South Pacific paradise Fiji

South Pacific holidays - OCTOPUS RESORT, A HOTEL IN A DREAM LOCATION

You are looking for paradise on earth - we have found it.

Fiji - in the middle of the South Pacific - thousands of kilometers from next mainland.

White beaches, coconut palm trees, amazing coral reefs and the most relaxed people, you can imagine. Find all this on Fiji.

In our opinion the long journey from Germany was absolutely worth it.

The Octopus Resort [ad] on Waya Island completely won us over and was some of the best we have ever had.

Fiji Strand Octopus Resort

Location and Arrival in your South Pacific Holidays

Octopus Resort is located on Waya Island in the southern part of the Yasawa Islands. It is the only resort on the island. There is the village of the locals on the other side of the hill. Nothing else.

The Yasawas are an island chain northwest of the main island Viti Levu. It is a green jungle-covered tropical island with white sandy beaches and fabulous coral reefs in unbelievably turquoise waters.

By direct flight you travel from Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Los Angeles or Hawaii Hawaii From the other small Pacific island states, you can also get to the international airport of Nadi. (Say: Nandi)

You´ve got some options on how to get on the Yasawas and especially to Octopus Resort.

The first option is Octopus Resort's resort boat. We took this option. Walk three minutes from the airport to the Fiji Gateway Hotel - it's just across the street. There you will be picked up by Octopus Resort's minivan and taken to a small harbor. From there, you go full speed in 60 to 90 minutes directly to Waya and the Octopus Resort. The price is 175 Fiji Dollars one way - that's about 70 Euro. The boat is relatively small - but big enough to feel totally safe even when the sea is rough.

Alternatively, you can travel with the Yasawa Flyer by Awesome Adventures. The Yasawa Flyer is a larger multi-story boat that can accommodate many passengers. However, the Yasawa Flyer stopps at many - if not all - resorts of the Yasawas and therefore takes much longer with 2.5 hours to get you to Octopus Resort. The price is 165 Fiji Dollars one-way (a bit less than 70 Euros) including pick up at the airport or at the surrounding hotels.

If you go for this option, you get a glimose of some other resorts of the Yasawas. Just use the Bula Pass. For this, Matt has made a great contribution.

Alternatively, you can travel by Pacific Island Air floatplane for 423 Fiji (about 175 Euros) per person. You can also opt for helicopter, if you're rich. We're not sure about the price, but other guests said it's about 5,200 Fiji dollars (about 2,135 Euros).

We do not know more about this, however, since we did not travel by air.
No matter how you arrive, you will be welcomed by resort staff with a Fijian welcome song and a tropical cocktail. You can not feel more welcome.

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Equipment and Design - South Pacific Holidays

The accommodations

The resort has different room types. In total there are 33 accommodation units. In Octopus Resort, every wallet will find its room.
The cheapest beds are those in the dorm accommodation with about 45 Fiji dollars (just under 20 Euros).

The second cheapest category is the bungalow for two persons. Here you'll use the shared bathroom, which is cleaned several times a day. In addition to a double bed you will find a wardrobe, a safe and a small terrace with two chairs and clothesline.
We have chosen this option. We have paid a good 120 Euros (close to 300 Fiji dollars) per night / bungalow.
For us, this option was perfectly fine.

The photos below are from Bungalow 3.

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In ascending order, you can go for the garden bure (459 Fiji dollars, 189 euros), beach bungalows – so called Poppys (768 Fiji dollars, 316 euros) and beach villas - the Point Villas (851 Fiji dollars, 350 euros), each with its own bathroom book.
In addition, there are family villas with two or more bedrooms.

Our last three days we spent in a beach villa. That was really awesome. Outdoor bathroom, lovely huge bed, fridge, private beach access with loungers and hammock. I could not imagine any better beach holiday.
The following photos are from our Villa Point 3.

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No matter which accommodation you book, in addition you always pay the meal plan of 119 Fiji Dollars per night (about 50 Euro for breakfast, lunch and dinner including water and coffee).
All prices are the official ones of the resort. Sometimes you'll find good offers on their website and on booking platforms. Look in repeatedly. But beware, the prices on the resort website are in US-Dollars, not in Fiji Dollars. A serious detail, that we almost overlooked when booking our extension.

The resort is basically cash-free. You pay at the end by credit card. A little cash helps, though, as you may need some coconuts, crafts or want to tip the lovely staff.

Internet is available at the resort. The connection is not very reliable. If you have something important to do, just let the reception know. There is a stable connection for the management of the bookings.

The beach

The beach at Octopus Resort is gorgeous - fine sandy and white.

It is divided into a “public” area and an area reserved for residents of beach bungalows and beach villas. Of course, the other visitors are allowed to swim, snorkel and go for a walk. The beach chairs at the demarcated area are provided for the residents of the beach accommodations. The public area is for residents of the Dorm, the bungalows and the Garden bures. On both beach sections there are beach chairs, umbrellas and hammocks. If there is room for improvement, the public area could be equipped with a few more beach chairs. If you need two beach chairs with umbrella, you should not show up later than nine o'clock on the beach.

The beach chairs are quite attractive in design. Dark wood with blue pads. The umbrellas are made of natural materials. The coconut palms give some shade.

The pool area comes with some nice loungers with comfortable cushions.

Showers to flush the sand from body and feet are sufficient.

Towels for bathroom and beach are provided in your room. So, you do not need to spend half of your suitcase for towels.

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The Beach Bar

The Coconut Bar at Octopus Resort is run by Tim and Tom. Yes, the two are really called that and do a great job.

Located right on the beach and equipped with cool lounge furniture, the bar always offers a shady place in the afternoon sun.
Here you will always find someone for a nice chat in between.

The price for a glass of white wine is 9.50 Fiji Dollars (under four Euros). A beer is 10.50 Fiji Dollars. A cocktail is 27 Fiji Dollars (ten Euros). Every day there is another cocktail of the day for 15 Fiji Dollars (six Euros).

All drinks are very good. The cocktails are mostly tropical and mixed with Fijian rum or other spirits. Of course, plastic straws are not used.

The highlight of the bar day is definitely the happy hour from 4pm to 5pm. With Fijian music and blowing the Conch, the best hour of the day is loudly announced. In happy hour, prices fall by about a third. Beer costs 7 FJD, cocktails 20 FJD.

On some days there are also fresh coconuts at the bar. Just ask.

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The restaurant

The restaurant is located about ten meters from the ocean. The floor is covered with white sand. Enough tables and chairs for all guests are available. There are many eager employees around, serving drinks and food.

Breakfast is served buffet style from 7am to 10am. Egg dishes, beans and sausages as well as many other savory dishes are complemented by sweets such as muffins, donuts, pancakes, bread, jams, honey and fruits. Enjoy filter coffee, juices and soup.

For lunch, you can choose from a fixed menu between 12:30pm and 2pm. In addition, there are three changing Specials of the Day, which you can read on the board at the restaurant's entrance.

For dinner there are changing theme evenings. Sometimes a delicious buffet is served, sometimes you choose from a la carte menu. Fridays is always Fijian Lovo buffet with local dishes.

See an overview of the weekly menu plan.

At all meals, there are always options to eat fish, meat or vegetarian. Also, restrictions like gluten free or vegan are taken into account. Tell them well in advance.

The quality of the food was excellent every day. We loved it.

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Activities - South Pacific Holidays

Basket Weaving

You will learn to weave a basket from a large coconut palm leaf under the guidance of lovely Andi. The course lasts about an hour and is free of charge. The basket is ideal for your beach items such as mask and snorkel.
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Jewlery Making, Voi Voi Weaving and Craft Market

This activity teaches you to craft bracelets or necklaces from small shells or Voi Vois. These are made of plant fibers that serve as a hatband, bookmark or bracelet. If you're not fancy doing handicrafts yourself, simply buy the jewelry at the Craft Market. According to the resort management, there are no customs-related problems when exporting this little shell souvenir. But be careful with the large conchs or when exporting shells, corals (never break coral!) and other animal and plant products. Always be aware of export rules in the country and the conditions of import into your destination country. Best option is to leave all natural things and things made of them where they belong.
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Snorkeling

One of the main reasons for South pacific holidays is probably the sensational turquoise blue ocean and the wonderful and healthy reefs.
Put your head under water. Borrow mask, snorkel and fins for free at the Diveshop.
Snorkel the wonderful house reef. We were several times a day at the reef, because we could not get enough of it.

If you'd rather snorkel under guidance, take part in one of the snorkeling activities.

What was really amazing, is the option to do a guided Night Snorkel. Go with your experienced guide after sunset for about an hour. You´ll get a strong torch. The reef is quite different at night. We have seen octopuses, lobsters, sepia and a lot more.

If you prefer snorkeling during the day, why not take part in Waya Boat Snorkel. You will visit another reef. Also really cool.

A highlight, that we could not enjoy due to the season, is Manta Snorkeling. Between May and October, huge manta rays visit the area. Unfortunately, we came too late this time.

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Mountain Hike

The Hike on the island's mountain is relatively long with three hours and exhausting. You start at Octopus Resort and continue along the beach, past the village and up the mountain. In the beginning you'll pass dense jungle, then on an open area and in the end, it even comes to climbing.
Overall, the path is relatively steep and brought us close to our limit. The view from the summit on the reef, on Waya island and the surrounding Yasawa islands definitely compensates for all these hardships. Take shoes with sufficient profile. We were very happy about our hiking boots. Other participants slipped a lot with their sneakers. Only Rex, our guide, had no problems. He was barefoot.

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Fiji Cooking Class

We prepared the Fijian dish Kokoda (Say: Kokonda) at the cooking class. Raw fish is marinated in juice of lemons and limes. The fish is served with vegetables and in a broth of coconut milk. You will even learn how the locals produce coconut milk and participate yourself. The Kokoda was absolutely delicious.
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Massage

The Octopus Resort has its own cute little SPA offering traditional massages and other treatments. See the SPA menu.
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Diving the South Pacific on your holidays

Octopus Resort has a small PADI dive center run by Kuki, the divemaster. There are three daily dives at 9, 11 and 2 o'clock.
They go for more than 30 different dive spots with the reliable dive boat Scuba-Doo. With Kuki and Jodie we have always felt in good hands. That the South pacific and Fiji has an amazing coral world, we probably do not need to tell you.
The equipment made a good impression to us.

The price for a dive with guide and full equipment is from 55 Euros, if you make more dives.

Several times a week, they offer Discover Scuba Diving in the pool.

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If you are more culturally interested, go for the Village Walk, Church Visit or traditional fishing. We did not participate and therefore cannot comment on it.

Even for the smallest Octopus Resort offers activities at the Squid Kids Club.

Conclusion - South Pacific holidays

Octopus Resort far exceeded our expectations and gave us an incredible time. The beach, the ocean, the reef and above all the friendliness of the locals are beyond all our expectations.
Yes, the journey is long, but definitely worth it. Maybe you can connect your trip to Fiji with Asia, New Zealand, Australia or the USA to cut the costs.
We would love to repeat that South Pacific holidays experience one day.

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