Vanua Levu
Vanua Levu is the second largest island in the Fiji group with Savusavu as the recognized tourist haunt. Namena Island has a marine reserve area and has some great dive sites. Several luxurious resorts are located around Savusavu which also boasts a hilly background and white sand beaches. As with most of Fiji, the sunsets are spectacular.
Nasonisoni Passage – Advanced
An amazing drift dive that takes you through a large reef formation. One dive on the south side is a string of small coral covered bommies with heaps of marine life and pelagic. The other dive on the north wall drops around 20 metres, slows down and then drops again. Hang around the 20-30 metre mark and wait for the current to pickup. As you float by you will see barracuda, jacks and sharks and a mass of purple soft-coral trees.
Barracuda Point – Intermediate
This is a reef wall where if you drop of down to about 17 metres to a hard coral finger of about 100 metres where you will run into a school of barracuda. At the edge of the finger the reef drops away. Look out for sea fans, and schools of batfish.
Thumbs Up – Novice
Consisting of several sheer-sides pinnacles known as chimneys, they rise to around 24 metres and are covered in an amazing range of soft corals, sea fans and crinoids. Take care not to break off any coral branches. Scarlet cleaners are happy to clean the teeth of divers here, a rather weird experience. In shallower water you will find anemones, flame hawkfish and swirling bassets amongst other species.
Kadavu Group & the Great Astrolabe Reef
The group consists of two main islands, Kadavu and Ono. Kadavu is the fourth largest and is one of the least developed islands in Fiji. It was once considered the location of the new capital of Fiji but was luckily passed over for Suva hence retaining its natural beauty. There is little road system to speak of and most transportation is by boat. It retains a very traditional Fijian lifestyle due to being isolated from the rest of the country. This area is well known for scuba diving, kayaking and bird watching.
Yellow Wall – Novice
This dive is based on a narrow cut between two bommies with yellow stubby soft corals prevalent on the sides of the bommies. There are swim-throughs, windows and undercuts, again with yellow corals and is a great place to see reef sharks, lionfish and spiny pufferfish.
Pacific Voyager – Advanced
Another man-made wreck, the Pacific Voyager was sunk in 30 metres of water with access to holds, wheelhouse and crew quarters possible. Fish flock there in the hundreds as do tiny macro creatures such as shrimp and nudibranchs.
Split Rock – Intermediate
On the western side of the Astrolabe Reef this dive is a network of passages and reefs known as Alacrity Rocks. There is a mass of pinnacles with swim-throughs, caverns, splits and canyons. Huge red gorgonian fans can be seen as well as encrusting sponges in pink, yellow and white. There are also red and black and strawberry anemones.
Taveuni (The Garden Island)
A naturalist’s delight Taveuni is a mixture of evergreen rainforests, sparkling waterfalls and tropical flowers. Taveuni is also a favourite with bushwalkers and birdwatchers. The best diving is between Taveuni and Vanua Levu in the Somosomo Strait and also around Matagi, Laucala Islands and Qamea.
Great White Wall – Advanced
An amazing wall dive known as one of Fiji’s most famous dives and is blanketed with white soft coral. Beginning at 25 metres it drops well below the accepted recreational limit. The dive has swift currents that require advanced diving skills. Neutral buoyancy is necessary and gauges should be monitored closely. Further up is a swim-through cave that drops down to 25 metres with resident lionfish and squirrelfish.
Annie’s Bommies – Intermediate
In the centre of Somosomo Passage are several large bommies, smothered with soft coral gardens. When the currents are running the image is breathtakingly beautiful with the colors of the rainbow in all their glory. This is a more relaxing dive so take your time and observe the stingrays, moray eels and leopard sharks.
Bonnie’s Boulder – Novice
A large shallow pinnacle with a combination of hard and soft corals and pelagic fish, this is an easy shallow dive with moderate currents. Staghorn coral and colorful soft coral cover some of the pinnacle while the main pinnacle is aflush with hard coral garden. There are plenty of soft coral formations with whitetip sharks cruising by.
Bligh Water
Bligh Water is the area between Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. Consisting mostly of deep water, the now famous E6 dive site was discovered in 1994 from a plane that was searching for whales. It is a massive seamount that breaks the surface at low tide. Liveaboards frequent this area as it is difficult to access. A plus of this area is the exceptionally clear visibility due to its distance from river runoff.
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