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Vanuatu ShoppingTips 1 - 10 of 12  
Popular Shopping | Miscellaneous Shopping Tips | All Tips (12)
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Markets galore!
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  • Updated By lou31 on August 28, 2004
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  • Fruit and vegetable market - Vanuatu
    Fruit and vegetable market
    by lou31
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    I was fascinated with the markets. A large outdoor market was set up in Vila and I spent quite a while browsing around. There were sarongs everywhere! - about $10. Locally made cotton beach bags $5 - $10 and beads, beads and more beads!. Every kind and combination you could think of. All very nice and very cheap. Some didn't make it through customs - avoid necklaces made with seads or beans. There were stalls where you could get your hair braided for about $10 and these places were very popular. Alot of local handicraft was for sale - you could spend half a day there. They have a large covered fruit market as well with a huge selection of different fruits and vegetables. All quite ok to eat and the place was very clean. More pictures coming soon.

    The local handicrafts were intriguing. Hula skirts were popular as were the sarongs and timber carvings. I actually found a stall that sold old bottles and bought a coke bottle from the sixties. In the shopping district they also have a couple of duty free shops for alcohol, ciggys and perfume etc. and one store sold bargain brand name clothing and sunglasses etc. Pictures coming soon.

    This was not an expensive place to shop at. Most shops were reasonably priced and of course the markets had real bargains.

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  • Theme: Local Craft
  • Address: Port Vila

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    Browse around...
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  • By lou31 on August 31, 2004
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  • Shopping in Port Vila - Vanuatu
    Shopping in Port Vila
    by lou31
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    Just walking around was a fascinating experience. Lots of stores and eateries. I found one store selling reduced brand name merchandise. Tee shirts - some were $10, shorts, sunglasses.......... I tried some locally made pastries at a little cafe. Of course plenty of touristy places - souvineers etc. One interesting experience I had was when I was approached by an old man selling beaded necklaces. He had them in a bottle and I actually bought one - it was very nice.

    Most of the stuff I bought made it through customs. I was suspicious of a set of marakas made out of coconut shells. However they got through. Apparently if they are sealed with a clear paint they are ok. They only cost $2 anyway so no great loss if they had've been confiscated.

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  • Theme: Other

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    Port Vila Markets: Markets
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  • By CandS on May 6, 2004
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  • Food section at the markets - Vanuatu
    Food section at the markets
    by CandS
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    The markets in Port Vila are fantastic. They sell fresh fruit and vegetables, jewellery, clothes, wood carvings, trinkets and so much more. The prices are fairly good for most things too - you will find the markets much cheaper than the shops.

    Jewellery, wood carvings, woven baskets...all of it... :)

    A necklace could cost anywhere between 200 vatu and 1500 vatu. A carving could be between 500 vatu and 12000 vatu...

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  • Theme: Other
  • Address: Port Vila, Efate

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    Port Vila - Local markets.: You don't have to go far!
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  • By K.Knight on September 29, 2005
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  • Can I have it...Can I?....Huh?...Huh?...Can I? - Vanuatu
    Can I have it...Can
    I?....Huh?...Huh?...Can
    I?
    by K.Knight
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    When the ship docks and you go ashore the docks are packet full of stalls for the passengers to walk through on your way off the pier! There is no escape from these stalls as you must walk through all of them to get to the only exit into Port Vila. The prices start off quite high when the ship first sails because it is quite busy with tourists. A few hours after the initial "rush" the prices are reduced by a few dollars because it is very quiet and they are chasing sales before they put the prices back up to their original price a few hours befoe the ship sales because it is once again very busy!! You can find the same items in town at the big market in the main street for a little bit cheaper though!

    Sarongs, shells, necklaces, bags, wooden carvings, t-shirts, local produce, postcards etc.

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  • Theme: Local Craft

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    Duty free shopping
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  • Updated By lou31 on September 13, 2004
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  • Main street Port Vila - Vanuatu
    Main street Port Vila
    by lou31
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    I found two duty free shops in Port Vila. Our taxi driver told me that one was cheaper.........can't remember which one! If you are visiting by cruise ship unfortunately the duty free shops comandeer your merchandise and sends them on to the ship. If it's cigarettes or alcohol you dont get it back till the night before you disembark. Beware of this if you plan to have your drinks in the cabin.

    Alcohol, ciggys, perfume...................

    I bought 40 oz bottles of Bundy Rum for $20 and cartons of ciggys for $22. There is a limit to how much you can buy.

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  • Theme: Discount Store
  • Address: The main street of Port Vila

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    Supermarkets: Supermarkets
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  • Updated By CandS on May 6, 2004
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  • Supermarket - Vanuatu
    Supermarket
    by CandS
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    The supermarkets in Port Vila sell a lot of things that you'll find in the supermarkets at home. The use by dates and prices may not be so good though... A 2.25 litre bottle of Coke costed around 550 vatu (A$6.50)!!

    It's still cheaper to buy some bread and cheese/meat than to buy a meal at a cafe - just like at home - but don't expect really low prices...

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  • Theme: Food and Drink

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    Handicraft Blong Vanuatu market in Port Vila: Authentic handicrafts
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  • By cosmopolit on November 18, 2002
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  • Foreign cash, travellers cheques and major international credit cards (Amex, Diners, JCB, Mastercard and Visa) are widely accepted. Bankcard is not normally accepted. Most shops close for 'siesta' 11.30am to 1.30pm. Eating places, banks, supermarkets and the Post Office do not observe siesta. Shops open on Saturday morning and some speciality shops and supermarkets open on Sunday morning. Suburban general stores open early and close late seven days a week.

    The colourful market in the town centre operates every day except Sundays for flowers, fruit, vegetables and handicrafts. Handicraft Blong Vanuatu, located in the centre of Port Vila provides a wide selection of authentic handicrafts from many islands of Vanuatu.

    PAY what's asked! Usually taged wares. No bargaining please, it goes against local tradition.

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  • Theme: Food and Drink

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    Au Bon Marche: Tanna Coffee
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  • By TheDivineMissL on October 8, 2004
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  • Au Bon Marche Nambatu and Au Bon Marche Downtown are the supermarkets with the widest variety of food, drink and other necessities of life in Vanuatu.

    Be sure to bring home some Tanna Coffee - it is superb (the best I have ever had - and I'm a very picky caffeine addict -I brought home 3 kilos of it!). It is cheaper to buy it from the Au Bon Marche supermarkets in Vila (beans or ground) than on Tanna itself. I did notice that even in the supermarket the price was higher when the cruise ship was in though...

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  • Theme: Food and Drink
  • Address: Downtown - Lini Highway, near the markets
  • Directions: To get to Nambatu (the newest, with a very extensive range) take a bus for 100VT.

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    Down Town and the market
  • By DONBURGESS on February 27, 2006
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  • Vanuatu Shopping
    by DONBURGESS
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    There are some good buys that can be made along the road that runs along the beach near the out door market. We found some great timber objects here that where nice and cheap. We bought boats, statues and hand carved fish the where made from solid timber. Also there where some great little stalls that sold clothing for the ladies. There where also some great duty free stores in town that sold just about everything you would ever want.at great prices. All in all not to bad a place to shop.

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  • Theme: Local Craft

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    More expensive than you would think
  • By chat2howie on September 27, 2007
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  • The shopping isnt like bali, or thailand. It is quite expensive as they import almost everything, and a lot of it from Australia. So prices are often equal to or greater than they are in Australia

  • Theme: Other

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    1 | 2
    More Vanuatu Tips
    Overview
         		General Tips
    Tips: 29 - Photos: 19
    Restaurants
    Tips: 46 - Photos: 30    		Hotels and Accommodations
    Tips: 43 - Photos: 31
    Things To Do
    Tips: 96 - Photos: 67    		Nightlife
    Tips: 11 - Photos: 6
    Off the Beaten Path
    Tips: 24 - Photos: 18    		Tourist Traps
    Tips: 10 - Photos: 5
    Warnings or Dangers
    Tips: 22 - Photos: 12    		Transportation
    Tips: 28 - Photos: 18
    Local Customs
    Tips: 25 - Photos: 15    		Packing Lists
    Tips: 16 - Photos: 6
    Shopping
    Tips: 12 - Photos: 7    		Sports Travel
    Tips: 4 - Photos: 1

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