Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
564km²
Area
142km
Coastline
1,084m
Highest point
Mount Tukosmera
28,799
People
28°C
Warmest sea
February
1,816km
To the mainland
When to go to Tanna
Best for the beach from July to November.
The sea is warmest in February (28 °C) and coolest in August (24 °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.
Island of Vanuatu
Tanna is an volcanic island in Vanuatu. It covers 564 km², with 142 km of coastline. Its highest point, Mount Tukosmera, rises to 1,084 m. About 28,799 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 1,816 km away.
Getting there
- Whitegrass Airport (TAH)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at VLI airport (Port Vila)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- Ferries1 ferry terminals on the island
- 1,816 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From July to Novemberbest 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 Tanna.
- 9beaches
- 14viewpointsMount Yasur caldera, TAFEA Provincial Disaster Committee, Lenakel Wharf and 11 more
- 1ferry terminalsInter Island Ferry Wharf
- 1marinasLenakel
- 3named peaksMount Tukosmera, Mount Maureun, Mount Loanialu
- 1volcanoesMount Yasur
- 2waterfalls
- 5campsitesJungle Oasis, Yasur camping, Tanna Horizon bungalous and 2 more
- 16hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 6restaurants, cafés and bars
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
Tanna in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Tanna, each with its own numbers.
5beaches and covesCoastya
Beach with the warmest sea
28.2°C
Black Beach
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
5 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Tanna White Beach28.1°C
- Black Beach28.2°C
- Ivaru Beach28.1°C
- Enahua Beach28.2°C
- Kwamera Baycove28.1°C
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 267 m above the sea. 40 % of it is below 200 m.
- 7 %0–50 m
- 32 %50–200 m
- 50 %200–500 m
- 10 %500–1,000 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.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Isangel1,437 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 26 |
| Sea (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| Rain (mm) | 175 | 156 | 210 | 185 | 106 | 84 | 67 | 59 | 56 | 86 | 86 | 116 |
| Wet days | 18 | 18 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 16 |
| Sun h/day | 8.3 | 8.2 | 7.3 | 6.5 | 6.1 | 5.9 | 6.2 | 6.6 | 7.7 | 8.0 | 8.2 | 8.5 |
| Wind (km/h) | 22 | 22 | 21 | 24 | 23 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 23 | 22 |
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 | −0.3 | +0.1 | +0.4 | −0.2 | −0.2 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +1.2 | −0.1 | +1.0 | +0.7 | −0.1 |
| 2021 | +0.5 | +0.4 | −0.5 | +0.2 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +1.3 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.8 |
| 2022 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +1.6 | +1.3 | +1.6 | +1.8 | +1.4 | +1.9 | +2.1 |
| 2023 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.2 | +1.1 | +1.4 | +0.7 | +0.5 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.1 |
| 2024 | +0.7 | +0.1 | −0.2 | −0.1 | −0.5 | +0.3 | +0.8 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.6 | +0.7 |
| 2025 | +1.2 | −0.1 | −0.3 | +1.4 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +1.3 | +1.2 | +0.7 | +1.1 | +1.9 | +1.1 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Erromango
Vanuatu893 km²259 m83 km away
AneityumVanuatu161 km²852 m93 km away
EfateVanuatu897 km²647 m226 km away
Lifou Island
France1,139 km²106 m273 km away
Maré IslandFrance656 km²132 m273 km away
EpiVanuatu444 km²833 m330 km away
AmbrymVanuatu674 km²1,334 m384 km away
Isle of PinesFrance130 km²262 m397 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q378281) · 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 — 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
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit 
mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.You are here
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Coming soonVisit