Travellers are recommended to take out full medical insurance before departure. Tuvalu's only hospital is in Funafuti; the outer islands only have trained nurses. More serious and complicated problems may require medicinal evacuation to Fiji or Australia.
Australian and Tuvaluan currency are both in use, but transactions over A$1 are always conducted in Australian Dollars. For details of Australian Dollar denominations and exchange rates, see the Australia section.
Funafuti is the capital of Tuvalu. It is a true atoll that consists of 30 islands, or motu, as called by the Tuvaluans, surrounding a lagoon 20 kilometres north to south by 11 kilometres east to west.