Will Northern Fiji Blow My Mind Away?

[cbm32]

Fiji can actually be cheaper than Coz (other than the airfare of course) if you know where to go and how to do it. Typo by someone above..."Bigh" waters is actually Bligh Waters, and yes that is a great area to dive, as is Namena and Taveuni. I had no luck the week I dove Kadavu, other than the two dives with the Manta Rays. I did many, many dives in Bega and found it pretty disappointing, other than the shark dives of course.

Resort | Ratu Kini Backpackers and Dive Resort, Mana island is owned by a friend of mine, Tui Kabu, and I have seen some pretty great video taken on dives there (never seemed to get time to get over there and dive it myself though).

 

[ColoDale]

I haved dived Fiji in the Taveuni area and Cozumel many times. I think the diving in Fiji is superior for fish life, soft corals and walls. The currents we were comparable in the Somosomo straights to Cozumel on a fast day though we did dive sites like Noel's and Yellow wall with little current and those close to shore on some islands. However the surge coupled with current made for some tougher dives. All dives we did were live boat drift dives in Fiji. Very similar to Coz for entry and exit (bigger boats so no backrolls as in my Coz trips).
Nadi to Taveuni was a short flight but we did have a mechanical delay going in that delayed us several hours but better safe than sorry. Coming out we made an unscheduled stop on Vanua Levu (or at least not on my itinerary).
The visibility in Cozumel is a bit better but we had very good visibility at many Fiji dive sites.
In Fiji we carried our own gear and on our trip the tanks were setup for us. Our resort/hotel did not have dive lockers so we carried our gear to the room every day. Other more dedicated dive resorts may have that kind of setup. Everyone in Fiji is very friendly and helpful in general.
The beaches were not expansive but nice. There is not alot to do where we were than dive, relax, look around nearby, eat, sleep, get a massage, and no party spots, but there are things to see in the area like Tavoro falls in Bouma Nat'l park. Cozumel is more lively for topside interests. Try to avoid the kids day at the falls though they can show you where the rocks are underwater so you don't break your back jumping in off the cliffs.

 

[JulieM]

Have been to Fiji eight times and Cozumel even more. The diving is amazing in Fiji. Definitely go to Taveuni. We stayed at Nakia and dove with Taveuni Ocean Sports. They are connected. We have over 1000 dives and Taveuni Ocean Sports is the best operator we have used in Fiji. Namena Island Resort was totally destroyed by Cyclone Winston. In Cozumel I would highly recommend Advanced Divers (Careyitos). They are simply the best. The tripadvisor reviews on both dive operators are accurate.