An islander itinerary, Vanuatu

Meeting tribes and land diving, snorkelling, and giving is how I can put Vanuatu into words, and I was fortunate enough to sail around 11 of its islands and aid 5 tribes. Honestly, I didn’t know Vanuatu existed until we sailed from New Caledonia to the untouched islands. It’s truly a blessing to see the places off of the beaten track for tourists, this felt so far off of the beaten track which felt like more of a dirt road in the middle of mangroves surrounded by indigenous tribes, and this to me is what travelling is about. There are only around 50,000 tourists heading there per year, making Vanuatu one of the world’s least visited countries, and I’m going to tell you why this should be a country on your bucket list.

Tribal History and Mt Yasur Active Volcano in Tanna

A friend of mine Nipper and I went on a day trip believing we would hike a volcano and head home… this is far from what happened. A guide took us through a small village of treehouses into a clearing, he left us there and we had no idea what was to come. I got the fright of my life when 15 tribal men dressed in their gear and painted black leapt out of the woods carrying machetes and mallets pretending to hit us. After about 5 minutes of sheer panic, we realised we were part of the story they were about to tell within their tribal language. This show was to tell us what life was like for these cannibal tribes not so long ago (50 years prior), they showed us how they would chop coconuts and slay pigs, along with how to make a fire within 10 seconds and how respect was shown within their culture. Once I got over how terrifying the ordeal was, they began singing us a song welcoming us to their island of Tanna. I cannot quite put into words how we felt at that time but it’s an experience I will never forget, and I hope these photos below show in some way the privilege we had and the proudness the tribes have.

After visiting the tribe, we hiked to the active volcano Mount Yasur, instantly we could smell the magma and when we were heading in the truck there were small pockets of heat rising. We even had to move the anchor of the boat early as so much ash was raining down onto it. Aside from inhaling pure sulfur dioxide, the view was spectacular. We saw bubbling lava 3 times while the sunset and it was a beautiful experience. The only other time I have seen an active volcano was in Guatemala at Acatenango, they were both beautiful, but this was a much shorter walk rather than the three-day trek to Acatenango. Just remember to wear some sort of scarf or buff around your mouth and nose as the smell and smoke are very intense.

Land diving in Pentecost

The highlight of Vanuatu has to be the Nanghol land diving in Pentecost. It derives from a tale of a woman who had to marry, she didn’t want to so instead she tied her ankles with vines and jumps from a tree, knowing she would be safe. The husband followed her but did not tie his ankles so didn’t survive. It has now become a tradition to represent bravery. Women used to jump but the skirts went over their heads so now only men can complete the jump. Young boys from the tribes have to jump as they are small so can climb to the top, it is known as a charm and it shows to the rest of the villagers their bravery (one young boy didn’t jump and safe to say he got heckled by people from down below) and a few fell on their heads in soil. Our guide’s son was 8 when he first jumped as part of the charm. He jumps a few times a year but as they get taller they stop.

We arrived on a beach with a welcome sign surrounded by many villagers relaxing under trees in the hot sun, chatting with their families and drinking coconuts. We were greeted with salu salu necklaces made from leaves. We were told 10 years ago there were no trees to see as they had all been blown away from the cyclones, but they grew back signifying a consistent hope. After talking with locals and experiencing their island life for around an hour, we were walked up to the tower by women in beautiful hula skirts. As the men who were jumping also walked, women had to turn their backs on them as if the men were to look at or speak to women it would bring bad luck to their jump and they would not receive the charm of blessing.

You can only watch the land diving between April and May, and the jumps ended for a while due to the cyclones. The reason for it being only these two months is to bless the yam harvest season and the bravery of the men who take part in the jump. The tower takes one week to build and you can see it more in detail in Carl Pilkington’s Idiot Abroad. Years later, this is where bungee jumping was invented in Western society. Looking above the tower created by vines and sticks was indescribable, this whole country is indescribable. You’ve been transported to another world where societal standards do not exist, there’s no such thing as boredom or lack of a dopamine hit. This country is like no other I have ever visited and it will remain in my heart forever.

Million dollar point, Espiritu Santo

For almost every place we stopped off at, I got a chance to see some amazing marine life while snorkelling. A friend onboard has a dive master meaning he could take us to see insane coral, even sharks and manatees that are pictured below. The place to snorkel or dive that stood out the most for me was Million Dollar Point in Espiritu Santo. This is an old WW2 site, so the coral sat on old ships and aeroplanes, meaning everywhere you turned you saw something new and interesting. It was very easy to access by boat or is only a 10-minute drive from Luganville and there was a dive centre just beside the site on the beach. I learnt that once the war had ended, the U.S. sunk hundreds of tons of military equipment worth a million dollars (hence the name) to prevent the British from taking it for free. One ship I snorkelled around was troopship SS President Coolidge, it was very interesting to see the schools of fish and coral resting on these pieces of history in a tropical paradise.

Efate

Efate is a volcanic island in Vanuatu, and I was able to have a day of relaxing here while the boat was at anchor. On a perfect Sunday with 35-degree heat, some of us went free diving, others paddle-boarded around the caves and some simply relaxed on the deck. I did a bit of everything, waking up around noon after a much-needed sleep catch-up, I went outside for some yoga, vitamin D and reading. After a few hours of sunbathing, I took out the paddleboard, searched for the beach with the whitest sand and headed that way. You can do this on any island in Vanuatu, this is where we happened to be. I hadn’t gone into the mainland only the coastline so don’t have anything to report on that, I just know there were thick mangroves from the beaches and you would need a machete and 3 cans of bug spray to cut through those mangroves.

I didn’t get the chance to go to these places but if you have more days to explore Vanuatu I would head to Ambrym which is known for locals performing a rom dance to you and you have the opportunity to buy amazing hand-carved masks and sculptures. A guy on my boat even bought me back a perfectly carved dolphin after telling him they were my spirit animal, and it’s also good to buy these things as it’s giving back to the local community. On the topic of giving back, if you are coming to this country I would recommend buying some sort of aid to help the locals. My crew got an assortment of things for the tribes such as tar pooling, fishing gear and ropes, clothing, toys, snorkels, food and colouring pens. The locals were very appreciative and since there is no way of telling when the next cyclone could hit it felt good giving back to communities. The capital of Vanuatu is Port Vila, we anchored here for a night and a few of us wakeboarded as the sun set near the harbour, this was my first time wakeboarding and it’s safe to say I need a lot more practice. After this, we headed into a bar for some drinks looking out over the water. I didn’t go any further into the town but the chef on board did to get provisions, only there weren’t any provisions just the occasional bananas and yams. There is a lack of food in the shops I believe because it is the wrong season and people have stocked up in case of natural disaster. The chef also mentioned he didn’t feel so safe wandering around Port Vila and when he tried to access the dock a group of men tried demanding him to pay to get back onto the boat. After my few years of travelling, I have learnt that capital cities are often the most dangerous so just be cautious. This of course isn’t my first-hand account and I perceive Vanuatu to be full of smiling, hospitable and kind people.

I hope this was an insight into the beauty of Vanuatu and the vast range of things to see and do here, I will next write more detail on Vanuatu’s government, communities and island life.