Fiji Dive Sites
Fiji offers some of the world's best diving. The links and brief descriptions given below list some of Kat's and my favorite places. Obviously we haven't been able to dive all the sites Fiji has to offer but we are working on it.
I was sitting in the lounge
of the luxury Fiji liveaboard Nai’a, talking with owner Rob Barrel when
I felt a violent blow on my ear and intense pain. Pain turned to confusion and
confusion to surprise. I had been hit by a barracuda which flew with unerring
aim through the port hole. We found the eighteen inch culprit still wriggling
on deck That’s Fiji for you. A place of constant stimulation and surprise, but
practically unknown to the American diver.
Fiji, a tropical nation of some three hundred and twenty islands, east of Australia
and north of New Zealand, is about ten hours flying time from LA. You board
at night and wake up in Fiji. The Tokatoka Resort, close to the airport, caters
for divers with day rooms and a capacious baggage room for items you don’t want
to lug around Fiji with you.
Around 850,000 people populate Fiji, 50% are big friendly Melanesian Fijians,
45% are Indians, mostly descendants of immigrants from India. The balance consists
of a polyglot of Chinese, Polynesians and Europeans. The official language is
English so you can communicate even in the most remote village.
In Fiji, you can dive with a dive operator, tourist resort, a dedicated dive
resort, or a live-aboard (Fiji Aggressor, Cere-ni-wai, Matagi
Princess II and Nai’a). They follow a similar routine, sailing
at night and diving during the day. On Nai’a we had four dives scheduled
daily but if you wanted more you could do so. I managed six on my last day but
if my dive computer had let me, I would have done more.
Nai'a started life in the Caribbean running "booze cruises." Found by Rob,
she was sailed to Fiji, stripped and overhauled. Glowing Fijian hardwoods grace
both the main salon and the cabins which boast a genuine queen-sized bed as
well as shower and toilet facilities. Each cabin is individually climate-controlled
by an air-conditioning unit that services the whole ship. There is a large camera
room with plenty of bench space and many power points for battery recharging.
The food on Nai'a is superlative and abundant. She is crewed by twelve
friendly Fijians, plus Rob and his partner Cat Holloway. Nai’a Cruises has pioneered
some of the best dive sites in Fiji, most notably E-6, a spectacular reef which
rises vertically from the ocean depths. A highlight was a night dive with flashlight
fish. During daylight dives dogtooth tuna circled the perimeter and distracted
me from the soft coral. There are scalloped hammerheads here as well as ghost
pipefish and the newly discovered Irish setter pipefish.
The ultimate excitement was at Nigali Passage which connects the lagoon surrounding
Gau Island with the ocean. At low tide the current rips out at 4 knots. Blasting
through this humming "Ride of the Valkyries" and doffing an imaginary hat at
the startled stingrays and gray reef sharks was a buzz that remains with me
still.
Old Fiji hands spoke disparagingly about the diving off the south coast of the
main island Vitilevu. Hotels discharged sewage into the sea which encouraged
algal growth and discouraged swimmers. But that’s all changed. I talked to Glenn
Cupit, the Fiji born owner of Pro Dive Fiji. Glenn explained that more visitors
and larger, more powerful, boats gave land-based resorts more flexibility now.
To emphasize his point he took me to the world renowned island of Beqa.
Our first dive, at a site called “Golden Arches”, characterized Fiji diving:
great soft corals, blue ribbon eels and a multiplicity of fish of every size
and shape. Oh yeah. I missed the turtle. During the next dive “ the wreck,”
I shot a roll of film pursuing butterflyfish through the profusion of hard coral.
We finished with the aptly named “Aquarium” where I saw my first juvenile blue
ribbon eel (which was black and yellow), some superb thorny oysters and a delightful
little fish called a dragonet (closely related to the mandarin fish of the aquarium
trade). It was a very tired but relaxed Paddy who arrived back at the Warwick
(Pro Dive Fiji’s main base) for a sundown Fiji Bitter with Glenn and his partner
Rowan Peak.
Marlin Bay Resort boasts a dining area built in traditional Fijian style with
the huge vaulting thatched roof characteristic of Fijian temples. The twelve
bures (villas) overlook a pristine beach.
Most dives in the Beqa lagoon are shallower than 100 feet. My favorite is E.T.
which features a number of swim throughs and fabulous soft corals, seafans and
wire corals. The dive guides led me to a two-inch long leaf scorpion fish after
telling me about it the night before. Extraordinary, you can fly 7000 miles
to visit a scorpion fish and find it in residence! Marlin Bay provides two boat
dives per day and there is also unlimited shore diving.
Beqa Island is home to the renowned firewalkers. In return for having its life
spared, a captured veli (spirit) bestowed on the Sawau people the ability to
walk on hot rocks. The ceremony starts with the beating of the lali (wooden
drum). Under the watchful eye of the master of ceremonies (bete), warriors remove
burning logs. Workers with vines and poles then level the stones until the bete
is satisfied. He takes the first exploratory steps. The crowd hushes, the tension
mounts, and then the walkers appear, stepping briskly over the hot rocks. One
of the walkers stops in his tracks, smiling at the onlookers. I expect to hear
his feet sizzle. The ceremony finishes with bundles of leaves spread over the
stones. Steam rises around the walkers. In my search for a rational explanation
I stop a firewalker and photograph his feet, which are sooty but otherwise unharmed.
We discuss it over a few bowls of kava, the social and ceremonial drink so beloved
by Fijians. The dinner gong sounds before we reach an answer.
The northern part of Vitilevu is only now being explored by dive operators.
One of the pioneers is Dan Grenier an ex-Marines Force Recon with a lust for
life and superlative dive skills. He operates Crystal Divers from the small
island of Nananuira just offshore from the sleepy sugar town of Rakiraki. His
new 39 foot custom-made aluminum dive boat Crystal Explorer equipped
with a 435 hp jet drive gives him the extended range to access sites previously
only available to live-aboards. A recent quote: “Had a great day today. I
had a 15 foot tiger come up to the boat. Then we had a pilot whale, a 9 foot
grouper and some giant morays 12” in diameter. The only problem was that I lost
dollars because after the shark sighting half my divers backed out of the dive.”
Dan’s recent discovery, Heartbreak Ridge, is a series of pinnacles coming out
of blue water 12 miles offshore. The pinnacles host schools of 500 to 1000 barracuda,
spanish mackerel , tuna, large silvertip and gray reef sharks. I concentrated
on macro-photography and thanks to Dan’s keen eye I shot several rolls of film
on “little critters.” Dan can host a few divers, accommodate them in rented
holiday homes on the island or ashore at Wainanavu Resort which provides the
most up-market accommodation in the area. Host John Gray and his family will
make you feel at home.
Vatulele Island Resort and the Wakaya Club are exclusive places with an all-inclusive
tariff (except diving on Vatulele). Accommodation and food are superb at both.
At Vatulele dining is usually communal which gives manager Martin Livingston
the opportunity to parade his outrageous humor to a captive audience.
Vatulele is rich in corals, big fish and has a great wreck site. It is home
to an extraordinary red prawn that lives in brackish limestone pools. Vatulele
is a center of excellence for making tapa cloth. The sound of women beating
paper mulberry bark with wooden hammers echoes around the villages.
Wakaya is visited by several of the live-aboards, which is a tribute to the
quality of the dives. Wakaya passage usually has resident hammerhead sharks,
and manta rays are common. The drop-off is steep and the visibility is excellent.
Wakaya is beautifully appointed and very diver oriented. It is an island of
the rich and famous. You can rent someone’s holiday home for a mere $2000 a
day.
If you want to experience the grandeur of the Namena lagoon stay at Moody’s
Namena owned by Joan and Tom Moody. Tom ran a resort in Panama’s San Blas islands
but when he had half his leg half blown away by terrorists who hung him in a
tree, soaked him with gasoline and set fire to him he decided to look for somewhere
… well … more Pacific. He found Namenalala, an uninhabited gem. High on a cliff,
which provides outstanding views of the Koro Sea, Tom built six hexagonal bures
crafted of hardwood and woven bamboo. Each has a king size bed and romantic
gaslight (a solar powered battery drives a small reading light and electric
fan). Even the main dining area is lit by gas. Wind generators, solar panels
and deep cycle batteries run this Eco-friendly resort.
With a maximum of 12 guests you are well looked after. The communal meals impart
a sense of being part of the family which extends to the diving. Everyone is
given an opportunity to say where they want to go.
Our first dive was at “The Tetons”. These twin coral bommies, separated by 50
yards, start at 70 feet and rise vertically to the surface. They are festooned
with seafans and soft corals. Thousands of brilliant purple and orange fairy
basslets swarm over and through it while schools of barracuda lurk in the depths.
Our final dive started at “The Grand Canyon” (a reminder that the Moodys are
American) and finished at “the Arch”. The Grand Canyon was truly grand while
The Arch, garlanded with soft corals, looked like a piece of transposed Utah
slick rock. When we came up from that last dive, my wife Kathy turned to me,
her eyes sparkling and said “I’m a big person’s diver now”. She truly came of
age as a diver in this superb environment.
If you are lucky, you can watch turtles from the main dining area. In January
and February you may be able to observe turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs
and watch the youngsters dig their way out of the nest and head for the water.
Qamea Island to the northeast of Fiji’s third biggest island, Taveuni, is lush
and green. Fijian collared lories (kula) flash through the trees while the truly
privileged will glimpse the “fluoro-orange” orange dove. Accommodation at the
Qamea Beach Club is sumptuous, the food is brilliant and they serve a mean Mai
Tai.
My favorite dive was “The Fans” on the Qamea barrier reef which has a profusion
of stunning fans and soft corals. Of course I missed the turtle. Qamea may be
the place for you if you have a non-diving partner. There is plenty to do and
there are frequent trips to Taveuni to visit local villages and waterfalls.
Jean-Michel Cousteau Fiji Islands Resort on Vanualevu, Fiji’s second biggest
island, is designed around divers. Because entry to the bathroom can be made
from outside, there is no need for a trail of wet sandy footsteps through your
bedroom. Small touches impressed me. No throw-away plastic bottles of shampoos,
soaps and body lotions. Instead, pint bottles are topped up from a bulk supply.
The hospitality is what you’d expect from Fiji. The margarita’s are big enough
to swim in and they serve the best cappuccino in the islands.
But it is the diving that makes or breaks a dive resort. Jean-Michel Cousteau
Fiji’s operation is run by expatriate aussie Gary Alford (wife Vicki runs the
gift shop which has a great collection of authentic Fijian arts and crafts).
While we headed out in the 37’ L’aventure Gary told me about this amazing
dive site called “Dream House. Once in the water, I encountered a current which
got stronger until at the top of “the ridge” it threatened to suck my mask off
if I turned my head. At the ridge, my eyes went wide and stayed that way. Fifteen
yards away was a tightly packed school of thirty juvenile gray reef sharks.
We were entranced by the marine ballet these three foot sharks gave us, that
is when our attention wasn’t distracted by dogtooth tuna, schools of barracuda
and trevally. This is not a dive for a beginner! On calm days Jean-Michel Cousteau
Fiji Islands Resort offers trips to the superlative Namena lagoon.
The South Pacific is the hot new dive destination with something for everybody.
Give yourself a break. Wind down, go and drink kava with the Fijians and take
in the best dive holiday you’ll ever have.
[Previous] | Moody's of Namena |
[Next] | Fiji Places to Stay |
[Up] | Country or Place |
[Home] | Home Page |
[Mail] | Send E-Mail to Pacific Island Books |
[Contents] | Pacific Island Books Contents |
Last modified on Thursday, July 10, 2003