| Espiritu
Santo, gateway to the northern islands
Espiritu
Santo, commonly referred to as Santo, is Vanuatu's largest
island and the second most developed after Efate. It's serviced
by twice daily flights from Port Vila and is a stepping
stone to the Banks and Torres islands in the north. Santo
is a relatively easy option for experiencing Vanuatu's outer
islands with some good attractions:
- Real primary forest, big mountains and numerous rivers.
- Excellent bird
watching.
- Excellent diving including the famous S.S. Coolidge.
- Crystal clear spring fed freshwater 'blue holes'.
- Idyllic white sand beaches.
Santo
has Vanuatu's highest peak, Mt Tabwemasana at 1879m above
sea level, and the longest river, the Jordan.
Copra
and beef, established along the south and east of the island
power the economy. Santo's main and only town is Luganville
in the south. It's basically a one street town but there
are banks, trade stores, internet, a hospital and most other
essential services. A more detailed introduction to Santo
is available online at Santo
Today.
Santo
is a good base for exploring the northern and central islands
of Vanuatu. Ambae and Malekula are close at hand with frequent
and inexpensive transport links. Maewo and Pentecost are
only a little further away. From Santo it is much cheaper
to travel to the Banks and Torres islands. Linking
Santo and Port Vila there are direct flights and and 'milk
run' routes that allow you to stopover on islands in-between.
Bungalows
Most of Santo's island bungalows are along the
east coast with road transport access from Luganville:
Lonnoc
Beach Bungalows, Hog Harbour 
Loru
Bungalow, Loru
Rainforest Protected Area 
The
Little Paradise of Port Olry, Port Olry 
Vatthe
Lodge, Vatthe
Conservation Area, Big Bay 
Tourism
on the west coast and in the south is a new thing. It's
good to see a new bungalow at Kerepua, handy for people
wanting to climb Mount Tabwemasana.
Vetape
Guest House, Tangoa 
Tasiriki
Tuetueni Guesthouse, West Santo 
Kerepua
Bungalow, West Santo 
See
our new walking Santo page for
some unknown adventures.
Transport
to and from Santo
Pekoa is an international airport. They no longer
have flights from the Solomon Islands but now you can fly
Air
Vanuatu direct to Australia:
Sunday: Brisbane-Santo-Vila
Monday: Vila-Santo-Brisbane
Pekoa
is also a busy domestic hub for the northern islands. See
the Air
Vanuatu domestic site for schedules and fares. Note
that tourists with a return Air Vanuatu ticket are entitled
to a 20% discount.
Luganville
is Vanuatu's second biggest sea port. A comfortable passenger-only
boat between Port Vila and Santo is the Island
Gateway. Another company that ships cargo and passengers
between Vila and Luganville is Compagnie Transport Maritime
Ltd. Their ship MV Havannah is popular but infrequently
visits Vanuatu (about once a month). Boats to other islands
can be found at the Simonsen and Melcoffee wharves. These
are detailed on our many island pages, accessible via our
Vanuatu map.
Transport
around the island
Public transports on Santo come into town in the
morning and return in the afternoon. Don't expect to find
public transport on Sundays although one could wait and
hitch a ride.
There
are two places to find public transport in Santo. If you're
heading up the east coast then go to the Unity Store and
Pacific petrol station (formerly Shell). Buses and market
trucks leave from 1500H. There are always people waiting
here and the pump attendants know all the drivers. Minibuses
are preferable for comfort and in case of rain.
For
south Santo you can wait on the roadside across from the
Luganville market house, in front of the clump of bamboo.
It doesn't look like a bus stop but you can find people
waiting here from about 1400h or 1500h. If there are some
women from South Santo in the market house, they will know
which trucks are in town.
| Transport
from Luganville to |
Shared
(Vatu) |
Charter
(Vatu) |
Hours |
| East
and Big Bay |
|
|
|
| Kole
(Loru) |
400 |
4000 |
1 |
| Hog
Harbour (Lonnoc) |
500
|
5000 |
1.5 |
| Port
Olry |
500 |
5000 |
1.5 |
| Sara |
500 |
5000 |
1.5 |
| Matantas
(Vatthe)* |
No
regular trips |
6000? |
2 |
| South
and west |
|
|
|
| Tangoa |
500 |
2500 |
0.75 |
| Ipayato* |
1000 |
9,000 |
2 |
| Tasiriki* |
1000+ |
10,000 |
2.5 |
*To
go to Ipayato and Tasiriki a strong pickup is required,
preferably four-wheel drive. The road is soft in places
and there are rivers to cross. Also note the road down to
Matantas is steep and typically in poor condition.
The
costs and timings in the above table are only approximate.
We have not travelled to all of these places lately.
For
groups, chartered trips can be economical and are much more
convenient. You will see trucks and buses driving all about
town but will not know which ones are available. The front
desk where you are staying in Luganville might be able to
find a driver. Good drivers for south Santo are Loic (boy
blong Sima), Silas
(man Hog Harbour) and Peter Terry (man Malekula). Taxi driver's
know the transporters and can take you to meet them.
Last
updated: February 2008 by Stephen
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