Air Taxes - International and domestic departure taxes are included in your pre-purchased air tickets but note that there is an additional Domestic Service Tax of VUV 200 per person per sector which must be paid in cash when you depart from most domestic airports

Banking - ANZ and Westpac have 24hr ATMs at the branches in town.

Banking - Money exchange - If you do not have transfers pre-booked you will need to catch a bus or taxi and for this you would require a little local cash. The currency is Vatu (VUV) and works out to about 80 Vatu per AUD. There is a National Bank of Vanuatu money exchange at the Vila airport and the resorts will exchange money but the best place to go is Goodies downtown.

Bars & Nightlife - Don't expect any wild nightlife in Port Vila, but if you would like to have a few drinks and a bit of a boogie perhaps head to The Office Pub or the Waterfront Restaurant. Trader Vic's is a popular local nightclub. For novelty value, start the night with a "shell"! That's a drink of Kava made from the root of a plant similar to the pepper tree and used for centuries throughout the Pacific, but you can't get it in regular bars as its sold  at a kava bar, locally known as Nakamals and your accommodation will be happy to recommend their personal choice. Note that Kava is not an alcoholic drink - it is an intoxicant, the only legal narcotic in world. Oh and we nearly forgot - it tastes awful, so skull it and move on.

Melanesian Nights are held regularly at most major resorts and hotels which include kastom dancing, kava drinking, local string bands and traditional food.

Buses - Mini buses operate frequently around Port Vila - just look at the number plate on minivans a "B" for bus or on a car, a "T" for taxi!  Mini buses offer a frequent though don't run to specified routes or timetables - simply flag down one heading in the general direction you wish to go and they will, in a roundabout way, deliver you to that location! The fare is VT100 a trip for within the town limits and 200vt for areas outside of the town. Taxis are plentiful. For longer journeys it pays to negotiate the price before starting your journey. 

Car & Scooter Hire - Car hire is available in Port Villa and Luganville and scooters only in Vila. Rental cars are generally small and due to the punishing coral roads, vary in condition.  People tend to drive very slowly so you are not likely to have any problems. Australian driver's licenses are acceptable.  To drive a car in Vanuatu you must be 23 years and over and have held a valid driver's license for one year. The minimum age to rent a scooter is 17 years. Vehicles drive on the right hand side of the road and once out of built up areas the roads can be very rough and impassable, especially during the wet season.

Climate - one of the best reasons for visiting Vanuatu is the reliable warm tropical climate.  The maximum temperatures throughout the year range from 25º to 32º.  November through to March can be hot and humid with periods of heavy rain. Water temperatures never drop below 25º.

Comunications - Most hotels have direct dialling facilities. Check with the operator for long distance and international charges, which may also be found in the telephone directory. Please note that the international country IDD code for Fiji is 678. There are no area codes so when dialling any part of Vanuatu from overseas the procedure would be: access code (678) plus the subscriber number.

Internet Communication

Cruising - An exciting way to see the "real Vanuatu" and visit those places that you would otherwise not be able to see, why not cruise aboard Coral Princess. Discover for yourself the pristine, isolated beaches and untouched paradises that make up this archipelago. And if all that is too much, then sit back and cruise the harbour in port Vila at sunset with a glass of French wine in hand!

Dress - The locals are modest and it is inappropriate to go to town in brief clothes. Around the resort togs and shorts are always the go. When the cruise ship comes in the locals tend to keep a low profile except for taxi and bus drivers. So to enjoy the usual friendliness go to town when the cruise ship is not in port.

Duty Free - Fung Kuey is the best priced duty free shop for alcohol. There are also good fake designer shops around and some dodgy fake designer shops. These things you'll discover for yourself. You can buy Tusker beer direct from the brewery and you can buy Vanuatu organic beef in packs to bring home as long as you arrange it in advance. The Centrepoint supermarket downtown can help with this.

Eating - "How many? Fourty or more - you've got to be kidding!" That's what one client said to us when we told them just how many restaurants there were around Port Vila!  Many serve amazing dishes as over the years, cuisines have been influenced by tradition as well as French and other nationalities and the variety is simply astounding. Million dollar views will have you dining out again and again, and for seafood lovers this is heaven as you just won't sample fresher lobsters and fish than here! On the outer islands, restaurants outside resorts are very few.

We recommend you try succulent Santo Beef; the local Poulet fish and Teoma prawns or be daring and sample coconut crab; flying fox or escargots (snails). ‘Laplap' is favoured by Ni-Vanuatu, made from pounded yam or taro roots with pork or tinned bully beef added, wrapped in taro leaves that are then soaked in a coconut water mix before being steamed in an underground oven.

For self caterers the produce markets and supermarkets in Port Vila like Bon Marche stock a wide range of local and imported foodstuffs and you will find most larger villages will have general supplies though choices will be limited.

There is plenty of roadside café dining in Port Vila which is the remains of the French influence, and many now feature the delicious Tanna coffee. On the harbour, at the Nambawan Café you can sit with the locals reading their morning newspapers, and watch the boats pass by. Café Deli, in the main street of Port Vila has an incredible range of freshly prepared homemade and gourmet foods.

Electricity  - 220-240 volts AC  at 50 cycles.  Australian and New Zealand plugs are used.

Fishing - arguably one of the worlds best kept fishing secrets, Vanuatu is a year-round anglers destination with marlin abounding for the game fishers and sports anglers likely to catch Wahoo, Mahi Mahi and Giant Trevally.

Footwear - High heels aren't a good idea. For swimming you will need a pair of reef shoes as there may be nasties in the sand. Remember that you might be busting to get into the water so perhaps being prepared ahead of time is a good thing.

Health  - We recommend travel insurance and see a doctor prior to travel for anti-malaria precautions if traveling to the outer islands.  Hospital facilities exist in Port Vila and Santo.  Urban water supply is safe to drink, however when on holiday we recommend bottled water and care if consuming market purchased goods.  There are chemists, but bring your favorite antibacterial cream and some band aids as these can be expensive. If you get a coral cut, be sure to promptly avoid infection that could spoil your holiday, by applying cream on it immediately as in the tropics wounds can deteriorate.

Language & Culture - there are over one hundred and fifteen different languages and cultures that go to make up Vanuatu - one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse countries in the world. The official languages are Bislama, a Pidgin English, English and French. The Ni-Vanuatu - local Vanuatu peoples - are gentle, un-aggressive and dislike bargaining or tipping.  Patience is rewarded with knowledge and service.

Shopping - Shops are usually open Mon-Fri 7:30am-11:30pm; 1:30pm-4:30pm, Sat 7:30am-noon. Most are closed Sunday. Pick up a free city map from your hotel before you set out and start at the wonderfully colourful outdoor markets by the harbour for fresh food and souvenirs. There are also some excellent duty free stores offering a wide range of goods in Port Vila, the only duty-free port in the country. Shop after shop in this busy hub presents a vibrant blend of arts, crafts and international articles from French perfume to carvings to alcohol to brightly coloured island-style clothing and a whole range in between. For traditional crafts, fine weaving remains supreme, mostly produced by women, baskets and mats made from pandanus leaves and wild hibiscus stalks are customary tourist souvenirs. Carvings, shell and bead necklaces, headdresses, ankle rattles, carved bowls, masks and tree fern figures are also well-known.

Sleeping - Vanuatu does get busy so it is advisable to have your accommodation booked before arrival and  hotels can be booked on www.norfolkpacificholidays.com/. On Efate the range of accommodation goes from top end resorts boasting ultimate privacy to budget, locally owned bungalows. Some resorts cater for adults only offering a romantic and peaceful atmosphere, whilst others are extremely family friendly offering facilities such as kids' clubs. There are also a variety of self catering styles with two or more bedrooms. On the outer islands the choices range from very basic ‘live with the village' style guesthouses and pandanus-leaf thatched bungalows to a few resort properties on Santo and Tanna. The Vanuatu Tourism website has a wonderful section devoted to accommodation searchable either by category or island.

Sporting & Leisure Activities  - play a round of golf, saddle up and take a horse ride through tropical rainforest and coconut plantations or along the beach. If you still have the energy there is always tennis, aerobics, bush walking, mountain biking, 360º spins aboard Vanuatu Jet or try your hand at the casino located at Le Meridien Port Vila Resort, Spa & Casino. There are loads of fun-filled day tours to keep you occupied ( see page 6 for details). And for the shopaholics, Port Vila is Vanuatu's only duty free port. French perfume, champagnes and patisseries can be found alongside souvenir outlets and duty free stores and the colorful local markets.

Swimwear - Bring a mask and snorkel. They are expensive to hire and come in two sorts:- crappy ones that don't fit and even crappier ones that don't fit. The cost of hiring them once is about as much as you'll pay for a cheap set in Australia. Don't be thinking that you won't need a mask because you can forget all your ideas of snorkeling that you may have done in other countries.  Few places compare to the underwater world you can wade into from some of the beaches in Vanuatu. Fins are also a good idea. So for snorkeling take dive boots, reef shoes, fins, snorkel, gloves and mask.

Taxi - On Efate, taxis are plentiful and relatively inexpensive, although can be pretty run down. Once out of the capital a taxi is usually a 4WD truck. Charges can vary on a variety of factors including road conditions and distance so it is best to come to an agreement on the fare before setting out.

Time - add one hour to Australian Eastern Standard time and allow some for what is known as Island time which means that nobody is in hurry. It is not unusual to wait 30mins or more for a shop assistant to find you a cardboard box to pack your duty free treasure in so be patient and allow plenty of time. Port Vila enjoys a daily siesta. This means that the shops are closed in the middle of the day.
Tipping - Not necessary as it goes against the local traditions.