Hi all,
I am in the (very) early stages of planning a possible trip to Fiji / other Pacific island (?) next September, and at this point am mainly trying to work out if it is even feasible with my budget or whether it would be better to go elsewhere / leave for another time.
Some background:
I am currently living in Australia on a working holiday visa which expires mid Sept 2020. After Australia I am planning to visit NZ for 2 months Oct & Nov 2020, so I have 2 weeks spare in between for a solo diving trip.
Since this is the closest (and therefore cheapest flights) I'll probably be able to get to the Pacific in a while, I am keen to make the most of the opportunity to visit a new country and get in some fantastic diving. (Diving will be the main focus but topside activities i.e. hiking, culture, beaches would be a plus.)
I have about ~65 dives, AOW, and am comfortable with currents / drift diving. Most of my diving so far has been in Asia (Thailand, Malaysia, Bali, Komodo) and now Australia. Ideally, I'm looking for healthy reefs with a mix of big and small stuff.
My max budget for the entire 2 weeks is around £2000 (incl flights in and out), ideally less if possible, since I need to allocate money towards the NZ portion of the trip too.
Taking that into account - which Pacific island / diving spots / specific accommodations or shops would you recommend which are easily accessible from both Aus & NZ?
All the research I have done so far seems to suggest that to reach the best locations, you need to go via LOB (which is out of my price range right now) or are limited to all inclusive expensive resorts. There seems to be little in the way of budget accommodation like homestays, which I could stay at and then dive
separately with a shop of my choice (which is what I am used to).
At this point I am wondering whether it would be easier and cheaper to go back to Komodo instead, and leave the Pacific for when I have the budget to do it justice...
Thanks in advance
I am in the (very) early stages of planning a possible trip to Fiji / other Pacific island (?) next September, and at this point am mainly trying to work out if it is even feasible with my budget or whether it would be better to go elsewhere / leave for another time.
Some background:
I am currently living in Australia on a working holiday visa which expires mid Sept 2020. After Australia I am planning to visit NZ for 2 months Oct & Nov 2020, so I have 2 weeks spare in between for a solo diving trip.
Since this is the closest (and therefore cheapest flights) I'll probably be able to get to the Pacific in a while, I am keen to make the most of the opportunity to visit a new country and get in some fantastic diving. (Diving will be the main focus but topside activities i.e. hiking, culture, beaches would be a plus.)
I have about ~65 dives, AOW, and am comfortable with currents / drift diving. Most of my diving so far has been in Asia (Thailand, Malaysia, Bali, Komodo) and now Australia. Ideally, I'm looking for healthy reefs with a mix of big and small stuff.
My max budget for the entire 2 weeks is around £2000 (incl flights in and out), ideally less if possible, since I need to allocate money towards the NZ portion of the trip too.
Taking that into account - which Pacific island / diving spots / specific accommodations or shops would you recommend which are easily accessible from both Aus & NZ?
All the research I have done so far seems to suggest that to reach the best locations, you need to go via LOB (which is out of my price range right now) or are limited to all inclusive expensive resorts. There seems to be little in the way of budget accommodation like homestays, which I could stay at and then dive
separately with a shop of my choice (which is what I am used to).
At this point I am wondering whether it would be easier and cheaper to go back to Komodo instead, and leave the Pacific for when I have the budget to do it justice...
Thanks in advance
