Solomon Islands with Kids
Family travel guide for parents planning with children
Top Family Activities
The best things to do with kids in Solomon Islands.
Bonegi I & II WWII shore dives/snorkel
Two Japanese supply ships lie just 50 m off Bonegi Beach, Honiara's west coast. The top of the wreck sits in 3 m of clear water, so non-divers can float above while snorkelers duck through cargo holds alive with soft coral. Bring a loaf of bread and kids can hand-feed metre-long trevally that swirl around the stern.
Tenaru Falls jungle walk & swim
A 45-minute flat walk along the Tenaru River ends at a 60 m waterfall and cool swimming hole enclosed by bamboo. Local guides meet you at the bridge in Honiara. Older kids love the rope swing, toddlers can paddle in the shallows. Take a picnic, there are no kiosks once you leave the road.
Central Market treasure hunt
Give each child 20 SB$ and a list, find a betel-nut smile, a pineapple with 'hair', and a carving of a dolphin. The market is shaded, vendors are patient, and you'll end with fresh coconut and banana fritters for morning tea. Bathrooms are at the rear; hand-sanitiser is essential.
Skull Island day cruise from Munda
A tiny islet in Vonavona Lagoon holds stone shrines and WWII skull shrines, older kids get a real-world history lesson while younger ones hunt for tiny cowrie shells. The boat trip passes mangroves where flying fish skip. Dolphins often ride the bow. Operators throw a tarpaulin shade and serve noodles on the beach.
Gizo Lagoon sand-cay picnic
Local boats drop you on a knee-deep sandbar that appears only at low tide. You'll have 90 minutes to build drip castles, hunt for starfish, and eat paw-paw before the cay disappears. Water is bathtub-calm; life-jackets double as seats for toddlers while parents snorkel the fringe reef.
Honiara Yacht Club Friday movie night
When rain sets in, this members-club strings up a bedsheet projector and shows family DVDs while the kitchen fires up fish-and-chips. Kids swap books at the swap-shelf, parents get reliable Wi-Fi, and everyone watches the sun sink over the mast lights. Non-members pay a small door fee.
Best Areas for Families
Where to base yourselves for the smoothest family trip.
The capital clusters services together: pharmacies, banks, and the main hospital. You can day-trip to wrecks, waterfalls, and markets yet sleep in a hotel with a pool for evening cool-downs.
Highlights: Bonegi Beach 20 min west, playgrounds at Town Ground, kids-eat-free nights at Lime Lounge Café
A lagoon-side airstrip with safe swimming straight off the lodge lawn. Dive shops run kiddy snorkel courses, and village walks are stroller-friendly packed-coral paths.
Highlights: Skull Island boats, kastom village story-telling, baby-sitting co-ops run by Agnes Lodge staff
Small enough for teens to bike to the bakery, busy enough for restaurants that stock boxed milk. Offshore islets give quick escape when town heat builds.
Highlights: Sand-cay picnics, Kennedy Island swim, craft market shaded by almond trees
The provincial capital sits on a calm inlet. Kids watch outrigger canoes being built on the beach. Ferries from Honiara roll right onto the main street, so no extra transfers.
Highlights: Langa Langa Lagoon day tours, shell-money workshops, Tuesday market that sells every tropical fruit in crayon colours
Family Dining
Where and how to eat with children.
Solomon Islands restaurants expect children. High chairs appear quickly, portions are shareable, and nobody minds toddlers wandering. Menus revolve around fish, chips and coconut cream, easy flavours even picky eaters accept. Kitchens can be slow. Pack crackers and colouring gear.
Dining Tips for Families
- Order rice 'plain boiled' if spice-shy; most cooks assume 'fried' means chilli soy.
- Town cafés close by 3 pm. Plan late lunches at hotel pools that serve until 5 pm.
- Fresh tuna is cheapest on Tuesday when the fleet unloads, kids' fish fingers are usually discounted.
Kids under 6 often eat free. Omelette stations let them choose fillings and watch the theatre of live cooking.
Day-trip operators drop a grill on a sandbar. You eat just-caught reef fish with fingers while hermit crabs race past. No cutlery to lose.
Tips by Age Group
Tailored advice for every stage of childhood.
Heat and long boat rides are the main enemies. Schedule two-hour activity blocks followed by air-con or sea breeze. Locals will carry, cuddle, even breast-feed your toddler if you ask, say yes.
Challenges: No changing tables. Beaches lack shade unless you bring a pop-up UV tent. Nap windows vanish fast once you leave town.
- Freeze electrolyte popsicles in a thermos, easy calories when fruit is scarce on remote islands.
- Thread a sarong through taxi window belts to rig a shoulder harness if your car seat fails.
This is the magic window: they can snorkel, remember WWII stories, and still think hermit-crab racing is sport. Hand them a waterproof disposable camera. The shots become show-and-tell gold back home.
Learning: Village primary schools welcome visitors on Fridays, kids compare exercise books and trade pencils. Latitude/longitude lessons click when you plot tiny islands on a captain's chart.
- Urge them to learn 'tangio tumas' (thank you very much); locals cheer and pull them into volleyball games.
- Let them handle small market money, SB$ coins carry dolphins and canoes, perfect souvenirs.
Solomon Islands lets teens test independence safely: they can kayak to a nearby islet, order lime juice in pidgin, or crew on a dive boat. Data SIMs work in town, so Instagram stories upload before the reef dries.
Independence: Taxis between Honiara's central market and yacht club are safe in pairs. Set a 90-minute check-in. In Gizo, teens bike alone but should pack reef shoes, broken coral flats slice skin.
- Challenge them to shoot and edit a three-minute travel doc. Dive shops lend GoPro clips if they share the final cut.
- Give one teen the offline map app and make them navigator for the day, tech confidence without roaming fees.
Practical Logistics
The nuts and bolts of family travel.
Domestic flights use 16-seaters; infants sit on laps, no car seats supplied. Honiara taxis lack belts, bring your own seat or hire a 4WD with anchorage from Avis. Public minibuses (b) squeeze three kids to a seat; they're an adventure, not a plan. Between islands, passenger ferries have bunk rooms. Toddlers sleep on mats, bigger kids love deck hammocks. Strollers only work in Honiara's Point Cruz waterfront and Gizo's main street. Elsewhere use a carrier.
National Referral Hospital in Honiara runs a 24-hr emergency room. The smaller provincial hospitals in Gizo, Auki, Munda cover the basics. Pack prescription repeats, pharmacies carry paracetamol and antibiotics but not kids' syrups. Diapers show up at Point Cruz chemists and the Quality Motel mini-mart; formula is the tinned Pacific brand only. Rehydration salts are everywhere, handy for that post-snorkel sun headache too.
Request ground-floor rooms (many lodges perch on stilts with ladder-steep stairs). Ask to see the mosquito-net size, family nets are scarce, so two singles do the job. Pools are fenced only at King Solomon and Coral Sea. Everywhere else set a parent-on-duty roster. Kitchenettes stretch the budget: breakfast cereal costs triple the imported price, yet paw-paw runs for cents at the market.
- Lightweight reef walkers for the whole family, coral-rubble beaches punish bare feet.
- Rash-guard shirts: the sun is fierce and sunscreen vanishes after 30 minutes of snorkelling.
- Carry small-denomination AUD or SB$ for market snacks. Vendors seldom break a 100 SB$ note.
- Pack a compact blackout sheet and pegs, curtains in provincial lodges are decorative only.
- Favourite shelf-condiments: soy, vegemite, peanut butter, bread is always around, spreads are not.
- Split a charter boat with another family at the dock. Operators price per boat, not head.
- Load up on the big hotel breakfast, skip lunch, then hit the market for an early dinner, kids graze on fruit all day.
- Book domestic flights direct with Solomon Airlines online. Overseas booking engines slap on a 15 % markup.
Family Safety
Keeping your family safe and healthy.
- ! Coral cuts infect fast, rinse with fresh water immediately and dab betadine. Pack a small suture kit if kids pick at skin.
- ! Sun reflecting off lagoon water doubles UV; reapply 50+ every two hours and enforce hats even while swimming.
- ! Even calm beaches drop off quickly over coral heads, put weak swimmers in buoyant rash shirts, not just armbands.
- ! Night-time sandflies on lagoon edges leave itchy lesions. Long loose trousers and a baby-oil barrier beat DEET for toddlers.
- ! Road speeds look slow but trucks swerve for potholes. Kids ride in back of pickups only if seated on the floor, gripping cab mesh.
- ! Tap water in Honiara is chlorinated, elsewhere stick to boiled or bottled. Sterilise baby bottles with Milton tablets, microwaves are rare.
Explore Activities in Solomon Islands
Didn't see anything interesting yet?
Browse Viator's full catalog of tours, day trips, food experiences, and private guides in Solomon Islands.
See All Solomon Islands Tours on Viator