Fiji vs Tonga vs Cook Islands

I'm based out of New Zealand for the next several months and will be taking a dive trip somewhere a little warmer. I've already gone to the Barrier Reef and want to explore some place new. I'm torn between Fiji, Tonga, and the Cook Islands. I can either go between August 23 - September 4 or in early November. Anyways, if anyone has any recommendations or opinions one way or the other it would be very much appreciated!

Hey,

I went to Fiji and Tong last year and loved both. Never been to the Cook islands so cant comment there.

Firstly, Tonga, we went around late August time, specifically for the humpback whale migration. Being able to get into the water with these magnificent animals is breathtaking and something I will never forget. It is snorkel only, unless you are already on a dive and a whale happens to come by. The diving is not really up to much, we did 2-3 dives one day but spent 3-4 days out snorkeling with the Whales. The days can be long if there are not many around that day, but most operators work together and to the rules to ensure that everyone gets to see them in the water. We used Beluga, they were outstanding and went above and beyond to get us the best experience.

Getting to Tonga from NZ is straight forward with direct flights to the capital and then a short domestic flight to the chain of islands called Vav'au where the whales hang out for the birthing season. There is one other Tongan chain of islands the whales visit where I believe you can also snorkel with them.

Accommodation in Va'vau is limited and not really to international standard, however we stayed at a really beautiful place called Mystic Sands, private bungalow, private beach with self catering option too. Highly recommend.

Fiji is far more established for tourism and the diving is far superior to Tonga. We dived the Rainbow reef from Taveuni Island and can honestly they were the best 6-8 dives I have ever done. So much soft coral, reef fish and critters, it really does justify its name. Colour everywhere.

We also did the shark dives at pacific harbor, great experience but not something i necessarily would rush to do again.

We enjoyed the diving in Fiji so much we have booked to return on a 10 day LOB next January which should give us a far wider experience of Fiji diving with sharks, corals, mantas etc

If you have any more questions I would be happy to help, either here or PM me.

My wife and I went to the Cook Islands in 2005. It is a beautiful place, but the diving is crap. We had 50 m visibility for every dive, but there were no fish nor was there any marine growth like gorgonias or sponges. Forget this one as a dive location.

Thanks for the information! My research has led me to pretty much the same conclusions; I guess it will be a matter of deciding if I want to swim with humpbacks or get some better diving in Fiji. Hutch what operator did you use in Fiji?

I'll confirm previous poster's position on diving at Rarotonga, Cook Islands. Short on fish and vizability was grim at some sites. Also, was suffering massive devastation from Crown of Thorns infestation. Otherwise, I quite enjoyed myself. Lots of white tips, close encounters on most every dive, swimming in toronado of barracuda, etc.

All that said, I became quite good friends with the dive shop owners. They took their dive holidays in Fiji!! Said they couldn't get enough. So Fiji is the right choice.

On Taveuni we stayed at Nakia resort and Dive, I can highly recommend them. A Beautiful family owned and run eco lodge. Very friendly owners and staff who couldn't do enough for us, particularly when we had a disruption to our flight schedule. Great hospitality and great food.
The daughter of the owners runs the dive op over the road and this manged in a similarly professional, friendly and safe manner. Great boats, staff and knowledge of the dive sites.
If we revisit Taveuni for land based diving I would not hesitate to book with them again.

In Pacific Harbour we stayed at Uprising Resort which was very nice but not of the same standard of Nakia and dived with both of the Shark dive ops (there are only two). I did prefer one but would have to check my log book to find out which it was.


Regarding flights, I would strongly advise against a tight schedule in Fiji (or Tonga for that matter) due to the tendency of Fiji Airlines (Pacific Air, regional and domestic subsidiary of Fiji Airlines and only operator in Fiji) to cancel, change their schedules. Build in time to protect your diving days. The airline truly adopts the notion of "Fiji Time", probably because they no longer have a competitor to whip them into shape.

Thanks again Hutch, I was actually looking at booking a special with Nakia, I'm fairly certain I want to go to Taveuni. Does anyone know anything about Scuba Bula in Viti Levu? Mostly the about the reefs and sites, their trip advisor reviews are fantastic, but I don't know if the diving is as good as Somosomo...

Bligh water in Fiji is fab diving. Wananavu or voli voli resort would be the closest land based. Siren fleet or the NAIA for liveaboard.
Niue is awesome for whales. Better than Tonga in that it is a much smaller operation, so you are guaranteed to get in the water if there are whales around. Some nice diving out that way too.