Fiji holiday: Matava & Naigani

I am thinking about a holiday in Fiji: one week at Kadavu in the Matava resort and one week in the Naigani Island resort. I hope that some people have been there and can let me know their experiences (on both the resort and the diving).

Thanks in advance,

Deur

Deur:

I am thinking about a holiday in Fiji: one week at Kadavu in the Matava resort and one week in the Naigani Island resort. I hope that some people have been there and can let me know their experiences (on both the resort and the diving).

Thanks in advance,

Deur

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HI Deur,

FWIW: We are booked for a week at Naigaini next year...We made the choice based on lots of reading then we heard some positive comments from the owner of our LDS who went to Fiji last year on an 'educational' trip to scout out places for our club's next overseas trip. Naigani seems to be well located for the diving we want to do and not too upmarket, which is easier on the pocketbook...

Like you, I'd be curious to hear from others who've been there recently.

Deur,

I stayed at Dive Kadavu last June so I can tell you about the areas diving: it's sweet! I think Kadavu is the undiscovered jewel in Fiji and will definitely return this year or next. The Astrolabe looked pristine to me, and even with the mild runoff from the previous week’s rains the vis was good. I photographed everything I was hoping for on that 10 day trip: blue-ribbon eels, tons of nudibranchs, manta rays, sea-snakes, turtles and a host of other critters.

I heard from others I met on the outbound flight that Matava resort was very authentic and a nice place to stay. I will offer one small piece of advice: if you are a light sleeper, get a bure as far from the village as possible. Many families own coastal roosters, and coastal roosters don't only crow in the morning...they do it whenever the tide changes

Have a great trip!

-globetrotter

Hi Deur,

I have been to Kadavu several times over the last 10 years.

Matava: Used to be great when it was run by Australians (Mark, Andrew and Andrea), but my personal feeling is that it has since gone significantly down hill with new ownership. There appeared to be no recent maintanence conducted on the resort, prices have gone up, new owners were rather antisocial and most of all they haven't developed any new divesites in the last 5 years. They seem to be more interested in gamefishing these days. Regardless of whether they haven't developed more dive sites, the diving is good. The best spots are in the passages and outside wall. However, bear in mind that the southern side of Kadavu is very exposed to the prevailing SE trade wind which (May-Oct) can be in excess of 25knts and when the wind is up, one can't dive on the outside. They do have a very good manta site, where one can watch 10+ pacific mantas doing feeding loops (wicked!). My favourite dive site there is Naiqoro passage. If your an experienced diver, go to the bottom of the passage (~50m) and checkout a field of people-sized purple and orange soft coral trees. Also potential for BIG pelagic action (eg. silvertips, tigers, walu, wahoo, eagle rays). Awesome spot! Worth going to Kadavu just to dive Naiqoro.

I have also been Naigaini (surfing), but haven't dived there. Diving potential looks good. Unlikely to have killer softies, as there aren't too many passages nearby. People who dived with Dive Kadavu had a good time, but were concerned about the condition of their rental equipment. In addition, there was an accident (AGE) involving another diver while they were out on the boat.

Go, you'll love it. Good luck with the wind. Trade wind tends to do weekly cycles ie. blows like hell for a week, then backs off for a day or two, then wind for a week...etc

Naigani has some of the best, easiest and closest dive sites in Fiji - I was gonna book in there for a big group next year, but have heard that the resort has run down a little lately. The diving is superb, some of the best soft coral pinnacle diving you are ever likely to see. The fish life on top of the bommies is so thivk it is like diving in an aquarium. I'm going to Beqa now instead, but after two trips to Naigani (and a dozen other places in Fiji) I will return to Naigani once they renovates the resort a bit (which they must do as it is 30 years old and a little tired).

Deur:

I am thinking about a holiday in Fiji

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I've just got back from Fiji.

There's a dive operator called Koro Sun Dive in Savusavu that is very good - Colin Skipper runs it.

The 'related' hotel, Koro Sun Resort, is OK for what it is... It's clean, the food is great, and the staff a very friendly. However, there are no phones, TV's or radios in the bure. It's pretty basic.

There's a mob who package and re-sell holidays to Fiji and other Islands called Coral Seas Travel. I recomend you stay clear of them. They re-sell through travel agents so check with your agent to see who put the deal together.

I ended up in Nadi with no flights and no hotel. The Koro Sun Resort bailed me out.

You will have great diving at both places - but Naigani is my favourite with superb fish life. It is like diving in aquarium with so many small colourful basslets, fusiliers and trevally. Naigani is a gem of a resort in a beautiful location - it has some of the best diving in fiji and few people actually dive there - we have been there twice and usually were the only divers. It is not a divers resort as such - more family oriented. I have heard one or two unispiring reports lately about Naigani - it is getting tired and does need a refurb.

I visisted Mayave when it first opened about 10 years ago so my comments are probably out of date.

It also has excellent diving and is a nice very fijian experience - pretty rustic and on the damp side of Kadavu - mists perenially hang over the rain forest and I half expected to see a Brontosaurus grazing on the lush tropical vegetation. The diving is oriented more on walls with many drift dives. They now also do a Manta Ray dive with great success. I've just returned from Kadavu (wher I dived with Dive Kadavu at Matana resort) and the diving is better than ever - we had sharks on virtually every dive and the island is one of the most beautiful in the world. Kadavu is very traditional and "small town" - don't expect any fancy trimmings - everything is pretty basic and small scale.

After weighing up several options we're going to Beqa Lagoon Resort next year - which we have managed to get for a cheaper rate than either Naigani or Kadavu (when one factors in the domestic airfare). Beqa has tghe advantage of being a bus/boat trip rather than a plane/boat trip (Kadavu) or a plane/bus/bus trip (Naigani is quite a journey..)


Any of these options are great - enjoy the adventure, and be prepared to become fijian for a week or two.