The ocean is warm, turquoise, clean, and little in it stings or bites. The people are exuberantly welcoming, the drinking water is filtered. The food is safe and, in the upscale places, worthy of Michelin stars.
Despite a spate of recent development, it’s no Bora Bora, where development stacks upon development.
But American travelers have largely stopped frequenting Fiji’s virginal white beaches and simple but heavenly resorts since the military took over the government in a 2006 coup.
It’s their loss.
The word “coup” strikes fear into the hearts of travelers — understandably so. But this one in Fiji was gentlemanly and bloodless. It was even postponed for a day because of an important rugby match. Not a shot was fired, not a life lost. Most of the locals on the 300 outer islands heard about it days later, shrugged and got on with their lives.
Ignoring caution, my husband, Greg, and I decided to return to the islands, our first visit in 10 years. We were drawn by the Savusavu Music Festival, an annual event that brings in music groups from all over the South Pacific, and we were celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary. And then there is the small thrill we derive from ignoring travel warnings — unless artillery is involved. It wasn’t.
Honeymoons in Fiji
From Davui, we rode the helicopter back to the mainland, then took a four-hour boat trip west to the Yasawa Islands, probably the most classically tropical of the Fiji islands. They also have the best weather, getting less rain than the rest.
A string of powdery beaches, tropical brush, friendly villages and the bluest water imaginable make the Yasawas every romantic’s ideal.
We had booked a room at the barefoot-chic Navutu Stars, a new mid-range resort that is younger, more casual and hipper than the Likuliku and Royal Davui.
It was also about half the price. It’s run by an Italian couple who lease the land from the local village, and it has an organic feel to it. It’s the kind of place that has lounge music playing 24/7 and where people wear sarongs, surf shorts and lots of ethnic jewelry. I loved it.
The nine bungalows were simple and Mediterranean in style with whitewashed stucco, fresh hibiscus flowers on the bed and shells adorning the walls. It was marooned in the middle of miles and miles of blissful beaches and staffed by warmhearted villagers.
Twice a day, snorkeling trips or village visits were planned. I spent a thoroughly delightful afternoon at a nearby village where the women assembled in the community hall — a cinder-block room with no furniture — so they could sell shell jewelry, nothing priced above $10.
You can scuba dive in the Yasawas, although the diving is superior on Vanua Levu, the large, northern island in the Fiji chain and home to the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort, where we met up with friends for the Savusavu Music Festival.
The town of Savusavu is about as authentically Fijian as it gets. In 1994, California-based Passport Hotels bought a neglected resort on Vanua Levu and spent millions remodeling it, turning it into a mix of family getaway, dive resort and honeymoon retreat.
The place is staffed with exuberant Fijians, who whisk the offspring off in the morning and return them, tired and glowing, at the end of a day of pool play, native crafts and more. Divers love it because it has world-class diving. Honeymooners love it because there is more to do than sit on a beach, if that’s what they are looking for.
After flying from Nadi to Vanua Levu, we were driven across the island and to the end of a dirt road, site of the resort. A smiling woman awaited us at our enormous beachfront bungalow. Instead of handing us the typical juice and lei, she gave us a foot massage. I was sold.
Published by Turquoise Luxury Holidays
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