If you’ve been thinking about a holiday in Vanuatu, a tropical island destination less than three hours’ flying time from Brisbane, now would be a great time to book!

Virgin Australia currently has a great sale on flights to Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu. Air Vanuatu has also just launched a new route from Brisbane to Espiritu Santo, in addition to its other routes from Australia to Port Vila.

You can of course also redeem Velocity Frequent Flyer points to book a seat on Virgin Australia. And Qantas Frequent Flyer partners with Air Vanuatu.

The nation of Vanuatu removed all COVID-19 entry restrictions last year.

Virgin Australia’s “Welcome to Vanuatu” sale

Virgin Australia flies from Brisbane to Port Vila on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. It restarted the route a few months ago after a three-year break due to the pandemic.

Until 18 June 2023, you can book return Virgin Australia Economy Lite tickets from Brisbane to Port Vila from just $399 return. You can also fly return from Sydney or Melbourne to Port Vila (via Brisbane) from $469 return, or Adelaide to Port Vila (also via Brisbane) from $489 return. These fares are available on various travel dates, but unfortunately not during school holidays.

Economy Choice fares, which include a 23kg checked bag and lots more Velocity status credits, are available for $40 more on a round-trip booking. You can book on the Virgin Australia website.

Of course, you could also use Velocity Frequent Flyer points to book a seat on Virgin Australia’s Vanuatu route. It costs 23,600 Velocity points and $244 in taxes & carrier charges for a return Economy ticket from Brisbane to Port Vila. Or, you could book Business Class for 47,000 Velocity points plus $244 round-trip.

Air Vanuatu’s new Brisbane-Espiritu Santo route

Air Vanuatu already flies from Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne to Port Vila using its Boeing 737-800. Last week, it also launched a new direct flight from Brisbane to Luganville on Espiritu Santo, the largest island in Vanuatu. This new direct option is available on Thursdays and provides another non-stop holiday destination in Vanuatu for Australians.

While Air Vanuatu offers full-service Economy and Business Class fares, beware that they only have one jet aircraft. This has caused a few reliability issues on previous occasions when the aircraft has required unscheduled maintenance. However, some Air Vanuatu flights are now operated by a Solomon Airlines A320 – which adds a bit more resilience to the schedule.

Redeeming Qantas points for Air Vanuatu flights

As Air Vanuatu is a Qantas Frequent Flyer partner, you can redeem Qantas points to book Classic Flight Reward seats on Air Vanuatu.

We haven’t recently seen any Business Class reward seats, nor any Economy reward seats on the Brisbane-Espiritu Santo route. But you can redeem Economy Classic Reward flights from Australia to Port Vila with Air Vanuatu.

A return Classic Flight Reward from Brisbane to Port Vila on Air Vanuatu would cost 24,000 Qantas points + $210 in taxes. The number of points is a bit higher when flying from Sydney or Melbourne. There are no carrier charges when redeeming points to fly Air Vanuatu.

Qantas also codeshares with Air Vanuatu. By booking a revenue ticket with Air Vanuatu on a Qantas flight number, you can earn Qantas points and status credits. Those eligible to use Qantas lounges can also access the lounges when departing Australia, if booked on the “QF” codeshare.

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 90 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include economics, aviation & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.