Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat in Fiji

“No road, no disco, no air con- no stress. Leave it all behind,”  proclaims the Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat‘s website.

When choosing our Fiji accommodations, we were looking for a few things: 1) proximity to top dive sites 2) seclusion 3) affordability 4) great reviews.

Dolphin Bay Divers met all of our requirements: 1) Packages include dives on over 20 sites on Rainbow Reef, one of the “top ten dive spots in the world.” 2) The hotel was completely secluded and cut off from everything. 3) For about $37 USD a night, we rented a furnished tent (with a bed), which included all of our meals during our stay. 4) All of the reviews for “dive resorts” around Rainbow Reef pointed to Dolphin Bay Divers as one of the best accommodations with high customer satisfaction.

Divers Do it Better

The third leg of our extended honeymoon, Fiji was all about the SCUBA diving for us. New Zealand was the adventurous road trip and French Polynesia was to relax and indulge.

Fiji’s best dive sites include Taveuni’s Rainbow Reef in the Somosomo Strait, Kadavu’s Great Astrolobe Reef, and Beqa Lagoon.

Rainbow Reef is home to the world famous Great White Wall. Named for it’s glowing white soft coral starting at 50 feet (15 meters) and reaching 215 feet (15 meters) deep, this wall is an underwater phenomenon. Like I wrote in my last post, it felt like being on the planet in the movie Avatar.

If there were Seven Wonders of the SCUBA diving world, this would be one of them.

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Getting there

To get to Dolphin Bay Divers, we flew, as most visitors do, from Nadi to Taveuni on a tiny, little plane.

Being on such a small plane meant flying low, which meant we had an incredibly scenic journey over Fiji’s beautiful land and seascape.

Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat is only accessible by boat; no roads lead here. The staff arrange for a transfer to pick you up at the airport, load you and your luggage into a water taxi, then speed off for the 20 minute journey to the beach retreat.

Approaching our beach home for the next few days, I knew we had chosen wisely.

Have you ever watched a show like Lost or a movie like Blue Lagoon, Castaway, or Six Days and Seven Nights and thought to yourself: I think I’d like to be stranded on a tropical island like that….at least for a few days….?

I know I have.

That was exactly the feeling we had when stepping on to this beach.

Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat

Our tent home was nestled in the jungle, at the edge of the property.

Not bad for $37 a night (although, at the time, I think we paid around $24- in 2010), which of course included all meals.

It was the most fabulous campsite I’ve ever seen. Our very own beach village (a la Lost).

Delicious, organic meals were enjoyed in the sand, amidst the palm fringed rainforest. Candle and moon light set the romantic evening ambiance.

Downtime between dives was for lounging in hammocks….

Who wouldn’t want to be stranded here for a little while?

Or swimming in the lagoon…

Or enjoying a happy hour cocktail or two…

Paradise.

Culture

Evening activities include a visit to a nearby resort (via boat) to watch dance performances by local villagers and participate in a kava ceremony.

Kava is something we came to know and love about Fiji. The locals take their kava every night and seem to have an extremely high tolerance for it.

Tasting like bitter grass or soap water (as some describe it), the drink kava is made from the roots of the kava plant (piper methysticumis). The herb’s roots have anesthetic and sedative properties. As soon as you sip, the back of your throat and tongue turn numb. To some, it is a relaxant. I found it to be a stimulant, so I avoided it after a couple of tries. What I loved about kava was not the drink itself, but the cultural ceremony surrounding it.

Then we were asked to join in the dancing.

Other activity options at Dolphin’s Bay include day trips to hike the Lavena Coast, Bouma National Heritage Park, and horse riding to the top of the volcano crater. There’s a trip to the dateline (180 meridian) and a natural water slide or an excursion to a plantation, rainforest and blow hole.

For more information on Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat, check out their website: http://www.dolphinbaydivers.com/

 

I received no form of compensation for this post. I simply enjoyed our experience at Dolphin Bay Divers and wanted to share it with all of you.