Fiji: Getting there & around

Centrally located in the mid-South Pacific, Fiji (along with Hawaii) is one of the main airline hubs of the region, and it's well serviced by international carriers. From Fiji you can fly to many of the Pacific Islands and almost anywhere around the Pacific Rim. Many people come on a round-the-world ticket or as a stopover between Australia or New Zealand and North America.

Although Suva is the capital, Nadi International Airport is where most travellers arrive and it is 9km (6mi) from the Nadi city centre. Nausori International Airport is Fiji's second international airport, 23km (14mi) north-east of Suva and accessible by taxi. A US$11.50 departure tax is levied on all international departees over the age of 12 years.

Getting to Fiji by sea nowadays is very difficult unless you're on a cruise boat or a private yacht. Fiji is a popular destination for yachties sailing around the South Pacific. Fiji's designated ports of entry are Suva, Lautoka, Savusavu and Levuka; other marinas include Vuda Point Marina (between Nadi and Lautoka) and Musket Cove Marina on Plantation Island in the Mamanucas.

There are good transport connections in Fiji, making internal travel easy and relatively inexpensive. Clearly, the easiest way to travel between islands is by plane, with Fiji Air and Sun Air between them servicing all of the island groups. (Island Hoppers, Turtle Airways and Pacific Island Seaplanes fly some routes too).

Ferries are inexpensive, frequent, reliable and very seaworthy, and rubbing shoulders with the local people while travelling between islands is a pleasant and interesting part of the Fiji experience. Ferry routes connect most major coastal areas of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu with all the major islands. You can charter boats as well, or catch one of the smaller unscheduled local boats between islands. Small local boats are sometimes the only transport option, especially for the backpacker resorts. Life jackets are rarely provided and usually the boats have no radio-phones. If the weather looks ominous or the boat is overcrowded, consider postponing the trip or opting for a flight.

The larger islands have good bus networks, and outside the towns you can often just hail down a bus wherever you see one. Express buses travel between major centres and local buses seem to stop at every village they pass, but by either means bus travel in Fiji is a pleasant way to meet local people and an effective way to get around.