DISCOVERING FIJI'S DIVING DIVERSITY – A GUIDE TO THE ISLANDS
Fiji is one of the planet's top diving destinations, known as the Soft Coral Capital of the World. The reefs surrounding these lush green islands are alive in a rainbow assortment of pastel-hued corals and brightly-colored tropical fish. These waters hold a lifetime of diving adventures awaiting discovery. With 300 islands scattered over a half-million square miles of ocean and several of the world’s major coral reef systems to choose from, the options might seem overwhelming to anyone planning a Fiji Dive vacation. To help you find the ideal Fiji dive vacation, we've put together a short guide to the islands and the top resorts that combine excellent diving with a first-class vacation experience.
BLIGH WATERS BLISS
All international arrivals in Fiji land in the town of Nadi on the island of Viti Levu. If you aren't into connecting flights, no problem. Two of Fiji's favorite diving destinations are just a van ride away. A road trip to the northern tip of the island puts you within easy range of the famous Bligh Waters. Sitting between the two major islands of the Fiji Archipelago, the Bligh Waters are a treasure trove of marine life, where maze-like reef formations riddled with tunnels, canyons and swim-throughs are washed by tidal currents that encourage riotous soft coral growth.
Sites near open water attract mantas, eagle rays and sharks, while pinnacles and coral bommies are often covered in massive schools of bigeye jacks, barracuda fusiliers and anthias. The many folds and crevices of the reef system are equally inviting to macro enthusiasts, who can search for elusive species such as ghost pipefish, or try to identify the area’s numerous species of colorful nudibranchs.
The top choice for Bligh Water diving is VoliVoli Resort, which is a boutique, family-owned and operated property that sits on the tip of a small peninsula at the northernmost point of Viti Levu. In addition to providing daily boat trips to a number of prime sites in the Blight Waters, VoliVoli rewards divers with three house reefs that are available day and night.
SOUTH SHORE REEFS AND RIVERS
Two hours south of the airport at Nadi, the Coral Coast is Fiji's epicenter for both diving and adventure sports. This area offers surfing, deep sea fishing, ocean kayaking, mountain trekking and off-road biking, zip-lining and even rafting. White water float trips aren't a thing you would typically associate with tropical islands, but on Viti Levu, rainfall from the volcanic highlands of Mount Gordon feeds the 40-mile-long Navua River, which flows through steep canyons and lush valleys on a rush towards the sea.
The Coral Coast rewards divers with a wealth of lightly-dove sites. Reefs begin close to shore, creating opportunities for relaxing shallow submersions with short boat rides and plenty of colorful corals. A bit farther out, collections of pinnacle-like coral bommies take over, and divers can spend hour-long bottom times at depths from 20 to 45ft., fish watching and searching for reclusive marine life among the formations. For bigger thrills, divers can join day trips to Beqa Lagoon, which is the site of one of the world’s most famous shark dives.
The best place to get in on all the Coral Coast action is at Waidroka Bay Resort, which offers a range of diving and adventure packages that include land and water sports, cultural tours and dive trips to Beqa Lagoon.
FINS & FIREWALKERS
Beqa Island lies just six miles south of Viti Levu’s Coral Coast, but it is a world apart. There are no roads and only a handful of traditional villages reached by water or footpaths that lead through the primeval rainforest. The people of Beqa are known throughout the South Pacific for their unique rites of passage, in which young men walk over fire-heated rocks with seeming impunity. The island is equally famous in diving circles for a more recent ritual that takes place within the waters of the expansive lagoon.
For nearly two decades, local dive operators have rung the underwater dinner bell with chum offerings. This feeding brings in up eight different species of sharks, which can include very large bulls and tigers. The activity also draws a guidebook worth of fish life, from giant grouper and Maori wrasse to hyperactive schools of rainbow runners. And with more than 100 miles of ramparts, caverns and pinnacles to explore within its encircling ring of coral, Beqa Lagoon isn’t just a one-hit shark feeding wonder.
The best way to get prime access to the more than 100 dives sites of Beqa Lagoon is by booking a stay at the Beqa Lagoon Resort. This boutique property combines a secluded location with modern comforts, gourmet dining and daily diving services. The resort can be reached by way of a 45-minute boat ride from Pacific Harbor.
CORAL RAMPARTS COVERED IN LIFE
In addition to connecting Fiji to the world, the Nadi airport is the hub for inter-island flights. One easy connection with daily schedule departures takes divers across the Bligh Waters to the small harbor town of SavuSavu on Fiji's second-largest island, Vanua Levu. Resorts spaced along the island's south-facing shoreline provide a first-class sampling of diving experiences that range from relaxing dives within the sheltered waters of SavuSavu Bay and explorations of Fiji's largest marine reserve to descents on big walls and pinnacles or high-energy drifts in the flowing waters of the SomoSomo Strait, which lies offshore and to the east. This area holds more than 300 varieties of hard coral and is home to more than 1,200 species of fish.
The Namena Marine Reserve (excursion at an additional fee) is a no-take fish haven located some ten miles off the coast of Vanua Levu. This horseshoe-shaped reef is renowned for its colorful soft coral cover, and for the vast schools of fish that congregate on precipitous corners of hard-coral ramparts. Sites in and around the reserve are often visited by larger pelagic fish, and some sites are known for sightings of scolloped hammerheads. In recent years, dive operators in the SavuSavu area have begun to offer trips to the untouched and still largely unexplored coral reefs of nearby Namena Island.
A top choice for divers looking to add a touch of luxury to their dive trip is the Namale Resort & Spa, which is a five-star all-inclusive enclave set within a 525-acre tropical garden, with an on-site dive center that provides concierge-style diving and access to all of the area's top sites.
A GARDEN ISLAND AND A RAINBOW REEF
Another favorite dive destination that's just a quick connection flight away from Nadi is the island of Taveuni. Fiji's third-largest land mass is known as the Garden Island, as it's a place of pristine forests and waterfalls, with a western shore that faces the SomoSomo Strait. In addition to natural beauty, Taveuni is prized by divers as the gateway to the Rainbow Reef.
Mention Fiji and most divers will think of the Rainbow Reef and the site known as the Great White Wall. This famous underwater formation is a wide-angle photographer’s dream, with a sheer vertical face covered in soft corals so pale blue that they appear white, creating the appearance of a snow-covered cliff. Other sites on the Rainbow Reef showcase equally stunning collections of red, yellow, purple, pink and blue soft corals, which thrive on the currents that bathe the reef in a nutrient-rich flow. But there’s more to Rainbow Reef that soft corals. In addition to colorful walls, the underwater landscape includes pinnacles, coral bommies, swim-throughs, and reef slopes covered in delicate plate corals.
There are three great options for a Taveuni dive vacation. Closest to the airport is Garden Island Resort, which sits just a short boat ride away from the Rainbow Reef. This waterfront property provides comfortable modern accommodation packages at attractive prices, and is a favorite with dive groups. Four miles to the south, the intimate Taveuni Dive Resort operates on sustainable principles to deliver a personalized dive vacation experience in a garden-like setting. Continuing south on the coastal highway brings you to one of Fiji's longtime favorites, Paradise Taveuni. Here, the warm family-like atmosphere combines with spectacular waterfront views to create a memorable vacation experience, along with excellent access to the best dive sites in the SomoSomo Strait.
OFF-GRID ADVENTURING
The waters of Fiji are home to the world's fourth-largest barrier reef system. Lying some 50 miles south of the big island of Viti Levu, the Great Astrolabe Reef surrounds the quiet island of Kadavu in a living ring of coral. This vast diver's playground includes sheltered coral gardens within a marine park, dramatic slopes and walls patrolled by sharks, manta ray cleaning stations, and seasonal opportunities for short-finned pilot and humpback whale sightings in blue water.
Great Astrolabe offers miles of reef to explore, and some of the most spectacular are found near the five channels that funnel currents through this coral maze. This moving water not only encourages coral growth, it also supports large populations of reef fish, which form swirling clouds that blanket walls and envelop pinnacles.
Kadavu is Fiji’s fourth largest island, but it remains mostly rural and natural, providing visitors with a glimpse of traditional island culture. Diving adventures on the Great Astrolabe Reef begin at Matava Eco Resort. This off-grid oceanfront outpost describes itself as Fiji Untouched, with the promise of no roads, no noise and no stress. Getting there begins with a 40-minute flight from the big island, followed by a boat ride through the reef's inner lagoon. In addition to daily dive trips, guests can take ocean kayak trips, try surfing or detox and refresh with yoga, meditation, spa treatments and organic foods.
MAKE IT HAPPEN
If a Fiji dive trip is on your bucket list, Caradonna Adventures can make it a reality. The islands are now open to foreign travelers, and Caradonna's expert agents can arrange flights and transfers, recommend the best islands and resorts for your lifestyle and budget, and set you up for the perfect island escape. Just give us a call at 800-330-6611 or drop us a note at sales@caradonna.com.