Solomon Islands itinerary advice

[Chris Hulme]

Hi there

I'm looking for advice re the Solomons. Current plan is four/five dive days in and around Honiara then out to Western Province/Marovo Lagoon for five nights at Uepi Island. Am wondering if spending too long in Honiara and should shorten time there to visit one of the other islands - either a night or two in Tugali or perhaps somewhere within easy reach of Marovo Lagoon? Will be there mid December to just after Christmas.

Am also spending a few days either side of the Solomons trip in and around Brisbane. So will dive a couple of days out of Byron Bay and maybe up near Moolooba.

Any thoughts much appreciated.

Chris

 

[NYCNaiad]

Welcome to Scubaboard! If you post your question in the Pacific island forum, you'll probably get more of a response.

I wasn't enamored of Honiara aside from some of the topside WWII locations. I think 4-5 days is too long there. I would say visit another island.

I loved Munda along with Dive Munda who are fantastic & one of the best shops I've ever been diving with! (I also dove Gizo which was great though I preferred Munda.) Flights go in & out of the islands on certain days so not sure what would work for you though I believe when I was looking at Uepi originally, it was only a 20 minute flight from Munda to Seghe...super easy. (Uepi was completely booked, but I've heard good things about them.)

Two other things to keep in mind. You can travel to some islands via small boat. I traveled from Munda to Gizo by boat which means you can continue to dive without taking time off to fly. (It took around 2 hours for me to travel between these 2 islands though it can vary a bit & it wasn't pricey.) Flights in the Solomons can sometimes be cancelled or delayed just like other remote islands. It's good to have a plan in place for if/when this happens.

You may want to also ask Uepi for a recommendation. I find that a number of remote dive shops are really great about providing their thoughts on shops nearby. You can also ask them about places close enough to travel by boat.

Happy diving!