Has anyone here been to Fiji ?

[Mattleycrue76]

And If so how did you like it? I'm considering a trip there next Jan. so your input would be appreciated

[fpoole]

Been there twice, last trip in July 08....

Beautiful.
Stayed at the Wananavu Resort
http://www.tropicalfiji.com/Resorts/wananavu_resort/

north end of the island
and then at Beqa Lagoon Resort - south side
http://www.beqalagoonresort.com/

Surprisingly, the diving was better on the North end of the island.. more colors. Not sure why.... but would go back but only to the northern end...
The Trip in July/Aug was like diving up in Seattle weather, only 20 degrees warmer.. their winter of course and it did get a little chilly.

[Mattleycrue76]

Hmm the Beqa Lagoon resort was actually the one I was considering... I probably wouldn't even be able to tell the difference since I've never been diving in warm water

[fpoole]

Well, that's perfect.
You can go there, resort is nice and then go back next time to the Northern side...

Unfortunately i haven't posted my pics yet... my bad, but you have a good one..
It could also be due to the time of year i was there. July/Aug... winter... might have had something to do with it.. dunno.
Hava good one...

[60south]

I spent 6 weeks there in 2001, crawling from island to island (the only days I didn't dive were on days when I had to fly). Here's a quick comparison of the diving, YMMV:

- Wananavu and the Island of Nananui-Ra... A wide variety of life, hard and soft corals, macro-critters, interesting reef topology. Easy access from Nadi. This would be a good first choice, especially for photographers. Wananavu is a nice resort, although fairly removed from any towns or night life.

- Pacific Harbor and Beqa Lagoon (you can dive Beqa -- pronounced "Ben-Ga" -- from either Marlin Bay resort or the town of Pacific Harbor on the main island, they both go to the same dive sites). A wide variety of sites, one or two wrecks, but the life didn't appear as concentrated as on the north (Nananui-Ra) side of the island. Still good diving. If they're still doing the shark dive, definitely go for it. (I saw 7 species of sharks on one dive, including a 12ft tiger shark!) Marlin Bay is supposed to be nice, although I didn't stay there. Pacific Harbor would be an excellent choice for divers on a budget -- good diving, a bus ride away from Nadi or Suva, and several choices of budget places to stay.

- Savu Savu. Don't bother. This would have been okay, the diving is alright, but the services seemed to be lacking when I was there. There's some premier resorts around, including the Cousteau resort nearby, but for my money I'd rather dive at Wananavu or Taveuni.

- Kadavu (pronounced "Kahn-Da-Voo") Island, Matava resort. Diving on the wild side! Remote, exotic, and laregly unexplored. The nearby Astrolabe reef is loaded with delicate hard corals and unexpected critters. It takes an hour long ride in an open boat just to get to the resort. Once there... you're in the wonderful, exotic middle of nowhere. I liked this, but the conditions are primitive and the diving rugged. Not a place for those who like cushy pampering.

- Taveuni. I stayed at the at the Garden Island resort and loved it. There's no beach, so the only thing to do is either dive or go bird watching. The Somo-somo straits are high current, exhilarating diving. Loaded with colorful soft corals. This was my favorite diving destination in Fiji.

Hope that helps!

glenn