Day Trippers

Throw a dart onto Efate and there’s a chance you’ll hit a pristine shoreline, home to thousands of striped reef fish and reclusive turtles. But there’s so much more to do here than explore the magical ocean world (and underwater Post Office!). Why not take in the vistas from the clouds during a mountake hike or zipline, or for the young and young at heart, swing from ropes into the swimming holes dotted across the island?

KAYAKS AND BLUE HOLES

Join Vanuatu Ecotours, who offer community-based activities that get the muscles pumping and the smiles beaming. These tours are headed by local Port Vila tour guides who adore sharing their love of their home with visitors. Climb into a kayak for a family-friendly adventure and skim along the surface of a snaking blue river that twists through the jungle, or paddle above vivid coral for a bird’s eye view of quicksilver fish.

Alternatively, join Ecotours’ mountain bike trips and navigate lesser explored trails on your premium Italian-made bike. If you’d rather walk than ride, join a bush walking expedition and listen to the guides as they explain local ‘kastom’ and indigenous flora and fauna.

Later on take an easy half hour drive to Vanuatu’s Blue Lagoon; a luminous swimming hole tucked away on the south-east shoreline of Efate. You can hire a car, flag a local ‘B’ bus or join a tour group to get here. For a nominal entrance fee, this is a full afternoon’s worth of entertainment in waters so blue-green they have to be seen to be believed.

The Blue Lagoon pool is positioned next to the sea and is salty at high tide and freshwater at low. Its surprisingly large perimeter means there’s plenty of space for all, with crystal clear water revealing the twisted roots and submerged rocks ringing its boundary. Challenge the family to the highest swing off the Tarzan ropes tethered to trees, or simply float in aqua bliss, gazing at the blue sky patterned with the leaves of overhanging branches, and let the stresses of everyday life wash away.

EAT WHERE THE LOCALS EAT

Try the tasty brekkie burrito at Nambawan cafe before strolling along Port Vila’s waterfront to explore the city’s iconic local market. Jewelled fruit and vegetables are piled high on tables serviced by Ni-Vanuatu villagers, who emanate happiness, obligingly offering the names of the more exotic fare.

Ornamental flowers scent the air, while handmade goods offer the perfect souvenirs for loved ones at home. Snack on cassava and banana chips, or try a skewer of roasted Nangai nuts that are surprisingly sweet and tender. Take cash to taste the goods and, if you’re renting self-catering accommodation, stock up on fresh groceries.

POST A LETTER — UNDERWATER!

Head to Hideaway Island, just off the Efate coastline in Mele Bay. Only 100 metres offshore from the mainland, the island’s name is a bit of a misnomer but there is a lovely feeling of seclusion on its shores. A free ferry goes from the mainland regularly, however there is a nominal visitation fee for daytrippers to Hideaway Island. As a marine sanctuary, there is no fishing on the island, which explains the extraordinary numbers of marine life present. Enjoy lunch with a view, or snorkel right off the beach in front of the restaurant. For an unforgettable trip to the Post Office, send a waterproof postcard from the world’s only underwater post box, where a special flag is raised on a float above the site when there are postal workers in the water. Keen divers can join one of three 90-minute scuba diving tours which run daily, visiting a few of the 20 different dive sites nearby.