Going to Fiji for the Honeymoon!

[Whitten]

Hey everyone, I wanted to post a little thread about my up and coming trip to Fiji for my future wife and I's honeymoon.

I had been doing a bunch of research about places to go and managed to run across a really cool guy by the name of Kleon Howe over at The Art of Travel. After reading several stories on the board here I decided I definitely wanted to spend the extra cash and do something different and so I set out to put together a trip to Bora Bora...yeah well needless to say it was way out of my reach. After talking with Kleon about Fiji and reading many of ya'lls threads I decided I was really cool with the idea of going to their and getting more for my money.

So here is the plan.

We get married on the 24th of May(9 days away and counting). We leave the 25th and should arrive on the 27th.

After arriving in Nadi we will take a helicopter to our first stop....We are so excited since we have never been on a helo before.
Our first stop is at Matamanoa and we will be staying for 5 nights there.
Matamanoa Island Resort Fiji
Then we take another helo over to Tokoriki Resort for 3 nights there.
Tokoriki Island Resort Fiji

I plan on diving at both resorts but my future bride unfortunately will not. She is not very comfortable with the idea of diving yet and I don't want to force her because we know what that can lead to. At any rate I will more than likely only dive once but will snorkel like crazy.

I was kinda hoping that any of ya'll that have been to fiji could give me some pointers, good contacts for dives or just some good stories about your own experiences. Any advice or warnings are also appreciated as I have never been this far away from home before. Also we are interested in doing some hiking on the islands that we are staying at and would love to know what else there is to do.


I have an underwater camera so I will be taking tons of pictures and promise to post some when we get back from our awesome trip

Thanks in advance for the help and interest.

 

[diveborg]

Let me get this straight, you are a diver and you are marrying someone who isn't a diver?

Seriously, congratulations. You're going to have a great trip.

 

[KeithM]

My wife and I have been to Matamanoa 3 times and love it. There is some great snorkelling there, particularly on the opposite side of the island to the resort - Sunset Wall. They run free boat trips every day - it is pretty hard to get to otherwise. My favourite divesite is Yadua Pinnacles. Be sure to climb to the top of the hill at least once, a bit of a scramble but wonderful views. If you go across to the place everyone puts their little stones saying when they got married (and suitable mushy comments) you might even spot one from some oldies called Keith and Lorraine - we went there first on our 25 wedding anniversary!

I've only seen Tokoriki from the boat so I can't comment much, looks nice though.

Both resorts have their own dive operations and on Tokoriki there is another one at the other resort on the island.

 

[almitywife]

warm tropical hideaway... YOU SUCK!

oh im sorry - did i say that outloud

enjoy your adventure!

 

[Whitten]

Let me get this straight, you are a diver and you are marrying someone who isn't a diver?

Seriously, congratulations. You're going to have a great trip.

I know...seriously though I got kinda mad at her the other day because she would not even try it out in the shallow end of the pool. I figure after a couple of years of seeing me going on dive trips that she may get brave and decide to get certified.
Thanks for the congrats.

My wife and I have been to Matamanoa 3 times and love it. There is some great snorkelling there, particularly on the opposite side of the island to the resort - Sunset Wall. They run free boat trips every day - it is pretty hard to get to otherwise. My favourite divesite is Yadua Pinnacles. Be sure to climb to the top of the hill at least once, a bit of a scramble but wonderful views. If you go across to the place everyone puts their little stones saying when they got married (and suitable mushy comments) you might even spot one from some oldies called Keith and Lorraine - we went there first on our 25 wedding anniversary!

I've only seen Tokoriki from the boat so I can't comment much, looks nice though.

Both resorts have their own dive operations and on Tokoriki there is another one at the other resort on the island.

That is some great advice, thank you so much for your ideas. We are definitely going to do all of the above. She loves to hike and we were hoping to have some trails to explore. She is excited to go snorkeling so I figure we will do a whole bunch of that.

warm tropical hideaway... YOU SUCK!

oh im sorry - did i say that outloud

enjoy your adventure!

I know...trust me I am in shock that we are doing this as well. It is such a blessing to be able to go on this trip, and to Fiji no less. We are so greatful and feel so blessed that we were able to put this together.


Keep the comments coming, we love reading about suggestions, and what not. Also she had a concern about things to watch out for dangers wise. I am an accomplished aquarist and have alot of experience with the local underwater wildlife but she was curious about other things to be weary of including people.

 

[BlueDevil]

Fiji is a great country and the people are very friendly. Security wise you shouldn't have anything to worry about. The food over there is really good. Depending on where you are staying you often get a mix of traditional Fijian food, and Indian food as well, due to the influence of the large Indian population.

If you are in Nadi be a little wary of the taxi drivers and shop keepers since they some times try the 'hard sell'. If you don't want their services just refuse them.

I don't know about the areas you are staying but we often stay on islands where there are villages and schools. We always take some gifts for the local school since they are often quite poor. Things like pencils, pens, sharpeners, erasers, scissors maybe even a small cheap calculator or two etc. These gifts are always much appreciated and are put to good use. The primary schools are often desperate for simple childrens books to help teach the children English.

Try drinking some kava - it is part of Fijian culture and it tends to make your lips and mouth tingle a bit. If you have enough of it you may feel a little intoxicated or sleepy. However I warn you that it tastes like mud and you are expected to drink a whole bowl full in one go.

Try to get into the Fijian culture and make the effort to learn a few Fijian words. But I warn you the spelling of Fijian words is quite bizarre and puzzling at first until you get the hang of it (eg 'c' is pronounced as 'th' so a word such as 'moce' is pronounced 'mo-thay' etc)

Drinks can be a bit expensive at the resorts so it can be a good idea to buy a bottle of duty free (whisky or whatever takes your fancy) and pick up some coke at the airport so you can have a drink or two in the evening without paying bar prices. The local beer, Fiji Bitter, is quite okay if you like beer, and if I remember correctly there is also a Fiji Gold beer which is a little dearer.

Hope you have a good time!

 

[Hooked4Life]

Whitten : Congrats to you and your future wife.

We are also going to Fiji for our honeymoon in a few weeks. We were certified together years ago and havent looked back. We wouldnt dream of going on a honeymoon and not diving, so we are going on a liveaboard.

From everything I have seen about Fiji we are very excited. Definitely is a trip/honeymoon you will never forget.

 

[Papa_Bear]

Here are some wedding pictures of a wedding we arranged for two of our divers:

Two Tanked Productions HD & SD Underwater Productions and video services

 

[Whitten]

We are back!!


All I can say is "wow what a trip."


We have never traveled like this before and what a pleasant and wonderful surprise was it to make Fiji our first ever. I have so many pictures to share and stories to tell it is insane 10+ gigs worth to be exact.

At any rate I did 3 total dives while were there. Ginny had some issues with her ears so I couldn't get her to try the discover diving experience on this trip. We snorkeled every day however and I have never seen such beauty in the water... Matamanoa has some of the healthiest and most diverse reefs I have ever seen. As avid salt water reef keeper and researcher I can tell you that I was absolutely blown away. Tokoriki is just as beautiful but is totally different in both coral life and sea life due to the barrier reef that it has in front of the resort. Also got a chance to go to Modriki the island that they filmed Cast Away on, and that was breath taking to say the least.


I will have a pictures and a write up here shortly after I catch my breath.

 

[BlueDevil]

Great to hear you had a good time. Fiji really is a beautiful place. I have been there 5 times now and will definitely be returning on a frequent basis. I am getting the impression that you too will be returning there before long!!!

PS Give Beqa Lagoon Resort a try next time!