you'd never ordinarily visit. It also takes you through some very muddy fields and patches of jungle that you'd never ordinarily visit. The tour is one half cultural enlightenment, one half mud-soaked excitement. It's a good idea to wear very old clothes for this one, particularly if it's been raining recently.

See buggyfunrental.com.vu

10. SEE: TANNA ISLAND CARGO CULTS

Tanna Island is home to several "cargo cults" – groups of people, often whole villages, who worship westerners who are thought to have visited during World War II and promised to return with supplies, or cargo. They've never come back, but that hasn't stopped the devotion of some to this quasi-religion that has slowly melded with elements of Catholicism. Some villages follow "John Frum", a maybe-mythical white man in a long coat. Others worship Prince Philip as a god. Seriously. All can be visited by tourists.

See whitegrassvanuatu.com.vu

11. STAY: BREAKAS BEACH RESORT

You don't have to pay thousands of dollars a night for beachfront accommodation. Breakas Beach Resort, which recently reopened after being damaged by Cyclone Pam, is an adults-only, mid-priced way to spend your holiday by the sand. The resort offers beachfront or garden-view bungalows, each built in a simple, traditional style with ceiling fans, mosquito nets and an open-air bathroom. There's also a pool, a restaurant, and enough deck chairs to keep all your guests occupied.

See breakas.com

12. DO: OASIS SPA

In case lying on a beach all day sipping cocktails wasn't relaxation enough, it's also possible to book in for a massage at the Oasis Spa at Warwick Le Lagon Resort. The beautiful little spa offers everything from regular massages to volcanic ash body scrubs, clay wraps, pedicures, and their signature "frangipani mani". Afterwards, relax around the Warwick's pool, which has views over the ocean.

See warwickhotels.com

13. STAY: RATUA PRIVATE ISLAND

Thirty minutes by boat from Espiritu Santo lies Ratua, a boutique, luxury eco lodge in which guests have an entire island to themselves. The resort has 15 Indonesian-style villas, each with private beach access, and there's a limit of 38 guests on the island at any one time, meaning you'll have this stunning, secluded getaway almost to yourself. Activities on the island include horseback rides, mountain-biking, snorkelling, canoeing, and visiting the Sunny Spa.

See ratua.com/en/

14. DO: VANUATU HELICOPTERS

Nothing says "imminent marriage proposal" quite like a helicopter flight to a private island and a bottle of champagne. Prepare for the one-knee treatment if you find yourself on Vanuatu Helicopters' "Love Is In The Air" tour, a 1½-hour experience that takes you and your smitten partner from the harbour at Port Vila up to the top of a mountain on Lelepa Island, site of a series of Survivor and home to some of the best views around. Even without a proposal, this is a beautiful way to spend an afternoon.

See vanuatuhelicopters.com

15. SEE: CULTURAL DIVERSITY

With 83 inhabited islands and more than 1000 spoken languages in a country of only 250,000 citizens, Vanuatu is about as culturally diverse a destination as you could hope to find. Some languages are only spoken in one village, which is why Bislama, a sort of pidgin English, has developed as the common tongue (it's also quite simple to learn). For a snapshot of the country's different cultural practices, head up to the handicraft markets in Port Vila.

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16. DO: SURFING

Though it's overshadowed by neighbouring Fiji and that country's famous Cloudbreak, there's plenty on offer for surfers in Vanuatu, including perfectly shaped reef breaks that you'll find yourself sharing with barely a soul. Some of the most popular spots include Erakor Point, Pango and Breakas on the main island of Efate, and Port Resolution on Tanna Island. All of these spots are as good for watching as they are for participating.

See surftravelcompany.com/SURF_VANUATU.htm

17. DO: SNORKELLING

While it's extremely popular with scuba divers, Vanuatu is also a good place to don a mask and snorkel and observe the underwater world from the surface. At Hideaway Island, a popular snorkelling spot just off the coast of Port Vila, you'll find not only huge schools of reef fish, eels, rays and richly coloured coral, but also an underwater post office box that's actually serviced by Vanuatu Post.

See hideaway.com.vu

18. DO: MERIDIAN CHARTERS CRUISE

Port Vila is a major destination for cruise ships, meaning it's easy to combine a stay here with a cruise through some of the surrounding Pacific Islands. Lines such as P&O, Royal Caribbean and Holland America regularly call through. Another sea-bound option is to take a sunset cruise around the Port Vila area with Meridian Charters. Two-hour cruises include drinks and snacks, and the best views around.

See meridianchartersvanuatu.com/html/

19. EAT: AU FARE RESTAURANT

As a former colony, Vanuatu still retains some of its French culture – the local supermarket chain, Le Bon Marche, sells jars of pate, while at restaurants like Au Fare you'll find many of the wait staff and customers conduct all of their proceedings au francais. Au Fare is a great place to indulge in French cuisine – the chef serves up dishes like house-made parfait and steak frites down by the waterfront in Port Vila.

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20. SEE: NAGHOL LAND-DIVING

Every April and May, local villagers on Pentecost Island erect huge wooden towers, then climb to the top of them and leap off with only two vines tied to their ankles to break their fall. Sound frightening? It gets better: the idea is to fall as close to the ground as possible, meaning if vine lengths are misjudged, injuries ensue. This festival, an appeasement to the gods, a blessing for the soil and a demonstration of manliness and virility, has become something of a staple tourist attraction on Pentecost, despite the fact only very limited numbers of visitors can witness it.

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