Xmas and New Years in Vanuatu

Hi guys,
I just booked a trip to Espiritu Santo, Ambrym, and Efate from 24/12 - 1/1 on a whim. I've wanted to travel to Vanuatu for a very long time and I just decided I couldn't wait any longer. I'm still doing a lot of research, but I have some specific questions I was hoping people could help me with. 1) How do I go about scheduling to see the volcano on Ambrym. I read about this great place where you can stay with some of the locals. The lodgings are very basic, but I want to go there so I can meet the lovely people I hear so much about and experience their culture. I also read a story where someone had a bad experience with a tour operator of some kind and the people in the village heard about it and helped him try again the next day to see the volcano. How should I go about seeing the volcano properly? I read that its best to hike up one day and camp overnight. Obviously I would not have equipment so I would need help in that department too. FYI, I'm a single female traveling alone but that doesn't seem to be an issue in Vanuatu. Secondly, I'd like to travel to Pele for the last few days of my trip. How do i go about traveling to Pele?? In theory I'd love to fly into the airport in Port Vila and travel to Pele in the same day but I thought I saw something about the boat only leaving at 5am?? Any advice would be much appreciated. Also, I'm planning on spending New Years Eve in Pele. Is this a good idea? This is also my birthday. I've had several birthdays at big bashes (NYC, San Fran, Melbourne) and I'm looking for something a bit different. Any suggestions would be awesome. Earlier in my trip I'll be doing the Millennium Cave Tour. I also posted a question about doing a social row in a separate thread. Thanks guys! I'm really excited. Love to hear from anyone, especially anyone going to be there at the same time. Cheers.

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