Luganville

Luganville, called "Santo" by people from Vanuatu's northern islands who use Luganville as their big city, and called "Kanal" (from the French Segond Canal) by rural residents of the large island of Espiritu Santo, is the second largest city in Vanuatu. Luganville is one of Vanuatu's busiest ports, especially as a transshipment point for copra and cacao. Segond Channel, the body of water off the coast of Luganville behind Aore Island, provides the town with an excellent sheltered harbour. The main street that runs through Luganville contains most of the commercial businesses and is very wide as a result of the American base commander insisting that 4 trucks could be driven along the road. Small side streets and outlying roads cater for the residential zones. The main street contains the port at one end, and the markets and municipal council building at the other end. In the centre there are two main types of stores; tourist boutiques, and all-in-one stores, best described as a cross between a supermarket and a hardware store.