It’s NEVER good news when the captain broadcasts into the cabin, and today we were awakened at 6am by his voice, announcing that we would not be making call to Vanuatu. The Port Villa Harbor Master had declared that the seas were too rough for us to tender to their landing. We ran to the balcony to see what the fuss was about, and we didn’t think the seas looked bad at all. But soon the winds picked up and we suspected they would increase throughout the day, making it harder and harder for the tenders to operate safely.

When you have the responsibility of the Harbor Master, you have to make decisions about the conditions of the harbor upon arrival, AND upon departure. You can’t let 2000 persons drop into your port, if you can’t assure that the weather will allow them to also leave hours later. And though we’re disappointed, we must respect their decision.

Vanuatu is an island nation, comprised of 83 volcanic islands, across 400 miles. The nation has nearly 300,000 inhabitants, and won their independence from France and Britain in 1980 to become its own nation. Port Villa, the capital, suffered a significant 7.3 earthquake on 17 DEC 2024, killing 14 and injuring hundreds. Their pier was damaged during the earthquake, hence why we were tendering today.

We snapped a few photos of the island as we were pulling away.

Tomorrow: Lifou, New Caledonia