A FEW minutes drive out of Rakiraki Town will lead you to Volivoli Secular Rd, an area earmarked for the construction of three new hotels along the Sunshine Coast worth $20million.
Though some improvements could be made to the gravel and dusty road leading to a number of properties in the area, this has not stopped tourists from visiting four-star idyllic getaway, Wananavu Beach Resort.
The scenic drive inland screams nature untouched and the resort has utilised this to offer an island paradise experience with mainland convenience.
The brainchild of New Zealand developer John Gray, Wananavu Beach Resort started operations 20 years ago and aims to give every visitor and guest a glimpse of the real Fiji.
Boasting 34 deluxe bure stretched along the beach and nestled into the hillside, the resort is a two-hour and 15-minute drive from Nadi International Airport.
Fijian hospitality
Guests are greeted with a warm bula from staff members at the front desk upon arrival and immediately given a refreshing drink to shake off a bit of the sunshine.
Resort general manager Allan Carter was the next friendly face to meet us during a visit to the area.
He led us to their popular sunset deck where the local band geared up to play soothing music while diners enjoyed local delicacies.
The band, comprising Lekima Tagi, Viliame Tuinavitilevu, Jack Naivaluwaqa and Tevita Ledua, did a wonderful rendition of Rod Stewart’s I Don’t Wana Talk About It and Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline as guests tucked into their hearty meals.
Sunshine Coast
While Volivoli Point itself is an attraction, a place where you can watch the sunrise and sunset, Mr Carter said Rakiraki had enormous potential to boost tourism for Fiji because it was the country’s “hidden gem”.
“Many overseas visitors that have been to other parts of Fiji and then come to this area are knocked out by the natural beauty of the sun coast,” he said.
“We welcome more resorts and hotels in the area as this will boost awareness of this great part of Fiji and bring more people and infrastructure to the sun coast.
“We lack a voice when it comes to tourism in Fiji and too often get overlooked as one of our concerns are the state of the roads leading to the resorts — it is really the only negative comment that we get from guests visiting the area.”
Mr Carter said the Rakiraki bridge not being rebuilt had also impacted their guests’ experience to the area.
However, he said, they had seen an increase in tourists visiting the area and took on initiatives to directly market Fiji overseas.
“So with more resorts and hotels here we may receive more help on these issues,” he said.
“We market directly to the wedding sector in Australia, personally attending wedding and honeymoon expos and scuba diving expos in the US as the Bligh Waters is highly regarded with divers from around the world.
“When we have visitors to the Rakiraki area who have been to other parts of Fiji they are really impressed with the natural beauty of the sun coast area and what it has to offer. We now have many return guests.”
Development and activities
The original structure of the resort included the bar and administration areas, and 16 bure.
With millions of dollars invested in the resort over the years, it has expanded accommodation to 34 deluxe bure and top of the line diving experience with recent investments in nitrox compressors and equipment.
Mr Carter said the deluxe bure were built among the lush tropical gardens, dotted along the beachfront or perched on the hillside overlooking the azure sailstone reef and Nananui Islands.
From the north facing sunset deck, he said, guests had the unparalleled views morning to night.
He said their diving activity combined awe-inspiring diving in the Bligh Waters and sailstone reef.
“Breathtaker, golden dreams, mellow yellow, g6, black magic mountain, purple haze, instant replay are names that will become etched in your memory,” he said.
“From beginners to braggers, from critter finders to camera minders, from thousand fish frenzies to sensational soft coral and from the tiniest crustacean to the largest cetacean, you haven’t dived Fiji until you dive wananavu.” Mr Carter said they had contracted out dive operations in the past but took better control of the activity by running it in-house.
“We’ve invested heavily in two new purpose-built dive boats and a dive operation centre.
“Initially most of the overseas guests that came here 10 years ago were American dive groups. It is still a big part of the operation. In the past few years, we were doing a lot more wedding and honeymoon destinations.
“Most of our guests are from Australia, US, Europe, Asia and New Zealand.”
Apart from diving activities, the resort offers snorkeling, kayaking, deep sea and handline fishing and tennis.
The resort also offers wedding and honeymoon packages as well as body and beauty treatments at their Wai spa.
Growth
With 75 full-time staff members on call and facilities to accommodate about 80 guests, Mr Carter remains confident business would improve next year in light of positive indications.
Mr Carter said a few private properties nearby were being developed and they looked forward to celebrating their 20th anniversary this year.
