01Free
The 30-second card
Visa · United States passport
No visa needed · up to 30 daysSource: U.S. Department of State · Checked 25 Oct 2026 ↗SIM and eSIM
Local SIMs from Vodafone or Digicel are sold in town and at Port Vila airport.Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗Apps locals use
Inter-island ferry operators post schedule changes on their Facebook pages.
Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗Cards or cash
Mostly cashMostly cards
Step 2 of 5: Cash is used for most payments, though cards are taken in some places.Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗Money in Vanuatu
Vanuatu Vatu · VUV
Every bank charges a fixed 700 VT per ATM withdrawal on a foreign card, so withdraw larger sums less often.
Card payments usually carry a 3-5% surcharge, so cash is often cheaper.
Some hotels accept Australian dollars, in cash or to an Australian account, which can work out much cheaper.
Vatu are hard to change back abroad, so only buy as much as you will spend.
Collect Vanuatu Vatu in CointryOur sister app for coin and banknote collectors · cointry.appOpenPublic holidays in the next 12 months
Sun, 29 Nov 2026 · National Unity Day
Fri, 25 Dec 2026 · Christmas Day
Sat, 26 Dec 2026 · Family Day
Fri, 1 Jan 2027 · New Year's Day
Sun, 21 Feb 2027 · Father Walter Lini Day
Fri, 5 Mar 2027 · Custom Chief's Day
Fri, 26 Mar 2027 · Good Friday
Mon, 29 Mar 2027 · Easter Monday
Sat, 1 May 2027 · Labour Day
Thu, 6 May 2027 · Ascension Day
Sat, 24 Jul 2027 · Children's Day
Fri, 30 Jul 2027 · Independence Day
Sun, 15 Aug 2027 · Assumption Day
Tue, 5 Oct 2027 · Constitution Day
02Free
Safety today
Germany, the US and the UK publish their travel advice openly. Here is what those that cover Vanuatu say, side by side, checked daily.
German Foreign Office says
No travel warning
Calm ●
Caution
Serious
Don’t go
Source: Auswärtiges Amt
Updated 14 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Updated 14 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
U.S. Department of State says
Exercise normal precautions
Calm ●
Caution
Serious
Don’t go
Level 1 of 4
Source: travel.state.gov
Updated 21 May 2025 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Updated 21 May 2025 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
UK Foreign Office says
No advice against travel
Source: GOV.UK
Updated 19 Mar 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Updated 19 Mar 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Countrywise is a summary. The official page is authoritative.
03Free
Health
Routine, hepatitis A and B, typhoid shots advised. Malaria risk. Yellow fever: not advised or needed to enter.
Vaccinations
Routine shots plus hepatitis A, hepatitis B and typhoid are advised; yellow fever vaccine is neither recommended nor required for entry.
Malaria
RiskTalk to a travel clinic 4–8 weeks before you go.
Source: CDC
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page
Summarised from the CDC’s Travelers’ Health pages. Using them does not mean the CDC endorses Countrywise.
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Deep facts
| GDP | ≈ $1.4 billionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
|---|---|
| Per person | ≈ $4,039Source: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Top exports | fish, ships, perfume plants, wood, copra (2023)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Population | 335,169Source: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
|---|---|
| Median age | 24.9 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Life expectancy | 75.7 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Religions | Protestant 39.9% (Presbyterian 27.2%, Seventh Day Adventist 14.8%, Anglican 12%, Churches of Christ 5%, Assemblies of God 4.9%, Neil Thomas Ministry/Inner Life Ministry 3.2%), Roman Catholic 12.1%, Apostolic 2.3%, Church of Jesus Christ 1.8%, customary beliefs (including Jon Frum cargo cult) 3.1%, other 12%, none 1.4%, unspecified 0.1% (2020 est.)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · 2020 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Area | 12,189 km²Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
|---|---|
| Climate | tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds from May to October; moderate rainfall from November to April; may be affected by cyclones from December to AprilSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Terrain | mostly mountainous islands of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plainsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
| Type of government | parliamentary republicSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗ |
|---|---|
| Calling code | +678Source: libphonenumber · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗ |
About the data
Written from the sources we link, and checked against them before each release. Countrywise summarises public sources. We are not an official source. For safety and entry rules, always follow the official page we link to.
From your foreign ministry when it publishes its advice openly (Germany, the US, the UK). Otherwise we show those three side by side. Checked daily, with the date next to every entry.
CDC · 24 Oct 2026 ↗GOV.UK · 24 Oct 2026 ↗IANA Time Zone Database · 23 Oct 2026 ↗libphonenumber · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Nager.Date · 23 Oct 2026 ↗The World Factbook (archive) · 23 Oct 2026 ↗U.S. Department of State · 25 Oct 2026 ↗Unicode CLDR · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikidata · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikivoyage · 24 Oct 2026 ↗World Bank · 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Flag artwork from flag-icons (MIT licence).
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