Travel & Visa
Public Holidays
January 1st – New Year’s Day
April10th – Good Friday
13th – Easter Monday
June 1st – Whit Monday
12th – Queens Birthday
July 7th – Independence Day
December 25th – Christmas Day
December 28th – Public Holiday
Government Type
Parliamentary Democracy
Languages
There are 120 indigenous languages spoken within the Solomon Islands but the common spoken dialect is the Melanesian Pidgin (lingua franca). English is still the official language but only 1 -2% can speak English.
Geography
Geographically, Solomon Island is globally located in the South Pacific Ocean and centred on latitude of 9 degrees south and longitude of 150 degrees east of the Equator.
Religion
Christianity (97%) which include some of the following denominations; Anglican Church of Melanesia, Roman Catholic, South Seas Evangelical Church, Seventh-day Adventist, United Church, Christian Fellowship Church, and other Christianity movement. The other minorities (2.9%) include the Baha’i Faith, Islam and other indigenous doctrines.
Demographic data
Area: 28,450 sq. km
Population: 581,318 (estimated July 2008)
Population density: 17/ sq. km (44/sq.mi)
Time Zone
GMT/UTC +11hr
Electricity
230/240 Volts AC, 50Hz
Currency
The traditional form of currency for Solomon Islands was shell money before the bank notes was introduced. However in some provinces shell money is still used mainly for settling disputes, bridal and land payments.
The standard form of currency is the Solomon Islands Dollar (SBD). There are notes SBD$100, 50, 20, 10, 5, & 2. Coins are SBD$1, 50c, 20c, 10c, 5c, 2c, & 1c.
Major Cities/Destinations
Honiara – Capital
Gizo – main tourist resorts
Auki
Munda
Major destinations:
Honiara – Capital, major museum, memorial sites and WWII sites, attractive waterfalls
Kennedy Island - Major wreck relics
Gizo/ Munda - Major Island resorts are found
Anavona Island - Conservation of the unique turtle species
Teepee Island - island of the unique beautiful animals, bird and fauna in Solomon Islands
Savo Island – volcanic crater, hot spring site
Mount Austen – memorial site
Bloody ridge – WWII site
Uepi Island – major honeymoon destination
Marovo lagoon – biggest lagoon in the World
East Rennell – UNESCO world heritage, biggest lake in Solomon Islands
Guadalcanal - Major wreckage diving sites
Langa Langa lagoon – Artificial Islands and cultural shell money demonstration
Weather and Climate
Solomon Islands lay 12 degrees latitude of the equator and has a warm and tropical climate. The average daytime temperature ranges between 25 to 30 degrees Celsius with high humidity. The daily range of temperature tends to be greater at elevated places than at places near the coast. During the evenings it is usually cool as 19 degrees.
Wet season falls on November to April and the average annual rainfall is mostly within the range 3000 to 5000 millimetres with the majority of monthly rainfall amounts in excess of 200 millimetres. Because of the low altitude of the islands they are less subject to the damaging effects of tropical cyclones however cyclone still poses a threat to the country each year during the wet season.
The months between April to November are the best time to visit the Solomon Islands as the Southeast trade winds fan the islands and there is less rain.
Citizens of the (British) Commonwealth, United States and most European Countries do not need visas.
If you have a valid passport and return ticket or onward ticket, you can acquire a visitor's permit valid for three (3) months on arrival.
Other countries need to apply for visas before entering the Solomon Islands
For more information, please visit Solomon Islands Immigration Department of the Ministry of Commerce, Industries & Employment.
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