Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
32.3km²
Area
33km
Coastline
192m
Highest point
1,451
People
29°C
Warmest sea
March
2,044km
To the mainland
When to go to Mota Lava
Best for the beach from January to May.
The sea is warmest in March (29 °C) and coolest in August (27 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Fourth largest island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu
Mota Lava is an volcanic island in Vanuatu. It covers 32.3 km², with 33 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 192 m. About 1,451 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 2,044 km away.
Getting there
- Santo Pekoa International Airport (SON)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 211 km in a straight lineCar hire at VLI airport (Port Vila)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- 2,044 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From January to Maybest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Mota Lava.
- 2beaches
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Mota Lava in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Mota Lava, each with its own numbers.
6beaches and covesCoastya
3mountainsPeakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
29.3°C
Baie Tiley
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
6 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Baie Tileycove29.3°C
- Baie Mititicove29.3°C
- Baie Laatombakcove29.3°C
- Baie Laataocove29.3°C
- Baie Laapnagcove29.3°C
- Baie Aliwancove29.3°C
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 97 m above the sea. 85 % of it is below 200 m.
- 44 %0–50 m
- 41 %50–200 m
- 15 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 |
| Night low (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 |
| Sea (°C) | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 29 |
| Rain (mm) | 262 | 242 | 258 | 264 | 200 | 147 | 113 | 105 | 116 | 182 | 195 | 215 |
| Wet days | 23 | 22 | 25 | 24 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 |
| Sun h/day | 7.2 | 7.3 | 6.9 | 6.3 | 6.2 | 5.9 | 6.1 | 6.6 | 7.1 | 7.1 | 7.2 | 7.6 |
| Wind (km/h) | 17 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 23 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 24 | 22 | 18 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.1 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +0.7 | +0.9 | −0.1 | −0.2 |
| 2021 | +0.2 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.6 |
| 2022 | +0.8 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +1.7 | +1.5 | +1.3 |
| 2023 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.7 | +0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.1 |
| 2024 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +0.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.5 |
| 2025 | +0.8 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +1.0 | +0.8 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Vanua Lava
Vanuatu334 km²549 m28 km away
UreparaparaVanuatu39 km²14 m40 km away
GauaVanuatu309 km²797 m69 km away
MaewoVanuatu303 km²795 m170 km away
Aoba IslandVanuatu404 km²1,496 m194 km away
Espiritu SantoVanuatu3,956 km²1,879 m212 km away
Tikopia
Solomon Islands5.7 km²370 m197 km away
Pentecost IslandVanuatu492 km²617 m238 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q1788728) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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