thumbsplitter
Contributor
[h=2]Wananavu Beach Resort, Fiji[/h]
Resort: We booked a package with Wananavu Beach Resort that included 8 night’s accommodations, 7 days of two-tank dives, food, and transportation to and from the airport. Speaking of transportation, one of the big advantages of Wananavu is that it is located on Fiji's Viti Levu, which means that you don’t need to take a second plane after flying into the international airport. The staff and accommodations were fantastic and, although our main focus was diving, it certainly was relaxing to lay on our bed and look out at the ocean after a day of diving. There are also plenty of activities that the resort provides (for a fee), including village tours and horseback riding. Other activities, such as sea kayaking, were included in our package.
Diving: The best diving in the Bligh Water around Wananavu’s resort is located in the Vatu-i-ra Channel. However, it isn’t always possible to dive these sites because of the sea conditions. Luckily, of the 7 days we dove with Wananavu, the weather cooperated for 5. On the days when we couldn’t dive the Vatu-i-ra sites, we dove the more sheltered sites, closer to the resort. I should point out that these sites were also quite good, with some fantastic swimthroughs, plenty of soft coral, and sea life. In fact, I believe we saw as many sharks (nurse, grey, and white-tip) at these sites as we did at the Vatu-i-ra sites. We also did one shore dive on the house reef. The reef near the shore is very silty, so you have to be careful not to stir it up with your fins, but there were actually some very large nudibranchs, pipefish, and other little treasures hidden among the coral heads; a good option for days when you want to squeeze in a third tank, but an extra boat dive isn’t an option.
Dive-op: First, the boat was very nice with plenty of shade from the sun. When we had a lot of divers one day, it was a little crowded, but crew did a good job of getting everyone into and out of the water. There is a second, smaller boat, but we never went out on this. Before I say any more about the Dive op, it’s important to explain that the previous managers, Chris and Vikki, are no longer with the resort. Instead, Trevor is the new manager. Being new (at Wananavu less than a month?) Trevor was sometimes a little unfamiliar with a dive site, and couldn’t always help us ID the Fijian fish and critters we saw (his previous experience was mostly in the Caribbean). However, we assume that this won’t be an issue a month or two from now. We certainly liked Trevor, thought he was a good dive master, and he always went out of his way to try and provide us with the best experience possible, but we sometimes felt like we were in the middle of a transitional period between managers. Some things, like the quality of the dive briefings could use a little improvement. On the other hand, you certainly get the royal service: tanks changed for you, gear rinsed and dried each evening, etc. Although our package only included 2-tanks per day, we were able to add a third tank most days, including one night dive. It’s important to note that it may not always be possible to add a third dive if the other divers on the boat aren’t interested, but if this is the case, you can always shore dive, which was unlimited with our package (see above).
Issues/Room for Improvement: As I mentioned above, Trevor is new, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt about a few of the minor issues we had. One important issue that I don’t think will change anytime soon is the shortage of appropriate rental gear. Luckily, my wife and I brought our own 5 mm wetsuits and caps, but a lot of the other divers on the boat were very cold because Wananavu only had 3 mm to rent (fine for January, but not August). We were also glad that we had brought other nonessentials (e.g., tank markers for night dives) as these were also not available for rental. In general, my advice would be to email Trevor beforehand to make sure that you can rent anything you don’t bring along.
Summary: Fiji was some of the best diving I’ve ever had. The coral (soft and hard) was healthy, lots of fish life, and beautiful topography. Instead of trying to describe it all, I’ve included a link to the video I posted in the GoPro forum, which also includes some video of the resort:
http://youtu.be/DQSOP-gkd9Q
I would rate the quality of the resort and the dive op highly, and a good value for the service that you get, both above and below water.
--Thumbsplitter
Resort: We booked a package with Wananavu Beach Resort that included 8 night’s accommodations, 7 days of two-tank dives, food, and transportation to and from the airport. Speaking of transportation, one of the big advantages of Wananavu is that it is located on Fiji's Viti Levu, which means that you don’t need to take a second plane after flying into the international airport. The staff and accommodations were fantastic and, although our main focus was diving, it certainly was relaxing to lay on our bed and look out at the ocean after a day of diving. There are also plenty of activities that the resort provides (for a fee), including village tours and horseback riding. Other activities, such as sea kayaking, were included in our package.
Diving: The best diving in the Bligh Water around Wananavu’s resort is located in the Vatu-i-ra Channel. However, it isn’t always possible to dive these sites because of the sea conditions. Luckily, of the 7 days we dove with Wananavu, the weather cooperated for 5. On the days when we couldn’t dive the Vatu-i-ra sites, we dove the more sheltered sites, closer to the resort. I should point out that these sites were also quite good, with some fantastic swimthroughs, plenty of soft coral, and sea life. In fact, I believe we saw as many sharks (nurse, grey, and white-tip) at these sites as we did at the Vatu-i-ra sites. We also did one shore dive on the house reef. The reef near the shore is very silty, so you have to be careful not to stir it up with your fins, but there were actually some very large nudibranchs, pipefish, and other little treasures hidden among the coral heads; a good option for days when you want to squeeze in a third tank, but an extra boat dive isn’t an option.
Dive-op: First, the boat was very nice with plenty of shade from the sun. When we had a lot of divers one day, it was a little crowded, but crew did a good job of getting everyone into and out of the water. There is a second, smaller boat, but we never went out on this. Before I say any more about the Dive op, it’s important to explain that the previous managers, Chris and Vikki, are no longer with the resort. Instead, Trevor is the new manager. Being new (at Wananavu less than a month?) Trevor was sometimes a little unfamiliar with a dive site, and couldn’t always help us ID the Fijian fish and critters we saw (his previous experience was mostly in the Caribbean). However, we assume that this won’t be an issue a month or two from now. We certainly liked Trevor, thought he was a good dive master, and he always went out of his way to try and provide us with the best experience possible, but we sometimes felt like we were in the middle of a transitional period between managers. Some things, like the quality of the dive briefings could use a little improvement. On the other hand, you certainly get the royal service: tanks changed for you, gear rinsed and dried each evening, etc. Although our package only included 2-tanks per day, we were able to add a third tank most days, including one night dive. It’s important to note that it may not always be possible to add a third dive if the other divers on the boat aren’t interested, but if this is the case, you can always shore dive, which was unlimited with our package (see above).
Issues/Room for Improvement: As I mentioned above, Trevor is new, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt about a few of the minor issues we had. One important issue that I don’t think will change anytime soon is the shortage of appropriate rental gear. Luckily, my wife and I brought our own 5 mm wetsuits and caps, but a lot of the other divers on the boat were very cold because Wananavu only had 3 mm to rent (fine for January, but not August). We were also glad that we had brought other nonessentials (e.g., tank markers for night dives) as these were also not available for rental. In general, my advice would be to email Trevor beforehand to make sure that you can rent anything you don’t bring along.
Summary: Fiji was some of the best diving I’ve ever had. The coral (soft and hard) was healthy, lots of fish life, and beautiful topography. Instead of trying to describe it all, I’ve included a link to the video I posted in the GoPro forum, which also includes some video of the resort:
http://youtu.be/DQSOP-gkd9Q
I would rate the quality of the resort and the dive op highly, and a good value for the service that you get, both above and below water.
--Thumbsplitter
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