Should we go in the wet season?

We are planning a trip in January and were thinking about Vanuatu. I'm a bit worried about the weather at this time of year, being the wet season. Anyone been at this time of year? How much will it restrict what we do?

We went in the wet season - it was a bit hot and humid in some places (and I like hot, humid places), but otherwise fine. I don't remember much rain and it certainly didn't stop us doing anything. The roads were so bad in some places (like Tanna) that I can imagine rain being an issue, but there were plans to redo these roads a few years back... not sure if it happened or not.

Wet season in most tropical islands means little - it is hot, humid and can rain at any time year-round. I was in Vanuatu till late Dec and it was perfectly fine, too.

Four things:

1. Take plenty of Aerogard
2. Take shoes that can handle mud, maybe some of those chunky sandals
3. Plan to do things in the morning because the rain is mostly in the afternoon and most mornings are sunny
4. They sell umbrellas in Chinatown ( one block uphill from the main street ) for 500

Unless the above posters were there in the last year, they probably experienced a drier than usual wet season. Last summer (due to La Nina weather in the Pacific) was a much wetter summer than several years previously, and this coming summer is predicted to be wet, but not as bad as the last one.
However, post #3 is pretty accurate about tropical rain - heavy afternoon storms, but not wet all day.

There is also a risk of being hit by a cyclone. Although the resorts where we stayed were well prepared with cyclone shelter.

Agree with Ozzie, we are now in a La Nina cycle which means more wet weather and cyclones.

This question comes up a lot from first-time visitors to the SP. Most seasoned SP visitors don't hesitate to go anytime of the year.

If this is your once-in-a-lifetime trip to a SP paradise you might want to try and do it in a May-November time frame. Then you avoid the possibility of having a cyclone ruin your trip.

In seven trips to the SP between Nov-April I've only had to change plans due to a cyclone one time. I've been in tropical depressions twice in the SP on those trips.

That being said, if January is the time you can go, and Vanuatu is where you want to go... I'd say go for it.

I was there last year in February - there was a very slow-moving cyclone that drenched the islands for a few days. But for the rest of our stay the weather was great - you take your chances at that time of the year.

# 7

Soon I will be in SP. It is going to become most+ Vanuatu and +less Fiji. I am going to take chance. Hopefully luck will be with me :)