Schoolies look overseas for alcohol-free adventures

TEENS are taking over this island in the Pacific for their end of year celebrations - and there's not a drop of alcohol in sight.

Hideaway Island Resort in Vanuatu.

BOOZE-free activities, private islands and volunteer work are high on the list for Schoolies this year as young Australians increasingly fan out across the South Pacific and Asia to celebrate the end of school.

While the Gold Coast continues to be the focus for Australian end-of-school celebrations, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says several thousand Australian Schoolies are bypassing the Queensland party strip in favour of more exotic options overseas.

The most popular destinations are Bali, Thailand, Fiji and Vanuatu, but Cambodia, Laos and Sri Lanka are also emerging destinations for volunteer tourism or "alternative Schoolies".

Another unlikely trend to emerge is alcohol-free Schoolies trips.

Unleashed Travel takes more than 3000 school leavers to Fiji, Bali and Vanuatu every year and in 2013 has transformed Vanuatu's Hideaway Island into a booze-free party haven.

Company founder Jot Lynas said the decision was based on feedback from Schoolies.

"This year is the first year that we offered a completely alcohol-free destination," he said.

"It was based on customer feedback that increasing numbers of school leavers were less interested in getting drunk and hanging out in bars."

Hideaway Island Resort in Vanuatu.

Student Flights national marketing manager Phil Hancox said the Gold Coast was still "far-and-away the most popular Schoolies destination," but that international destinations were growing.

"Every year there's a massive increase in bookings for international Schoolies trips," he said.

Mr Hancox said young people were attracted by the chance to travel overseas by themselves, while the cost-of-living, all-inclusive packages and favourable exchange rates meant their holiday may cost no more than a week on the Gold Coast.

"There are a lot of options in the South Pacific, including Schoolies-only products in which, depending on the destination, you might have an island to yourself," Mr Hancox said.

"It might be a nice change from the Gold Coast, where it's open to everyone."

He said the trips were popular not just with school leavers, but also with the parents who typically pay for them.

"It's a much more controlled environment in that they know who is there," he said.

"I think there's that peace-of-mind for parents, and for a large part, parents are still part of the decision-making process."

While most Schoolies still simply want to go and have a hedonistically good time, Mr Hancox said more and more were looking to balance this with the opportunity to give back.

Particularly in Asia, Schoolies can split their trip between relaxing and partying and volunteering at an orphanage, in animal welfare or conservation

"As much as the idea of Schoolies is about celebration and reward, there is a need among today's young people to give back," he said.

"A lot of this is around community work, children and animals."