Champagne Bay, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu

Espiritu Santo literally means ‘Holy Spirit’.  Espiritu Santo is the largest of Vanuatu’s islands and its population is around 30,000.  Luganville is the largest town however it is often referred to as ‘Santo’.  The people of Vanuatu are known as the happiest people on earth and their happiness is contagious.

The view we woke up to on the Island of Santo.

The view we woke up to on the Island of Santo.

On the morning our ship arrived in Luganville I woke up and walked out onto the balcony.  The site I was greeted with didn’t thrill me and in fact I thought this was one of the worst visual welcomes to a city I had ever seen.   It was ugly to be sure but don’t be disheartened because this is just a mere blimp on what is one of the world’s most beautiful islands.  It has so much to offer with many, many natural wonders for you to explore and experience, and the time we had available certainly didn’t do the island any justice.

Very common local transport (there is no public transport on Vanuatu).

Very common local transport (there is no public transport on Vanuatu).

We disembarked the ship at around 9am and as soon as you walk off the ship there are what seems to be hundreds of locals approaching you, almost pouncing on you, to engage you to employ them as taxi driver or tour guide for the day.

It’s a little overwhelming and it does seem quite awful that in order to earn a living these people have to accost you in the way that they do but thank goodness the cruise ships visit or I’m not sure how they would otherwise survive.

A few more days on this beach would have been perfect.

A few more days on this beach would have been perfect.

In the frenzy that was almost being ‘set upon’ by the taxi drivers, we settled on Johnnie who said he had an air-conditioned car and that he could show us around Santo for AUS$150.00.  We didn’t have any Aussie dollars on us so asked him how much in Vatu and he said V16,000.  Let me tell you now that V16,000 is AUS$195.00 so sadly, you need to be on high alert for the cab drivers as some are opportunists.

Arabella in the calm and warm water

Arabella in the calm and warm water

With Johnnie coming out well in front, he then let us know he didn’t have any petrol so we had to advance him 2000 Vatu just so the van would make it to Champagne Bay.  It was about an hour’s drive from the port and although Johnnie’s car was air-conditioned, it struggled so much with any incline I was wondering if we would have to get out and push.  I was impressed to see that the road we drove on was not only sealed but even had a white-painted line denoting the two sides of the road.  Johnnie told us that the road was just five years old and had been funded by the USA and built by Aussies and Kiwis.

It was a hard place to leave.

The darker patches of blue are where the coral lies.

Along the way we saw so many coconut farms.  There were coconut palms as far as the eye could see and then we saw the area where the coconuts are dried out and turned into organic coconut oil.  Coconuts and its by-products are the island’s main export.  We also saw lots of cattle.  All the cattle is reared free-range and apparently, organically.  The beef is exported to many countries with big orders going to Japan.

Our little guy loving Champagne Bay.

Our little guy loving Champagne Bay.

The majority of the residents don’t own cars and public transport is non-existent so on the sides of the road you pass locals walking to where they need to go and they hope someone driving by will pick them up and give them a lift on the back of their truck/ute.

Crystal clear waters

Crystal clear waters

Hitch-hiking is apparently very safe and it’s not only the locals who hitchhike.  Johnnie picked up a couple of tourists from Brisbane who were also heading to Champagne Bay and we squeezed them into the back row of seats and continued on with our journey.  Johnnie told us that crime on the island is almost non-existent and locals as well as tourists are very safe.

Trees fringe the sand

Shady trees fringe the sand

As you drive along the dirt road that leads to Champagne Bay, you need to pay an entry fee.  This is AUS$5.00/adult or AUS$2.00 per child.  There is an old man who stands in a little booth/hut to collect the money and we found out he is the owner of all the land around Champagne Bay.  He lives there and two of his sons live in separate houses on the land as well.  There are also very basic bures you can rent for AUS$35/night.

Sometimes the cruise ships anchor right off Champagne Bay.  I was rather pleased our ship docked at Luganville instead because despite it meaning an hour’s drive to Champagne Bay, it meant we were able to see a lot of the island during the journey and once we arrived, we pretty much had the entire bay all to ourselves.

Very fine white sand

So beautiful and so unspoiled

If you visit Vanuatu, a visit to Champagne Bay is an absolute must; even the name makes it sound fabulous.  The beach gets its name from a phenomenon witnessed by the first travellers to the bay.  The shallow waters appear to fizz at low tide, just like pouring a glass of champagne.  In truth, the effect is caused by gas escaping from volcanic rocks on the sea floor.

It has been voted ‘the most beautiful beach in the world’ and I think the title is justified.  Here we found the most unspoiled and non-developed and oh-so-natural beach we have ever seen.  The crescent of very fine soft white sand looks upon a sparkling aqua-blue lagoon fringed with coral.  The water is so transparent it’s difficult to tell where the beach ends and the sand begins.

An aqua lagoon

An aqua lagoon

The water is very, very warm so you’ll never become cold swimming in Champagne Bay.  You need to bring your snorkelling equipment because the coral is stunning.  If you’re looking for the best place to snorkel, when facing the beach the coral to the far right along the coastline that’s out beyond the buoys is the best place to view the coral.  Although there are no giant clams (or clams of any size), and although you won’t see a thousand different species of fish, you will see coral in all the colours of the rainbow.  It looks like an English cottage garden in full bloom, except it’s underwater.

On the day we were there the sea was incredibly calm and there were no rips and so it was totally safe to swim and just hover over the coral.  Back on land there are trees overhanging the sand and so if you don’t want to become burnt to a crisp you can shelter from the sun under the shade of a tree.

A perfect spot in the shade

A perfect spot in the shade

There are bathroom facilities that are okay but you are in a fairly remote area as well as being on an island in the South Pacific, so your expectations shouldn’t be too high.

With beaches like this it's no wonder the people are known as the happiest people on the planet.

With beaches like this it’s no wonder the people are known as the happiest people on the planet.

The local village people set up stalls along the grass beyond the sand so you can buy souvenirs and there is also a hut set up as a shop where you can buy water, soft drinks, local beer, hot chips and a few rice dishes.  Soft drinks are AUS$3.00 and a beer is AUS$5.00.

Sarongs for sale

Sarongs for sale

I don’t think a visit to Vanuatu is complete without a visit to the pristine waters of Champagne Bay.  For us this was an extremely special experience and we would love to visit again – for longer!

The beautiful turquoise waters of Champagne Bay.

The beautiful turquoise waters of Champagne Bay.

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Comments

  1. What a beautiful island and Champagne Bay does indeed sound like a must see destination.

  2. Beautiful!!! xo

  3. Looks like heaven on earth, what a wonderful experience and thanks for sharing this little piece of paradise with us.

  4. This is as beautiful as it name suggests it should be! What a contrast to that first image greeting you in the morning, and well worth the ‘interesting’ drive to get there. I do wish Australian beaches had trees on the sand too – it’s such a useful counter to the sun!

  5. What an epic cruise this turned out to be – each of your posts is better than the one before it!!!

  6. How beautiful! 🙂

  7. This is simply stunningly beautiful. A great visual escape for me from the cold and snow of Minnesota. Thank you.

  8. Charlie, an island where happiness is contagious… and that beach… I could spend the rest of my life there. What a wonder!

  9. Champagne bay is simply gorgeous! What a beautiful place.
    “Vanuatu” reminds me a lot of my home town in Sri Lanka.

  10. I love the name of this relaxing destination! Gorgeous photos 😀

    Cheers
    CCU

  11. I agree with Jas! Such gorgeous photos of such beautiful places, one better than the other. So glad you had such a wonderful holiday.

  12. What a great adventure you had Charlie! I can’t believe how expensive these islands are, that seems like a very expensive cab ride! Years ago we were in St. Martin and rented a vehicle for the day to do some sight seeing and it was like Johnnie’s car, I had to turn the A/C off to be able to get up a hill, even a bicycle passed us going up hill!

  13. It looks stunning, I’m loving these posts as you visit places I’ve never heard of. GG

  14. What beautiful pictures! I love the fish eye shots that capture how pretty the beaches are.

  15. G’day! I LOVE Vanuatu and the people are voted the Happiest People on Earth Charlie, true!
    Just look at the wonderful experience you and your family had and the majestic peaceful and tranquil view!
    Cheers! Joanne

  16. So perfect indeed Charlie, and so wonderful to have it practically all to yourselves! A month or so staring at that view and I might manage to unwind 🙂 xox

  17. Wow Charlie what a beautiful spot and how wonderful that you pretty much had it all to yourselves.

  18. Oh, you are torturing me with these gorgeous, HOT beaches!!! What a fabulous trip!

  19. What a beautiful place Charlie…I love the color of the water…
    Thanks for the pictures…have a wonderful week ahead 😀

  20. That sounds amazing! I’m so jealous!

  21. My gosh these photos are gorgeous, Charlie. I can understand that this island is voted the most beautiful in the world. Your photos show that to be true. We took a Mexican Riviera cruise and every port we were also accosted by people mobbing us to buy what they were selling. I found that hard, not because I was annoyed, but because I felt uncomfortable with the poverty. I know we bought some trinkets we didn’t need, and so did almost everyone else. I hope that we do make a difference in their impoverished economy. I love the photos of your happy vacation, Charlie. Very nice!

  22. Such incredible beauty!
    🙂 Mandy xo

  23. Wow, I’m in love with Champagne Bay. What a beautiful spot of heaven. By the sound of it, the locals do it tough.

  24. That looks a*maz*ing.

  25. Ooooooooh…..!

  26. Gorgeous beach and water.

  27. Wow, I’m so jealous Charlie (didn’t I say this last time too? – Well, I’m even MORE jealous now) – what an incredible experience. The beaches and scenery just look breathtaking. It’s like something out of a movie or TV advert or something, but it’s real… I’ve never seen such a place in real life myself in my whole life. I hope I can some day. I don’t think I’d ever want to leave!

  28. This is our sixth cruise to the pacific islands & champagne bay is heaven on earth.The locals are so so friendly.The kids are beautiful.We make sure we take them lolly bags each time we visit & they are so thankfull.

Trackbacks

  1. […] we left the extremely stunning and picturesque Champagne Bay, we drove back towards the town of Luganville.  Our driver, Johnnie, wasn’t doing too well. […]

  2. […] we’d decided we wanted to revisit Espiritu Santo after spending a magical day there while on a cruise at the beginning of 2014, I started to google accommodation options and read the reviews.  […]

  3. […] When tourists come to Santo, the one place they want to go is Champagne Bay. […]

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