on my way to Solomons

Hi, Angela,
If you look through the Solomon Islands threads, you will find contact details for a number of budget places in Honiara.
You will be paying about $30-$50 Australian a night and you need to contact them in advance to make sure of a booking.
You will be able to buy local fruit and vegetables in the main market in Honiara every day but Sunday - on Sunday, catch a bus or taxi east to Kukum to the Fishing Village on the side of the main road.
There is a new organic grocery/food store in the NPF plaza, but I haven't had time to check it out before I left.
I am not sure what accommodation is currently available in Gizo, which was pretty badly affected by the tsunami. If you say why you are thinking of going there, some of us might be able to advise if it is a good idea or if there are other possible places.
It is a while since I went there by boat, but it is roughly 24 hours by the slow, cheaper, inter-island ferry, and about 12 hours on the Express. (Somebody (Watsoff?) can correct me if need be). There are about 3 boat services most weeks.

However, November and December is when all the students are finishing school for the year and travelling home, and by hte middle of December there are not many people left in Honiara. The villages are very crowded from the beginning of December to the beginning of January, and ships are overcrowded.

At that time of year, it is very warm. You will need a sheet or lava lava (sarong) to cover you if you travel by local ship and sleep on deck, but a sleeping bag will be too hot. You will be provided with sheets and a pillow anywhere you stay.

I have used homeopathic malaria prophylaxis, but I am not a good example, as I think I have developed some natural immunity. One of my friends felt it was good. However, no prophylaxis is 100% certain. You need to take precautions against getting bitten, especially at dawn and dusk, and even if you are taking prophylaxis, if you have flu-like symptoms, get a malaria test, even a couple of months after leaving the country.

Sorry, can't help with the ferry to Ghizo, I only took ferries to Auki. Apparently the crossing time has lessened quite a bit since the last time I took it (took 6 hours to cross at the time); I think there's an express one on that route as well now, not sure though.

But as far as a sleeping bag goes, depends on your body temperature - I used a lightweight, reflective sleeping bag when staying in a village in W. Are'Are, as at night the temperature dropped to a (to me) bone-chilling 21C to 23C. But I haven't needed the bag since that trip, a sarong is quite adequate. I do take a bicycle blanket, though, just in case (as I usually feel the "cold" in Fiji when I stop there on the way home). But as Ozzie says, you'll definitely need something if taking an overnight ferry, even if you use a cabin.

I also take a travelling mosquito net, which I've used on almost every visit there. Some places provide nets but they are often full of holes, or so I found.

I use Lariam as the malaria prophylaxis, as I'm lucky and I don't react badly to it. I've heard that Malarone is a better choice and has no side effects, but it is more expensive (and pretty soon the mozzies will develop a resistance to that as well). Also, any doctor I've spoken to say you need a malaria check if you get flu-like symptoms for up to 6 months after leaving the country. A Deet-based mosquito repellent is a good idea, something that contains at least 50% Deet.

The slow inter-island boat I took between Gizo and Honiara took 3 days!
Id rather allow 1 full day for the fast boat.

Vegetraian food will likely mean lots of meals of boiled rice wit little else - you might try to eat lots of fruit to supplement that.
Vegies seemed pretty scarce, with the best variety/quality in Malaita.

I'd say 30 USD/day is the asolute rock-bottom budget for the county, though this can vary wildly deopending on how far you travel, how frequently, whether you take flights, etc.
Rock-bottom budget accomodation can start around 10 USD out in the country, but more like 20 in Honiara.

I also use Lariam andtend to recommend it.

My notes on Solomon Islands and PNG are now on the main board

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