How to plan your luxury Fiji Holiday

This is a guide on how to plan a Luxury holiday to Fiji. Viti Levu is the main Island of Fiji on which Nadi International Airport is situated and where you will arrive. You will need to either book a hire vehicle at the airport before arrival or at the time you arrive. Yes, you can also arrange for a taxi or driver to take you to your destination. However, I would recommend that you hire a vehicle preferably a luxury SUV which will cost anywhere from 500-1000 FJD per day. Indeed, having a vehicle is essential in order to see Fiji privately without the hassle of tourists that cannot afford to travel like you (only the rich will understand what I mean).

You will than travel to Shambala Villa where you have made arrangements with the owner to stay at-least 3 days. The cost is about 1700 FJD per night; well worth it. As you step out of the airport and into your Luxury vehicle you will travel 45 minutes to Maui Bay, Fiji where Shambala Villa is located. As you arrive all you have to do is step out of your vehicle and straight into the villa.

Your eyes will be beaming as the spectacular ocean views and sounds overwhelms your senses that you think you have entered a paradise well hidden.

You will enjoy your minimum three days at this villa, swimming in the pool, enjoying bbq’s, snorkelling, kayaking, fishing and simply enjoying the bliss. Shambala has four private residences and a main residence that houses the essentials such as the kitchen and living areas. It can comfortably accommodate 10 people without any trouble at all. All of this is yours to enjoy without being hassled by poor tourists and weirdo’s looking at you and your family. Everything you need is provided such as the cleaning staff, chef and anything that your heart desires.

Once you have thoroughly enjoyed Shambala than you will make your way to Sapphire bay some 50 minutes from Shambala. Whilst, Sapphire bay is not as spectacular as Shambala it is in the right area for you to explore Fiji’s western side. You should stay here at least a week which will cost you a minimum of $1300.00 FJD a night. Again, all you have to do is make your way to your selected villa and park in your own valet area. From here you make you way up a very short flight of stairs and into your villa.

There are numerous staff to welcome you into your own private Sapphire bay villa. They will quickly take some details in the form of your passport number and other guest information as is required by Fiji Law. Shortly after that you will be handed the keys. By this time you would have noticed the beautiful views of the bay and natural landmarks such as the sleeping giant.

This will now be your base of travel as you need to get out and see Fiji. Taking into account that you relaxed at Shambala for at least 3 days. Now you have the choice to see Nadi or Ba which are at least 20 minutes either direction from your location. I would recommend visiting Nadi and doing a little shopping. From their go and visit Denarau Island where you can have a couple rounds of golf, eat at luxury restaurants, go for a fishing trip, and simply enjoy everything Fiji has to offer.

Now, Ba is a country town where you can then interact with the locals and really enjoy the Fiji culture. This is where you will meet the real people of Fiji. See the sugar cane mill and the natural surrounds. Then make your way into Ba Town and enjoy the many restaurant they have. Just a word of caution their best restaurants are a 1 to 2 star rating by western standards so be prepared to rough it with the locals. It is worth it but don’t be obliged to stay more than an hour as your massage is waiting back at Sapphire bay.

Sapphire bay and all other accommodation except for Shambala do have cleanliness issues. The staff at sapphire bay need encouragement to clean the entire villa to a western standard. When I visited with my family I was very shocked to see that they only used water to clean the surfaces of the villa. We provided them with cleaning agents however head office at Sapphire Bay must be informed as they charge a daily cleaning fee.

Fiji is still a developing country and the staff are from local villages that don’t know a lot about infection control and hygiene standards as compared to the west. Unfortunately it is an issue that you will find throughout Fiji. Furthermore, I hope the owners are taking notes to fix this issue by the time you arrive.

Now moving on, you must be asking well I want to visit the capital of Fiji, Suva! Yes, Suva is a city that can be overwhelming for western visitors as some parts are clean and other parts dirty and dangerous due to thieves. Anyway, you are under my guidance so these issue will not be a concern if you follow my instructions. Joyce Chou rents out a very large and spacious private villa at Uduya Point, Lami about ten minutes from Suva City.

But you might be asking that the thieves are present in Suva city? Well, not to worry as this residence is amongst the elite and wealthy of Fiji who have security guards present. In fact, this residence has a security booth if you would like extra security however it is not necessary as it is a very affluent area.

This residence will set you back about 1000 FJD per night and I would recommend spending about three days here. It is not as nice as Sapphire Bay or Shambala but it is very spacious with 5 bedrooms that can accommodate at least 10 adults or more. You have your own live in house keeper on demand. Don’t worry she has her own separate quarters away from you and she can be summoned at anytime upon your request. Again, all you have to do is drive through the gates and make a few steps into the residence. You start enjoying the property immediately.

Take your first day to recuperate as you would have driven about four hours to get to Fiji from Sapphire Bay. The next day depart about 10 am to Suva City and see the Suva Markets, and find your way to the cinema’s within Suva City. This is where you will find the posh restaurants to have a meal. I recommend finding the most prestigious restaurant you can and enjoy! Otherwise just go through any of the fast food restaurants such as McDonald’s, Burger King etc. In fact, if you take this option than enjoy your meal as you drive around Suva City exploring until you find something of interest. It is safe and a way to see a lot of the city without an annoying guide and fellow tourists.

After that busy day make your way back to your residence in Uduya Point and enjoy all of the facilities and activities the residence has to offer. A three day trip to Suva City is more than enough to understand the City. Now some of the down sides of this residence offered by Joyce Chou is that on our arrival she had security cameras inside and outside the residence. We did our best to disable those cameras but this was very unpleasant. Indeed, we threaten her with legal action and asked her to distroy any images of us on their recording devices.

She promised us that the camera where old and that our images if recorded would be deleted. Cleanliness of the residence was another issue and it should have been cleaned before we got there but the house keeper decided to clean the very moment we arrived. I hope Joyce Chou will take heed by removing all the camera’s within the property and keep the residence in a clean condition upon your arrival.

Compared to other homes on the market in the Suva Area Joyce Chou’s residence is still worth the booking when visiting Suva. As the fact is that Suva is a very dirty city compared with the rest of the country and it is not recommended that you spend more than three days there.

Now you have seen Fiji so it is time to travel the 3 and half hours back to the airport and go home, or on to your next luxury tour.

If you enjoyed this article and wish for more luxury tour advice than visit stridentnews.com and click on the donate and support button to show your appreciation.