Cruising Fiji's Yasawa Islands: The happiest place on earth

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Cruising Fiji's Yasawa Islands: The happiest place on earth

Discover the lesser-known Yasawa Islands with a cruise company that's been navigating its waters for more than half a century.

By Sheriden Rhodes
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I'M lolling in the shallows of a private beach on Drawaqa Island, in the remote Yasawa Islands, being serenaded by a young, handsome Fijian man. It's not what you think. Tubu, a crew member of Blue Lagoon's Fiji Princess, is in fact rehearsing for international night, where passengers from different nations are pitted against each other and the mostly male crew. From the harmonious strains drifting dreamily across the tropical fish-filled waters, we clearly don't stand a chance.

In Fiji, practically everyone can sing. Whether it's the crew serving up lunch, the guy behind the bar, or the housekeeping staff cheerfully humming away as they work, they sing with gusto, passion and pride. Their harmonies make you cry. When they belt out the national anthem, standing tall and proud with their hand on their heart, you feel disappointed you weren't born Fijian. When they sing the heart-wrenching lyrics of the farewell song Isa Lei, tears involuntarily well up in your eyes, and you seriously consider extending your stay. Many travellers do.

On the night before we disembark the recently refurbished 34-cabin ship, an elderly New Zealand couple decide to set off again on the exact same seven-night Blue Lagoon cruise they'd just taken to the Sacred Islands, where Fiji's ancestors are believed to have first set foot, Nanuya, where they filmed the 1980 movie Blue Lagoon and on to Naviti and Drawaqa Island. Who can blame them, I think, as another blazing sunset lights up the sky across the Coral Sea?

The boutique ship shows travellers an authentic side to Fiji – far from the resort rich areas of Denarau and the Coral Coast. It takes passengers to small villages, local schools and to cathedral-like caves where we swim through hidden chambers.

And being a smaller boutique cruise ship means the Fiji Princess can get right up close to islands and lovely stretches of white-sand beach where yours may be the only footprints. It even famously ties up to a coconut tree at its anchorage just off its own private beach at Nanuya Lailai (Blue Lagoon).

Rather than being escorted as a typical tourist would, Blue Lagoon travellers get off the beaten path. By day, guests interact with the local people and explore the area's plentiful natural offerings, both underwater and on land, diving pristine sites, such as Pinnacles, Fantastic Wall and other sites comprising what Jean-Michel Cousteau dubbed "the soft–coral capital of the world". Some days we enjoy barbecues on the beach, our toes in the sand, kayak secluded bays, walk to a rustic and charming tearoom and snorkel some of the Pacific's most spectacular reefs. By night fellow guests gather for delicious and hearty meals – some nights it's a lovo; another dinner was cooked by a local village and we were serenaded by the melodious Fijian crew before being rocked to sleep in our cabins anchored in serene bays and inlets.

Captain Trevor Withers, a young New Zealand stockbroker with a passion for the sea, founded Blue Lagoon Cruises in 1950. Withers and Harold Gatty, a renowned Australian aviator, came to Fiji at a time when tourism to the Pacific nation was virtually unknown. The pair set out to establish a tuna-fishing industry, but when this failed Gatty went on to establish Fiji Airways, while Withers embarked on his dream of taking visitors through the idyllic Yasawa Islands.

Sixty years on, little has changed in the remote Yasawa Islands and Wither's vision continues. Blue Lagoon's flagship Fiji Princess however sparkles after a $1.2m refurbishment completed last year – raising the bar of cruising in Fiji. All interiors have been completely made over, and, paying tribute to the company's long maritime history, the theme is nautically inspired. Brand new itineraries now offer a maximum of four hours cruising each day, additional activities and a more personal experience of the Fijian culture.

During our five days at sea, the crew's penchant for singing rubs off on the mix of passengers that hail from around the world. As we swim in the clear green water of the majestic Sawa i Lau caves, a beam of sunlight streams into the open-air chamber. Famously, these caves featured in the 1980's movie Blue Lagoon, where a young Brooke Shields is filmed swimming and bathing. Spontaneously, young and old join in a rendition of You Are My Sunshine, laughing with the Fijian crew as our voices bounce off the echoing limestone walls. Afterwards we take a short swim through an underwater passage into the second of these striking limestone caves, marvelling at a side of Fiji most rarely see.

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On our final night under the clear South Pacific skies, the crew's passionate vocals easily surpass performances from groups of passengers from Australia, New Zealand, Cyprus, England and Scotland. However it's an East German couple that make the strongest impression on me. Having grown up and raised their children behind the Berlin Wall, when it finally came crashing down they dreamed of one day travelling beyond their austere existence to Fiji – a South Pacific utopia where the people are warm, friendly and welcoming. Twirling his wife, wearing a red and white floral dress, around the dance floor their eyes sparkle as they lap up their final moments of their Yasawa cruise. In that moment they look like a young couple in the early throes of romance; joyful and carefree, moving in time to the string guitar and ukulele in what is surely the happiest place on earth.

TRIP NOTES

MORE INFORMATION

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GETTING THERE

Fiji Airways flies Sydney to Nadi daily with twice daily services on Saturdays, Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and from Melbourne to Nadi six times a week with two services on Monday. See fijiairways.com.

CRUISING THERE

Blue Lagoon Cruises' four-night Wanderer cruise to the Yasawa Islands is priced from $2600 a person twin share, including all meals and guided shore excursions. Shorter and longer itineraries include the Mamanuca Islands. There are also select family cruises, which operate in school holidays. Phone +679 670 5006, see bluelagooncruises.com.

STAYING THERE

Fiji Beach Resort and Spa managed by Hilton offers pre and post-cruise accommodation near Port Denarau Marina from $260 a night in a studio beachfront room. See fijibeachresortbyhilton.com.

FIVE OTHER BLUE LAGOON DIVERSIONS

  • Enjoy a daku aromatic back massage, or a savata rebalancing facial in the ship's onboard Senikai Spa. Guests can experience a range of spa treatments, using traditional Fijian methods and products. Alternatively, book an on-shore massage while at Nanuya Lailai (Blue Lagoon Cruises' private beach where the ship ties up to a coconut tree). The spa therapist performs massages in a rustic hut under coconut palms, right on the beach, as waves lap the shore.
  • Attend a village church service in the remote Naviti Island region. Sunday is a day of rest in Fiji and most locals (Fijians are predominantly Christian) can be found in church. Guests have the opportunity (weather dependent) to sit in on a service at either Soso or Kese village. The Methodist service is delivered in Fijian, however most of the crew attend and can translate for guests. Don't expect lots of singing, dancing and clapping however. Hymns are sung but the service is traditional in style, and is quiet and respectful. Afterwards, a traditional Sunday roast is served as you cruise south to the beautiful Naukacuvu and Narara Islands.
  • Visit Tamasua village, an out-of-the-way Yasawa Island village, and be part of a traditional yaqona (kava) ceremony. Just before sunset, guests are welcomed to the village. One of the passengers is voted as the ship's temporary chief and shares the kava with the chief of the village. Afterwards, all guests are able to try the sleep-inducing drink, which is made from the root of pepper plant. Afterwards, residents take small group tours around the village to show guests how the Fijians live. The women also put on a shell market selling souvenirs including shell necklaces, hand-woven baskets, sarongs and more. Once evening arrives everyone moves into the village hall where a traditional feast is served including lots of fresh, local seafood and locally grown vegetables prepared in traditional ways. Guests sit on the floor and eat with their fingers, just as a Fijian family would. Later a fun meke, performance of song and dance, is held and everybody is invited to join in.
  • Do an open-water dive with sharks at Mouva Reef, Wayalailai. The reef sharks – predominantly white and black tip – are small and friendly. Blue Lagoon Cruise staff have a permit to dive with fish and other food to attract the sharks. Seeing sharks underwater in their own environment is a memorable experience.
  • Visit the Naviti District High School and Primary School on Naviti Island. Blue Lagoon Cruise passengers are welcomed with an enthusiastic singing performance by the children. There is a chance to do a short tour of the high school and primary school and interact directly with the students. Guests can make cash donations or bring gifts of stationery, books and pencils to the small, remote school, which relies on the generosity of tourists. Many guests count the experience of meeting the local students, and hearing about life at the school, as a highlight of their cruise.

The writer was a guest of Blue Lagoon Cruises.

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