Vegetarian food in Vanuatu, and other questions

Hi all! My partner and I are thinking of heading to Vanuatu from Dec 24 - 30. I know this short time will only give us a taste of the country, but we really just want a few days of hiking, snorkelling and relaxing in a basic beach bungalow. I've been to Vanuatu a couple of times before, but only as a stop on the cruises my family went on when I was a kid - obviously barely scratching the surface!

It seems a lot of the bungalows include meals cooked by the families who own the land, which is awesome, but as a vegetarian (lacto-ovo, strictly no meat, including seafood) I'm concerned that this will be problematic. I don't mind eating fairly plainly, but I really don't want to be rude or be a pain for people who are cooking for me. Is this likely to be an issue, or have vegetarians found that they are catered for quite easily?

My other question is: where to go? Flights are to/from Port Vila, and although I know domestic flights to other islands are not overly expensive, we are on a pretty tight budget and would prefer not to spend the extra if it's not necessary, especially as we don't have much time. In that case, we are looking at spending the whole time on Efate. Is it best to stay in Port Vila, or can anyone recommend somewhere else on the island more worth spending the time? As mentioned above, we mostly want to go snorkelling and hiking, and are happy with bungalow accommodation. We are experienced travellers and used to very basic amenities.

On the other hand, if there's a really strong case for spending the money and flying to another island, I'm happy to hear about it! I would hate to miss out on something really awesome for the sake of a couple of hundred dollars, but if Efate offers what we're looking for, that would be great!

I'd strongly recommend visiting the outer islands.
They are much more interesting than Efate/Vila.
If you really can't afford to fly somewhere further, at least hop over to the Nguna group of islands just north of Efate.

As for the veggie food, if you are not very fussy about it, and tell your hosts what you need (!) in advance, you should be OK.
Vegetables usually mean various root crops, like sweet potatoes, yams or taro, which could be boiled or (best!) baked in a traditional earth oven with with coconut milk, accompanied by some green leafy things. I could already live on these for a week if I had to - and I am not vegetarian!
There's also a of of fruit, depending on the season.

Thanks for that!

I'm starting to reconsider our plan, and thinking of spending the little bit extra to get to Santo instead. Just a quick question for those who have been there: are there plenty of good snorkelling spots accessible directly off the beaches? Also, I'm intrigued by the WW2 wrecks in the waters - can you see any of these by snorkelling, or just diving?

To see the most famous wreck, you must dive.
Lonnoc Beach is great to swim and stay at, but the best snorkeling there (WAY better than anything I saw around Efate) is a short boat-ride out in the bay.
I think Santo is a great choice for a week - enjoy!

Thanks again Laszlo! I've read through almost all of the threads in this branch and you seem to be a bit of an expert on the region!

Unfortunately, we were dallying so much that we missed booking a cheaper flight to Santo from Brisbane, and we would now be looking at $1000+ each to get there. Way over our budget, so we're back to spending the week on / near Efate. The good thing is that living in Brisbane, we can always come back and see the other islands another time!

On that note I do have one more question. We will definitely take the advice of spending as little time in Vila as possible, and will most likely go to Nguna and / or Pele for most of the time. I do want to go to Mele Cascades, and maybe a day trip to Lelepa. Since we arrive on Christmas Eve, I'm wondering if it would be best to spend a night or two in Vila at the beginning of our trip, or afterwards? If we are going to be in Vila, it would be nice to at least take advantage of the restaurants and bars that won't be there on the smaller islands, but I'm guessing they will be closed on Christmas Day. Will local buses and ferries to the northern islands be running on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? I plan to stay in one of the basic bungalows on Nguna or Pele - would it be wise to book ahead at this time of year, and are they happy to have guests over Christmas?

Edited by: Tae

Don't give up yet - ask about flights to Santo once in Vila.
I was also there around Christmas, and found it easy to get tickets at the normal fares all the same.
So don't book accommodation in advance.
I think local bungalow owners will be happy to see guests any time.
However right on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day things are likely to be VERY quiet, and I wouldn't plan on traveling on that day.

If you have flown on an Air Vanuatu ticket, and you are in Port Vila go to their main ticketing office downtown and you will obtain 20% off all internal Air Vanuatu flights on the proviso you show your original purchased ticket.