Espiritu Santo is easy on a budget from Deco Stop Lodge. This guide covers five things to do in and around Luganville, most of them free or under 2000 vatu, all within a five minute walk to an hour’s drive of our front gate. We name what costs nothing, what small fees are worth paying, and where your vatu goes furthest.
What can you do in Luganville for free?
Plenty, and the best of it is a short walk from our front gate. Unity Park sits at the western end of Main Street, about a ten to fifteen minute stroll down the hill and along the waterfront from Deco Stop Lodge. It is an open public park on the banks of the Sarakata River, free to wander, with shady trees, harbour views over the Segond Channel, and the wartime memorials that mark Luganville’s role as a huge United States base in the Second World War. There are no gates and no fees. Mornings are coolest and quietest, and it is an easy add-on to a walk into town. Toilets are limited, so use the ones at the Lodge before you set off.
Is the Luganville market worth a wander?
Yes, and browsing it costs nothing. The main produce market runs along Main Street, roughly a five to ten minute walk from our front gate, and it is open Monday to Saturday from early morning, winding down by mid to late afternoon. Local villagers restock it daily with fruit, vegetables and flowers, all grown without pesticides, which is the same market our kitchen buys from. You can walk the aisles for free, and if you do spend, a bag of fresh fruit is a few hundred vatu. Guests keep mentioning the cooked-food stalls at the market as the cheapest hot lunch in town, with island staples like laplap and simple rice-and-fish plates for well under 1000 vatu.
Where can you see WWII history without a tour?
On foot, and for free, if you know where to look. Luganville was built almost overnight as a forward base for the Pacific war, and at its peak held hundreds of thousands of troops. That history is still scattered through the town: concrete foundations, the old coral roads, and interpretive markers around Unity Park, where the South Pacific WWII Museum is taking shape in a restored Quonset hut. You can walk the waterfront and the western end of Main Street reading the story for nothing. The paid war sites, Million Dollar Point and the SS President Coolidge, sit just out of town, but the free layer around Luganville is a good primer before you decide what to book.
Where can you eat cheaply on Santo?
Self-catering and the market are your friends. Two supermarkets on Main Street, LCM and Cash and Carry, are both about a five to ten minute walk from the Lodge and stock everything for a picnic or a cheap breakfast, and they take cards. For a hot feed on a budget, the market cooked-food stalls are hard to beat, and the town’s casual spots do takeaway that travels well back up the hill to eat by the pool. Continental breakfast is already included in your room here, so a stocked bar fridge plus a market lunch can keep a day’s food bill very low. Keep small vatu notes for the stalls, which do not take cards.
What on Santo is actually worth paying for?
The small custom-land fees, every time. The blue holes are the standout value: Matevulu is about 500 vatu, Riri is 500 vatu plus 500 for the outrigger canoe, and Nanda is around 1000 vatu, all within a twenty to forty minute drive north. Million Dollar Point, about a ten minute drive from the Lodge, charges roughly 500 vatu to snorkel over a wartime dump of trucks and tanks in shallow water. Champagne Beach, an hour north, is around 500 vatu on foot or 2000 vatu per vehicle for one of the most photographed beaches anywhere. And the SS President Coolidge, the giant troopship wreck a short boat ride offshore, is the one splurge divers travel across the world for. These fees support the villages that look after each site, and for a few dollars each they are the trip’s best money spent.
FAQs
How much cash should we carry on Santo?
Carry vatu in small notes. Most of Santo’s best budget experiences cost between 500 and 2000 vatu per person, roughly 6 to 25 Australian dollars, and site owners at blue holes and beaches usually only take cash. LCM and Cash and Carry in Luganville take cards, but market stalls, canoe hires and custom-land entry fees do not, so keep a few thousand vatu on you.
Are the blue holes free to visit near Luganville?
No, but they are cheap. Matevulu Blue Hole is about 500 vatu, Riri Blue Hole is 500 vatu plus 500 for the outrigger canoe, and Nanda Blue Hole is around 1000 vatu. The fees go to the local villages that maintain the sites. For roughly 6 to 12 Australian dollars they are some of the best value swims in Vanuatu.
Is Champagne Beach worth the entry fee?
Most guests think so. Champagne Beach charges around 500 vatu per person if you walk in, or about 2000 vatu per vehicle, as it sits on custom-owned land. It is regularly rated one of the best beaches in the world, with white sand and clear shallows, so the fee is small next to the day you get. Bring your own lunch to keep costs down.
Can we enjoy Luganville without hiring a car?
Yes. Deco Stop Lodge is a five minute walk from Main Street, so the market, the shops, Unity Park and the waterfront are all easy on foot. For sites out of town like Million Dollar Point or the blue holes, shared minibuses and tour operators pick up from our front gate, which is cheaper than a full car hire for a day or two.
A Santo holiday does not need a big budget to feel full. Fill your days with free walks, cheap market food and a handful of small-fee swims, and let the poolside evenings back here do the rest. When you are ready to plan the trip, take a look at our rooms and rates and browse the wider things to do on Espiritu Santo so you know what to book ahead.
Image credit: Simon Goodall, CC BY-SA 3.0
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