This story is part of the October 20 edition of Sunday Life. See all 12 stories . ESPIRITU SANTO, VANUATU Champagne Beach, Espiritu Santo island.
Espiritu Santo may be Vanuatu’s largest island but it receives a fraction of the visitors of the main island, Efate. And although it’s just a 50-minute flight from Port Vila, it still feels wild here. The island was a major US army base during World War II and you can dive one of the war’s most accessible wrecks, the SS President Coolidge, which rests just off the coast.
You can also hike among Vanuatu’s tallest mountains, or swim in the electric-blue, crystal-clear pools created by mountain water filtering through underground caves. As for accommodation, there’s everything from budget-priced homestays to the luxury Ratua Private Island Resort . WESTERN PROVINCE, SOLOMON ISLANDS The Western Province of the Solomon Islands is very close to Australia (you can fly direct from Brisbane to Munda in two hours), yet almost unknown.
There are 11 main islands in the archipelago, where you’ll find many of the Solomons’ best natural attractions, including the biggest uninhabited tropical island in the southern hemisphere, Tetepare. With its virgin rainforest and biodiverse reef system, this is one of the conservation jewels of the South Pacific. The capital and the biggest town in the Western Province, Gizo, is on the island of Ghizo; nearby are reasonably priced family resorts, like Fatboys, on their own tiny islands.
ATIU, COOK.