ESPIRITU
SANTO
Santo
PENTECOST
AMBRYM
MALAKULA
EFATE
Port Vila
ERROMANGO
TANNA
Haven of diversity
The waters surrounding these beautiful
islands provide some of the most
spectacular and varied underwater
exploration in the South Pacific and
experienced divers come from all over the
world to swim amongst the WWII wrecks
which lie scattered over the seabed. A
tropical paradise, only three and a half
hours from Sydney, Vanuatu means 'the
land that has always existed'. It is made
up of 83 islands formed in a Y-shaped
archipelago which stretches over some
1,176 kilometres of the Pacific Ocean, half
way between Australia and Hawaii.
Capital and major centres
Although Captain James Cook explored
and chartered the Vanuatu archipelago in
1774, which he named the New Hebrides,
he ignored the island of Efate and thus
missed discovering one of the world's
most beautiful deep water harbours.
Today Efate offers safe anchorage to those
who visit the capital, Port Vila, by boat,
and there is Bauerfield, the international
232 www.paradisesonline.com
plane terminal, which is 10 minutes from
the capital. Thus Port Vila is the gateway
to Vanuatu and offers visitors a wealth of
tourist activities. Free of skyscrapers, the
town is set within a magnificent natural
harbour, hibiscus dot the surrounding hills
and the air is redolent with the scent of
frangipani. A boat trip around Efate and
the other island retreats reveals a place
untouched by modern civilisation.
Tanna Island has almost 28,200 people
who inhabit 92 villages in a 565-square
kilometre area. The islanders have
remained relatively unchanged by
a century-and-a-half of explorers,
missionaries and traders. Pentecost Island
is a beautiful unspoilt place, home to a
spectacular ritual, the Pentecost Jump.
Espiritu Santo is the largest and oldest
island with the largest population and the
greatest number of natural sights. The
movie South Pacific was inspired by this
island and Bali Hai is named after Ambae,
located to the east of Espiritu Santo.
