Visa and entry requirements vary from nation to nation; therefore, visitors should check individual entry requirements prior to travel. For most Pacific Island nations, visitors will require a passport that is valid longer than six months and a return or on-going flight ticket.

Health and Safety

Most of the Pacific Islands are safe to travel and, with tourism being the main source of income for most of the island economies, crime is taken seriously. Visitors should implement the usual precautions and use their common sense, however. In-room and hotel safes are mostly readily available and should be used to store valuables. Petty theft, such as pick-pocketing, does occur in the main island cities, so visitors should keep bags and purses close at hand.

There are currently no vaccination requirements for travel to the Pacific Islands, but tourists should check up-to-date health risks prior to travel. Health alerts can be found on the World Health Organization website: http://www.who.int/ith/en/.

Those that are looking to dive should make sure that there is a decompression chamber nearby, just in case. Major islands, such as Hawaii, Fiji, and Tahiti, have decompression chambers; however, some of the smaller islands do not.

Malaria is generally not a problem, but some islands do see Dengue Fever epidemics once in a while. Therefore, it is important that visitors take care not to get bitten by mosquitoes. Use insect repellent, especially during dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active. Sunstroke and dehydration are also common health issues. However, this can be easily be avoided by drinking plenty of water, using sun block, and wearing a hat.

Tap water is generally not okay to drink on the Pacific Islands. Visitors should purchase bottled water, or at least boil tap water first.