Viti Levu, Fiji Diving Suggestions apart from Beqa (shore diving ??)

[globalmark]

Hi

Myself and Partner Both Instructors going to Viti levu for 9 days and going to Dive at Beqa Lagoon,(Staying in Pacific Harbour) However where else in Viti Levu can we dive - Happy to do a Shore dive by ourselves , reef or Muck is there anywhere that we can rent a car for the Day and drive for a couple Hours find a Nice place to do a dive from the beach or short Boat trip etc .. (happy in a few M's off beach if good Dive) - best Dive done this Year was Secret Bay in Bali 2/3m Muck dive..

I have read a lot already and found Coral coast is not so good ?? how about north up the coast from Suva or back towards Nadi ??
any and all suggestions could be great .

Thanks Mark

 

[cbm32]

When do you plan to be in Pacific Harbour?

I am in the middle of week 5 of an 8 week trip to Fiji and will not be flying out until Dec 3rd (in Pacific Harbour right now and until at least Nov 26th----have not booked my last week here yet).

I did the shark dive with Bega Adventure Divers and, although it is a bit more like going to the zoo than I like, the sharks were VERY impressive. So far I have found the non shark diving in Pacific Harbour less than impressive, but Have only been to s couple of dive sites so far.

My favorite dives here so far were the Manta dive I did with Matava resort on Kandavu and the Shark dive. However, the most impressive dives so far in terms of corals and colors and abundance of life were on Naigani. The corals there are simply breathtaking and unreal fish life both in terms of species and sheer numbers. I also saw at least one shark on every dive there and often two. The dive sites were a short boat ride from the resort and the diving was very easy. Very little current and depths of no more than about 71ft at most on the four sites I went to.

Naigani was in the middle of a change in dive staff while I was there (long story) but scubaboard member Gret Buxton stepped in and saved the situation (THANK YOU GREG!!). The day I was leaving a new dive instructor came to the island and I am told that he is working out very well. The resort just bought all new dive gear and their main dive boat was sent for refurbishment while I was there. Even if that boat is not back, the diving from their other boat was easy (even for me and I have some spinal cord damage that sometimes makes things difficult for me).

For what you want, Naigani would be my suggestion (from my limited experience here). If you have any other questions just ask here or send me a private message. If you are going to be here while I am still around perhaps we could do a dive or two together.

Mike

 

[globalmark]

Hi Mike 5-8 weeks in Fiji sounds great

Thanks for the Reply, We are actually Arriving on the 22nd of this month and staying until the 1st Dec, staying in Uprising resort in Pacific Harbour - so should be there about the same time. We are both actually a Bit spoiled in Diving as have both been working Instructors (Maldives, Curacao,Spain, Honduras) and have dived all over the world. and on a Bit of a Budget which is why sometimes a Shore dive by ourselves is much cheaper and we love finding small things.

But I see Naigani looks good Just off the Coast - is there a easy way to get there ?? ferry or Boat Transfer , I presume you stayed there which we will not do as already have a Hotel Booked for our time there ..

Thanks Mark

 

[cbm32]

Bula Mark,

Our stays will overlap for a bit as I am just up the beach from Uprising at Fiji Palms until at least the 26th of Nov. We actually walked up the beach to Uprising a couple of days ago and had lunch there. Bega Adventure divers run a free shuttle from Uprising and Fiji Palms if you dive with them.

We will be Leaving Fiji Palms on the 26th of Nov and not sure where we will go for our last week. We might end up going back out to Naigani for the week of Nov 26th to Dec 3rd. If we do, we will be in a 2 bedroom Bure and you would be welcome to spend a night in our spare bedroom if you wanted to

Not sure what you would consider easy in terms of getting to Naigani. It would entail a drive of about an hour or an hour and a half to the jetty and then a 30 to 40 minute boat ride to the resort. All the dive sites are pretty close once you get to the resort and I am told that the shore diving is good too, but I didn't actually do any shore diving while there.

Keep in touch and we should be able to work out diving together a bit if you want to.

Vinaka,
Mike

 

[globalmark]

Hi Mike

Thanks for the Information and Offer of staying a Night - I would consider getting to Naigani pretty easy as have done alot of Backpacking worldwide when I was a Bit younger so a 1.5 hrs in a car and a 30min boat would be easy. Anyway Thanks for the Info and offer , Hopefully at the least we can meet for a Beer somewhere when our dates Cross .

Cheers Mark

 

[kkfok]

You can also consider to take a bus-and-ferry trip from Suva to Levuka in Ovalau. The dive center in Levuka offers diving around Ovalau and Wakaya which is good for pelagics and hard corals.

 

[globalmark]

Hi kkfok

Thanks for the Suggestion I will look into That - is that something that can be done as a Cheap day trip as really looking at ways of saving Money and diving Beqa lagoon is pretty Expensive so was hoping just rocking up to a Local place and maybe a house reef somewhere, But never having been to Fiji i have no idea how viti levu is for that sort of thing ..

Thanks so Far But keep the Suggestions coming
Mark

 

[fiji_diver]

Hi
Thanks Mike for your kind words

Suggestions.
1) Ovalau Water sports is not currently operating so you can rule out going to Levuka - nice as it is.
2) Shore diving from Naigani is OK, but maybe not worth the trip - perhaps I am spoiled though.
3) Naigani Boat diving is fabulous as Mike says, especially the sites he hasn't been to yet, i.e. E6 and Wakaya Passage. Sorry Mike.
4) The Naigani dive boat is still being refitted in Suva but I saw it yesterday and it should be finished in a week I hope, so when it is back, trips to Wakaya will be easy to arrange.
5) Beqa diving. I quite like some of the Beqa sites especially the ones further around the side of Yanuca like "Side Street". Another cool one is Frigates reef, but the Pacific Harbour operators don't go that far too often. I suggest you contact Brandon Paige at Aquatrek and ask if he will extend local rates to you as you are dive professionals. Tell him I sent you. He might even have a use for an instructor....
brandon@aquatrek.com
6) There is no shore diving from anywhere at Pacific Harbour.

One last suggestion is going to Cagali to dive. Not a day trip, neither is Naigani. Very basic accommodation, reasonable rates and great dives similar to the Naigani sites although they wil not be going to E6 and I doubt they go to Wakaya.

Have a great trip and give me a call if you need anything while here. +679 927 9938

Cheers
Greg

 

[fiji_diver]

I forgot to say, if you get bored with the beach and want to come up to Suva for the day, you can come out diving with me for the cost of air and fuel - about $60 per person for 2 tanks. In fact if you were here a day earlier, I could give you a job for a day Big load of cruise ship divers coming through Suva on the 22nd! I am turning them away at the moment....

Cheers
Greg

 

[globalmark]

Hi Greg

Thanks for the Info I will email Brandon and see what he says - good to Know and thanks for the Offer to dive at Suva for the Day for the Cost of air and Fuel, I will write your Number down and maybe give you a Call when we get there , we are very flexible with our Holiday time and nothing Planned except a Few days diving in Pacific Harbour so Could easily fit in with you better ..
Do you run a dive centre /business and where do you go out of Suva (is it reasonable Diving ??)

Thanks Mark