Ambrym is known as the ‘Black Island’ due to its dark volcanic soil, with two active volcanoes, Mount Marum and Mount Benbow. The island is also known for its magic and sorcery, and for its traditional Rom dances, when locals don elaborate masks and costumes.

Pentecost Island, named after the day it was first sighted by Europeans, is famous for its ancient custom of land diving. During this ritual, which is believed to ensure a good yam harvest, men leap from a precarious-looking wooden tower with a liana vine attached to their ankle, aiming to touch the ground with their head or shoulder.

Espiritu Santo is the largest of Vanuatu’s islands, home to the famous Champagne Beach, a stunning stretch of perfect white sand on the east coast. The beach is named after a bizarre natural phenomenon, in which gas escaping from volcanic rocks on the sea floor causes the water to bubble and fizz at low tide.

Alotau is the capital of Milne Bay province, on the remote eastern tip of mainland Papua New Guinea. Milne Bay was the scene of heavy fighting during the Second World War, and today you can dive amongst the wreckage left behind. Alotau also serves as a base for visiting the nearby islands, including the fascinating Trobriand archipelago.

The Asmat people of West Papua are one of Indonesia’s most fascinating indigenous groups, notorious in the past for their cannibalism and headhunting, a practice said by some to have persisted as recently as the 1990s. The Asmat are also known for their magnificent wood carvings, and their cultural traditions remain strong in the face of encroaching modernity.