I had only been back from China for about 2 months when I was lucky enough to be offered a trip to Fiji. I accepted knowing that this would be an excellent chance to just unwind as it was going to be an 8 day long famil with very few hotel inspections.
The trip got off to a bad start. We were supposed to take off at 10:30am but I had a phone call from the Air Pacific saying that the flight would be delayed. The departure time was now changed to 9:30pm. So after going out that day & buying a digital camera for the trip it came time to leave. But once again after calling to confirm the departure time I was informed of yet another delay. This time we wouldn't be leaving until 12:00am. I ended up arriving at Brisbane International Airport at about 10:30pm but I was greeted with the news that we wouldn't be leaving until about 4:15am. Apparently there was some problem with the plane & it had been grounded in New Zealand so they were getting another plane but it had to come from Fiji hence the delay.
We ended up departing from Brisbane at 4:00am & arrived into Fiji at 8:00am only to be told that we had to go straight to the welcome conference & we could sleep later in the afternoon. We turned up & listened to each hotel giving us their welcome speech, before jumping in a bus & heading off to our first hotel inspection. The first stop was at the Warwick hotel where after looking through a few rooms we were presented with a welcome drink & a buffet lunch. After lunch we headed for the Naviti Hotel for a quick inspection & then finally checked into our rooms to unpack. The trip from home to hotel room had taken almost 19 hours which is crazy if you think the flight is only 3 hours long. Once settled we had a few beers & called it a night.
The next day we went to a few hotels like Tambu Sands & the Hideaway Resort before checking out the local reptile park which was small but kind of cool. We then checked into the Outrigger for the night & did a quick hotel inspection before enjoying one of the nicest buffets we had in Fiji. During our dinner the chef, staff & managers all began to gather around us to sing us 2 traditional songs. The first one was a welcome song & the second a farewell song. This was our first & only night so they thought they should sing them both together. They all had amazing voices & sang along with acoustic guitars which gave the whole experience a very traditional feel.
The one thing I started to notice about Fiji is that every person walks around with the biggest smile on their face. It never comes off as fake either, they just genuinely seem happy. They are happy to help you in any way possible but you must understand that everything happens on 'Fiji time' as they love to say.
The next morning we rose early and set off to experience something not many people do on their visit to Fiji. We were taking a flight up to Savu Savu & spending a few nights on the northern island of Fiji.
The flight itself was quite amazing with thousands of small islands dotting the blue, blue waters. Every window I looked out presented a new photo opportunity even more impressive than the last. 30 minutes into the flight the plane began to bank left toward a large island that could only be described as paradise. We flew between the large lush mountains touching down on a very bare landing strip. After grabbing our luggage we all crammed into the small bus that waited & made our way to the Namale Fiji Island Resort.
After a quick look at the rooms, private beach & the water spouts we finished our visit in the games room. This place was impressive for a Fijian resort. It had a full size basketball court, bowling alley, cinema, virtual golf course, pool table & a kick ass bar & sound system that was ready to go. The only thing wrong with it was the 1970's Zebra print carpeting that smelled too much of smoke. After all the excitement we made our way to our crib for the night, the Jean Michel Cousteau Resort. We paired off to our rooms once again & dropped off our luggage. We then made our way to the bar & pool side table where we relaxed for the rest of the evening.
After breakfast the next morning it was off to the Koro Sun resort for more room inspections. We checked out the amazing tree top honeymoon room as well as the very isolated lover's den before making our way back to the airfield for our short flight back to Nadi. We had already seen the Coral Coast on the main island so this time we headed for the Denarau harbour & out to Mana Island for our first small island experience. Mana island was nice but quite big compared to most of the other properties that we inspected. I didn't think it felt as romantic as a lot of the other places but it was still nice. It had a great little wedding chapel that was either a long walk or a short tractor ride away as well as a landing strip of it's own & once again some of the happiest people in the world.
After an hour or so on Mana Island we all piled into a small 14 foot boat & headed for Castaway Island. This was the craziest boating experience I have ever had & probably the sorest. The waves were so choppy & our driver was so intent on making good time that we kept getting air born before slamming back down to the waters surface.
As our boat pulled up to the shore we were welcomed to the island by the staff with harmonised singing of Isa Lei. This is my fondest memory of Fiji as it had been a long day once again, the sun was setting & this just set the scene for paradise. After making our way up the beach we were presented with a fresh cut coconut full of some type of mouth watering cocktail. After a quick shower we all made our way to a dinner under the stars just above the beachfront. Once again we enjoyed a tasty meal of local fresh caught seafood accompanied with some fine beer.
Oh how the beers were going down well. At one point I thought to myself, I could live here. Next came the Cava ceremony. Cava is the traditional drink of the islands. I decided to give it a try even though it looks like dirty, brown water. I don't remember feeling any effect from it though as I had had a few beers by this stage. Eventually we made our way over to the band playing in the corner. We sat here & listened for a while before I was passed a guitar & encouraged to get up & play. I had a little more cava & then strummed a few tunes with the band before calling it a night. It's a weird thing to be sitting on a beach in Fiji, drinking Cava with the locals while jamming out some Match Box Twenty tunes. Castaway Island would have to be my favourite spot in Fiji out of all the places I visited.
The next day we took one of the fastest boats I have ever been on over to Treasure Island. Treasure island had a really good feel to it as well. The people were friendly like everywhere in Fiji & it felt like Castaway Island on a cheaper budget. Once again we had really good food & just relaxed. The next day a few people opted to go over to Beachcomber Resort but I had had enough of hotel inspections let alone optional ones. So I chilled on Treasure Island with my roommate Michael from a Brisbane FC. We played pool, chatted & had few beers before the rest of the group returned & then yet again, we were off to another island. This time we visited Plantation Island for lunch before heading back to the mainland.
We stayed for one night at the golf & racket club in Denarau before finishing off our Fiji experience at the Sheraton. The next day we went shopping in Nadi & all bought matching t-shirts so we could stand out from the rest of the travel agents. At the Sheraton we were spoilt rotten with an unbelievable farewell dinner accompanied by fire dancers & a Fijian marching band.
I really enjoyed my stay in Fiji. It was one of those places I probably wouldn't have gone to if I was going on a holiday but now that I've been I would definitely go back & recommend it. We flew out the next morning for Brisbane.
Bula Fiji!