We cleared into Luganville last week and would absolutely recommend anchoring out the front of beachfront resort (on the Luganville side). The staff and owner are extremely accommodating to yachties and if you buy delicious food/drinks from the restaurant, they give you the wifi password and you can spend the day on the clean pool deck in the shade catching up on business while looking down the well kept grassy knoll to your yacht bobbing in the anchorage.

The beach is brown sand and the water is not very clear, but it is a great spot to refill water from the tap (access turnkey at reception), they take rubbish for a small fee then you can grab a taxi to the nearby petrol station if you need to fill up jerry cans. Our laundry came back extra fresh and it’s been a great week with only one really rolly day.

I think this anchorage is much better than picking up a mooring on the inconvenient More side if you have things to do in town. LCM supermarket delivers apparently if you need to do a big shop before heading to the Banks. (They bring the stuff quite close to your dinghy in a wheelbarrow actually)

Update Oct 2016 – the Aore resort has new (Australian) owners. Whilst there are still 3 moorings available at 1500VT per night (plus 3 more owned by neighbour Paul who runs a dive operation) the new owners are less friendly / accommodating to yachties so now there’s no water, rubbish or laundry facilities and the ferry to Luganville is 250VT pp return.

As of September 15th 2015, there are only four mooring balls in front of the Aore Resort and their neighbour to the east (each has two working moorings).

At least one of the mooring balls only marks a concrete anchor with a very weak rope and is not suited for mooring. You can identify these ball(s) by their missing pick up line.