Million Dollar Point, Espiritu Santo

Million Dollar Point is ranked second on the list of the best places for scuba diving in Vanuatu. Vanuatu, a former French and English colony was a critical Allied base during WWII, and the legacy of US forces stationed here lives on under the sea. After the war, the Americans bulldozed all of their surplus supplies into the sea after the British, French, and Ni-Van people refused to buy them. The site was named after the estimated million dollars in dumped goods, which included tanks, rifles, and jeeps that were discarded underwater.

"It boggles the mind to swim through this rubble, these battle deserts," Dickson-Smith says. "This dive site with tracked and wheeled vehicles, as well as many other devices, is located in approximately 15–25m (49–82ft) of water close off the beach near Luganville, Espiritu Santo." Among all the twisted rusting metal of Million Dollar Point, a vibrant reef has sprung up, so the plentiful marine life is another compelling incentive to visit.

Location: Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu