300 acres of living Vanuatu.
Discover the history, people and everyday life behind Freshwater Plantation.
More than a place to stay.
A working cocoa plantation shaped by island life, local knowledge and generations of care. Discover its story through the photographs below.
A landscape shaped by many hands
Freshwater Plantation stretches from Aore Island’s waterfront through cultivated land to the forested escarpment. Long before welcoming visitors, it was a place to work and care for. Its winding paths, coral-stone walls, mature trees and gardens reflect years of patient effort, not a resort built overnight.
Mal Hood helped bring together the people and skills that shaped the property, including Brightly from the Banks Islands and a talented local team. Together they built stonework and pathways across steep ground, following the natural contours of the landscape.
As coconut palms, avocado trees and cocoa plantings matured, the paths came to link productive gardens with older vegetation and rainforest. That history of hands-on work gives Freshwater the established character visitors experience today.
A working plantation, not a resort backdrop
At Freshwater, the plantation comes first. Guest accommodation and gathering places sit within the existing landscape, alongside the gardens, tracks and growing areas of daily island life. The sea lies on one side, with Aore Island’s lush interior on the other.
By the Segond Channel, visitors find calm water and changing island light. Inland, shaded paths wind past tropical plantings towards the escarpment, rainforest, bat cave and lookout, which can be visited on a guided tour.
Freshwater’s appeal is its sense of place rather than formality or elaborate luxury: natural gardens, hand-built stone paths and a working plantation that continues to welcome guests.
What grows and lives at Freshwater
Cocoa is central to the plantation. Its trees produce pods filled with the beans used to make chocolate, and harvesting and preparing those beans are part of the journey from farm to familiar food. Guided tours introduce visitors to these crops and local farming traditions.
Kava, coconuts and tropical fruit also grow here. Depending on the season, the gardens may offer mangoes, guavas, bananas and other produce. The changing harvest helps connect the restaurant with the land around it.
Goats, ducks, chickens and cattle add to everyday plantation life and are especially popular with visiting families. Together, the crops and animals make Freshwater an active farm as well as a beautiful place to explore.
Island life, shared with visitors
Freshwater today combines working plantation life with relaxed island hospitality. The team cares for the gardens, grounds, animals and three accommodation options: the waterfront Beach Bungalow, Garden Room and two-bedroom Family House.
The restaurant serves local Ni-Vanuatu dishes, island ingredients and familiar favourites in an easygoing setting. Day visitors can enjoy a meal, explore the gardens or join a plantation and bat cave tour without staying overnight.
The two-hour guided tour brings the story together, taking guests through growing areas and local farming knowledge to the cave and scenic lookout. Whether visiting for an afternoon or staying longer, guests can experience the landscape and people who continue to shape Freshwater.
