Archives: Destinations

As an island destination, Denarau has a lot to offer tourists and visitors in terms of activities. One of those activities includes water sports, diving, and snorkeling. There are plenty of operators on the island who provide these activities as part of packages or individually. One of the biggest operators for such activities is Adrenalin Watersports. Visitors can also go island hopping through the Mamanuca and Yasawas archipelagos.

But one of the most popular activities here is Golf, since the island is home to an extremely popular 18 hole Golf Course. The course is designed to cater to all kinds of golfers, irrespective of skill level. Combined with a magnificent view of the ocean and the mountains, this Golf Course has one of the most scenic locations on the island.

As for shopping, the Port Denarau Retail and Commercial center is the place to be. From top of the line stores to spas, visitors can find anything here. The center also houses fine dining spots and offers various activities for all age groups.

Cafes and restaurants are not at all hard to come by at Denarau, as they are a standard part of Fijian culture. Apart from Fijian cuisine, visitors can also find plenty of restaurants that specialize in Japanese, Korean, and Indian cuisine as well. Another interesting aspect of local dining is that the freshness of food is given high priority here, which means most of the places are very safe to eat at.

Fijian cuisine, not surprisingly, includes plenty of seafood. However, pork, chicken, and lamb aren’t uncommon either. Popular local dishes include Paulsami, which consists of baked taro leaves that are marinated in coconut milk and lemon juice and combined with meat/fish, garlic, and onion. The island is also known for its wide range of tropical fruits, which can be purchased or sampled at any farmer’s market.

Starch-based foods are also a common aspect of Fijian cuisine, which means potatoes, yam, taro etc. are part of the staple menu.

There are plenty of locations to explore in and around Denarau. For instance, visitors can visit the Garden of the Sleeping Giant located in the nearby city of Nadi. The garden, which once belonged to popular actor Raymond Burr, is a plant lovers delight. It occupies an area of 20 hectares and is home to several exotic varieties of flora, especially the native Fijian orchid, which is one of the major attractions here. The garden is open to visitors from 9 AM to 5 PM and entry is around $10.

Visitors can also hop over to the neighboring islands of Mamanuca and Yasawa, which are famous for their beaches and coral reefs.

Another interesting location, for adults and children alike, is the Fiji Museum. Visitors curious about Fiji’s history will find their curiosity satiated at the museum, as it houses several historical artifacts and exhibits that highlight various aspects of Fiji’s culture and tradition.

Tourists can find several interesting activities to do in the Mamanuca Islands including swimming, sailing, snorkeling, coral viewing (semi-submersible), kayaking, swimming next to reef sharks, hiking, windsurfing, mini-golf, village tours and exploring isolated beaches.

In addition to these activities, there are some brilliant dive sites on the Mamanuca Islands, particularly the Supermarket and Gotham City. Surfers can find several decent breaks close to the southern islands.

Lazing under the sun can be an ideal way to relax and enjoy the island’s beauty and calm. There are plenty of secluded islands such as the Monuriki (featured in Cast Away) and Bounty Island for this kind of peaceful relaxation. If you’re looking for good walks, head to the Navini and Tokoriki islands. You can indulge in some brilliant native bird-watching as well game fishing.

You can also find several tours taking place on the Mamanuca Islands which help offer you an escape from the huge crowd.

Quite naturally, seafood is a staple on the Fiji Islands. There is amazing cuisine offered on the Mamanuca Islands, particularly its seafood. A very surprising fact about the cuisine on this island is that the food is quite strongly influenced by the Indian cuisine. It was the Indian laborers who introduced several interesting dishes in the 1800’s and 1900’s.

If you’re visiting the Mamanuca Islands, you must try the rourou soup, kokoda as well as some refreshing tropical fruit.

Kokoda is known to be a popular Fijian delicacy and tastes like ceviche (Hawaiian poke). It is made with raw fish pieces marinated using coconut milk and lemon juice and is typically accompanied by onion, tomato, and pepper.

A Lovo is famous as a classic feat meal. It is prepared by cooking inside the earth and tastes similar to barbecue. It considered as an efficient mean to prepare large food quantities.

It is quite easy to access the Mamanuca Islands via light plane that takes about fifteen minutes from Nadi. The islands are also accessible by catamarans and boats travelling between the islands and Nadi. Tourists can find several tours taking place all across the island which allow you to escape from the chaos.

At a distance of merely thirty minutes from Denarau, the South Sea Island can be a fun day trip for the family. It has many activities to offer such as a swimming, kayaking, snorkeling, coral viewing, etc.

You can explore Mamanuca’s beautiful lagoons, beaches and clear waters onboard ‘Seaspray’ which is an old sailing schooner, and takes you to the secluded island of Modriki and other places on the island.

Get lessons in Fijian craft, do coral viewing and have delicious cocktails at a brilliant bar. You simply cannot miss scuba and snorkeling when visiting Beachcomber Island.

From the air you can see that the Mamanucas group is two clusters known as Mamanuca-i-ra and Mamanucai- cake. Within the Mamanucas is the Malolo group, five kilometres inside the barrier reef, extending in a curve for 120 kilometres. A number of resort islands are scattered throughout the Malolo group, each offering bure accommodation, a relaxing holiday atmosphere and a range of water activities. There are boat excursions, fishing trips and water sports including waterskiing, windsurfing, snorkelling, diving, sailing, speed-boat rides and coral viewing. Malololailai is the centre for most tourism to and from the Mamanucas. It has safe anchorage, a cosmopolitan community and an airstrip serviced regularly from Nadi.

Twenty kilometres north of Nadi Airport is the city of Lautoka, which is a major commercial and administrative centre. It is an important seaport and home of Fiji’s Sugar Corporation, the largest sugar mill and the South Pacific’s largest distilleries.

From Nadi you can visit the Momi guns, bunkers and gun emplacements installed to repel a World War II invasion by the Japanese which never eventuated, or take a trip to Mt Victoria, Fiji’s highest peak with three native reserves and breathe the clean, still air which is found only above sea level. There are day cruises to both island and jungle locations and cruise boats will pick you up from Port Denarau Marina and take you down the Nadi River and on to the Mamanucas Islands.

If scuba diving is one of your hobbies, why not join one of the schooners departing from the Denarau Marina at 9.30 am daily. You can choose between one or two-day dive programs. Non-divers are catered for with snorkelling equipment.

Nadi has one of two international standard 18-hole golf courses in Fiji. It lies within easy reach of the town’s hotel belt.

The town itself is small in comparison to the capital, Suva, but is still a bustling center of business with around 20 hotels dotted along its undulating coastal fringe, providing holidaymakers with everything they desire. It also acts as a gateway to other Fijian destinations.

The starting point for many scenic tours and sporting activities, Nadi is close to Viseisei Village, regarded by most Fijians as the ‘foundation village’ of Fijian heritage and culture.

Also close by is Fiji’s largest privately owned gardens, the tropical Waqadra Botanical Gardens, open from Monday to Saturday. Driving north from Nadi past fields of sugarcane and the occasional glimpse of an offshore island, are the towns of Ba and Tavua.

In Ba, you can visit the bazaar, pick up some handicrafts or go river rafting. At Tavua, don’t miss a visit to the nearby Vatukoula Gold Mines. If you haven’t timed for a whole day of sightseeing, try a half day tour to Sabeto Valley with its mosque. Also worthwhile is a visit to the bustling marketplace, where all sorts of fresh produce are sold. Bartering is a way of life here, and is also a lot of fun!

The Taveuni Island is popular for its wide range of dive sites like the Eel Reef as well as the Great White Wall, a stunning drop-off that is covered in pure white coral. In 1990, a Marine Park became a huge attraction at Waitabu as it combines coral and fish.

The Bouma National Heritage Park serves both hikers as well as nature lovers as it offers world-class birdwatching and spectacular hiking trails. Tourists will be able to spot a variety of bird species on the Taveuni Island including Silktails, Kula Lorikeets and Orange Doves.

Matei, a residential location on the northern point of Taveuni is also a popular ‘tourist hub’. There is a scatter of hotels, rental properties and guesthouses along the long road stretch which is crowned by beautiful palm tree plantations and bordered by the beach. Tourists can engage in swimming and diving activities in this area.

Similar to the other areas in Fiji, food on the Taveuni Island is a typical combination of freshly sourced fish, other seafood and traditional root crops of Fiji like tapioca (cassava), taro, Fijian spinach, breadfruit, eggplant, western vegetables, avocados, etc. The cuisine is made even more flavorful by the incorporation of delicious tropical fruits like mangoes, guava, papaya, pineapples, coconut. There is also the influence of typical Indian cooking in the form of curries and addition of chilies and other Indian spices.

The locals on the Tavenui Island traditionally eat their food while sitting on the floor using their hands, even though the use of fork and knife is acceptable in modern Fijian culture as well. This way of eating has its roots in the earlier colonization by the British.

The “logo”, also called Fijian “oven” forms a traditional element of the Island feast. Food is prepared over a stack of very hot rocks and shielded from the top by banana leaves or coconut palm leaves.