Hotel Review: Iririki Island Resort, Vanuatu

Iririki Island Resort is located in Mele Bay (Port Vila) around 15 minutes drive south from Bauerfield international airport. Offering a range of accomodation from deluxe ocean view rooms to premium waterfront Fare's and overwater Fare's, the vast majority of rooms feature views over the bay. We decided to stay here during our Vanuatu Weekend Getaway, you can read more about that trip here.

Iririki Island Resort

The Room

We were excited to see our premium waterfront Fare and see what it was like compared to the other island bungalow style accomodation we had stayed in. The Fare's are spacious with an open plan design and a large bathroom next to the front door. There is a large spacious deck with a sunlounge and two lounge chairs. We loved the deck and its view over Mele Bay, its verandah roof means there is a good mix of sun and shade as well as shelter from the rain. We enjoyed relaxing on the deck during the day and for watching the amazing sunet. There is a minibar and basic tea and coffee facilities in the room but it would have been nice to have an espresso machine in a room of this price point.

Customer Service

We found the customer service excellent, from the reception, bar and day spa staff through to the restaurant staff who all provided warm and friendly professional service. We could not fault the service at Iririki Island Resort.

Restaurants & Bars

The resort has several food options including Azure Restaurant which is open for buffet breakfast and fine dining dinner, Il Forno Pizza Hut and Sunset Pool Bar & Grill for more casual food during the day, Room Service as well as a Beach BBQ on Saturday nights. We ate at Azure Restaurant for breakfast and dinner during our stay and we can say the food was excellent, our favourites were the Green Banana Baskets filled with pulled beef & cheese and the Seafood Risotto. At Azure Restaurant on Monday nights they have Polynesian dancers with an a la carte menu, Tuesday nights they have a Melanesian Feast Buffet and Fridays is local seafood night complete with seafood platters. Every morning there is a buffet breakfast served in Azure restaurant and it is included in the price of the premium waterfront Fare's. For those that love their cheese they also have cheese and wine tasting on Wednesdays at the Iririki Gazebo on top of the hill at sunset. There are 3 bars on the island, Infinity Bar & Cafe next to Azure restaurant, Jewel Lounge & Bar at the islands casino and the Sunset Pool Bar & Grill which is only open during the day. We had cocktails and local beer at the Infinity Bar during our stay and the cocktails and service were great. If you want to head to the mainland to eat out there are regular ferries going back and forth from the island day and night.

Day Spa

The resorts Day Spa is located at the highest point on the island and takes in amazing views over Mele Bay, we booked the 90min Iririki Signature Massage a treatment involving deep relaxation techniques with stretching and pressure points, the spa's facilities were excellent as were the friendly staff and our massage and was definitely a highlight of our stay.

Resort Facilities

The resort has two swimming pools, the adults only infinity pool next to the Infinity Bar and Azure Restaurant plus the sunset pool complete with 4 cascades and swim up bar located at the south end of the island next to the Sunset Bar & Grill. You can also go for a swim in the crystal clear waters of the bay from Snorkelers Cove. There is a water sports hut at snorkelers cove where you can borrow complimentary snorkel gear and another one under the casino where you can borrow complimentary kayaks, catamarans and bicycles. There is also tennis courts, beach volleyball, gymnasium, games room, playground and casino.

Snorkellers Cove

Summary

As mentioned this resort has amazing facilities and exceptional warm and friendly staff and we could not fault the service or the food. The resorts location couldn't be better sitting in the middle of Mele Bay with downtown Port Vila only a 5min ferry ride away. Whilst the overwater Fare's are beautiful we were glad we chose the Premium Waterfront Fare as all of the overwater Fare's face the city whereas the Waterfront Fares look over the bay towards the sunset and the mountains of the main island. The resort is perfect for both couples and families and the layout of the resort has the Fare's which are marketed to couples located near the infinity adults only pool and the family friendly villas located near the sunset pool. We wished we had stayed longer but we will definitely be coming back to Iririki one day soon.

Want More Information?

For more information about the Iririki Island Resort & Spa you can visit their website www.iririki.com

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About The Author

Rob has been passionate about cruise ship holidays and exploring the world since the first cruise he went on when he was only seven years old. Since then Rob who is a Photographer and his partner Mike of 18 years have travelled the world on over 25 cruises with over 10 different cruise lines visiting every continent across the globe as well as many remote tropical islands along the way. In addition to cruise holidays they enjoy relaxing at beach side holiday resorts and first/business class air travel as well as transcontinental rail journeys. Between them both Robert and Michael have worked out the best way to maximise frequent flyer reward points allowing them to travel first/business class at economy class prices or in some cases travelling first/business class for free.