For almost five decades the remains of what was once one of the most iconic tourism establishments in Fiji has lain prone to the elements.
What was once a thriving tourism spot on this picturesque section of Viti Levu is now overgrown by dense foliage, with nature seemingly conspiring to hide the last bits of evidence to suggest this was the birthplace of Fiji tourism.
“This used to be the Adi Kuila Lounge,” offered my local guide, former rugby league player Napolioni Kuricibi, who pointed to an area overgrown with thick weeds and vines.
At Korolevu, along the Coral Coast, little is left of what many regard as Fiji’s first truly international tourist resort, the well-known Korolevu Beach Hotel.
As recently as the early 1980s, the place was still running, albeit not as thriving as in its’ heyday of the previous three decades.
It all started in the 1940s by pioneering hotelier Bill Clarke, who built the Korolevu Rest House, a rustic retreat that was sandwiched between a world class beachfront and the rough old Queen’s coastal highway.
The body of the late war hero, chief and stateman, Ratu Sir Lala Sukuna, reportedly lay for a certain period at the rest house while being transported to Suva from Lautoka wharf.
Korolevu, set on 76 acres of prime real estate, helped deliver to the world the romanticised notion of the Fiji experience with beautiful white sandy beaches, magical sunsets along with island culture and charm at its best.
In 1948, Korolevu Beach Hotel once boasted small, self-contained bure units believed to be the first of their type in the world, setting the benchmark for resort developments everywhere by imitating native architecture.
This was also the first time the word bure would be used to describe individual bungalow-styled accommodation.
The set-up was supposed to look like a traditional Fijian village.
A postcard dated in June 1963, addressed to Mrs J. Readman, Loggerhead Yd., Baxtergate, Whitby, Yorkshire, England, and message to “Dear Aunt Jenny” signed “Mary Hardy and family” described in great detail the hotel set-up.
“At first sight travellers might think they were entering a model Fijian Village when they go into the grounds of Korolevu Beach Hotel. Guests have complete privacy in these charming bures each equipped with telephone, electricity and private bathroom”.
He (Clarke) acknowledged that the name bure is incorrect, since that actually refers to a temple or similar official building, and that they should really have been called valevakaviti – “Fijian-style houses”. But he rightly reasoned that tourists could never get their tongues around that name, so bure they became (“bures” is also wrong, since there is no ‘s’ for the plural in Fijian). The name stuck, and I have even seen little timber cabins in Australian resorts called “boorays”!)
Clarke reportedly told a friend that sheer economics played a part in the bure design of the hotel units, as each could be built at the fraction of the cost normally used to construct other more western styled accommodation.
The land at Korolevu comprises nine freehold titles totalling 26ha, three contiguous native leases comprising 4.3ha, and a Crown lease to the deep water access for a mere $2 per annum.
In its heyday during the 1950s and 60s and through to the 1970s, Korolevu Beach Resort and adjoining Paradise Point Hotel were known as “Fiji’s Riviera”.
Korolevu lured over colonial expatriates from the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand who made a beeline for the resorts from their bases in Nadi and Suva.
Due to the hazardous road conditions, Clarke had a runway built along with a small control tower that is still visible from the main road.
Colonial residents were joined by American tourists flown in by Pan American Airlines whose planes had to refuel in Fiji to refuel before heading on to Auckland or Sydney.
Added to the customer mix were the air crews from Pan Am, BOAC, Qantas, and Air New Zealand who helped to make the hotel renowned for its lively atmosphere.
Unfortunately, two separate events saw both the Korolevu Beach Resort and Paradise Point Hotel close for business back in 1983.
A huge hurricane of that year destroyed electricity lines around the Coral Coast, an event which caused much damage to the area’s infrastructure.
So much so that several months after the storm struck, the power lines had still not been restored, and without electricity the Paradise Point Hotel could not cater for guests, forcing its closure.
Soon after, a lease-holding dispute at the Korolevu Beach Resort saw all furnishings and fittings disappear one night leaving the once effervescent hotel stripped of its charm and character.
Faced with a massive reinvestment to get the venue up and running again, its owners, who were close to personal retirement, decided to shut down.
The Tikina Korolevu-i-wai of Navosa comprises several coastal villages that include Votua-Lailai, Votua, Naibale, Natovi, Vadraga, Biusevu, Komave and Matalawatu.
Located halfway between Suva and Nadi, Korolevu enjoys a beautiful weather pattern throughout the year making it an ideal place for those seeking tropical respite from the extreme conditions abroad.
“Korolevu helped advertise Fiji to the world. It was a very different kind of atmosphere,” said Korolevu resident Robert Dass, who worked for 15 years at the Korolevu Beach Hotel.
Mr Dass, who started as a kitchen hand at the old hotel and worked his way to becoming a purchasing officer, said the hotel basically set the standard for other establishments in Fiji to follow.
“The management was a lot more relaxed and it was the norm for staff to unwind with a beer at the hotel after work,” said the veteran musician, who was part of the four-piece ensemble called Paradise Point Brothers that entertained guests at the adjoining Paradise Point Resort.
Perhaps the famous entertainment group of this time on the Coral Coast was Teresa Purcell and the Korolevu Beach Serenaders.
Votua village chief Ratu Emosi reminisced happily about working at the Korolevu Beach Hotel, having started at only 20 years old.
‘”This place was always busy, there were so many of them coming in on buses organised by Hunts Tours,” he recalled.
“I started off at the hotel and then moved to Naviti Resort when it closed down. In fact many of the staff had been quickly employed by neighbouring resort because there was not many experienced hotel workers in Fiji back then.
“Korolevu was a training ground for hotel workers.”
Ratu Emosi said the traditional shows, like firewalking, meke performances, yaqona ceremonies, the first time these cultural shows were ever offered to visitors, was a big hit.
Of course this was all the idea of Mr Clarke, who seemed to have been a brilliant strategist when it came to tourism ideas back then.
He was years ahead of his time in that sense.
Former Fiji Visitors Bureau executive Sitiveni Yaqona remembers Korolevu as being an important meeting place for the business set and a stopover site for commuters between Suva and Nadi.
“It was the centre of Fiji tourism at one time in the 1960 and 70s,” said Mr Yaqona, who stayed at the Korolevu Beach Hotel on many occasions.
“There was a very relaxing and unique feeling in the bure units at the time. I suppose the location of the place went against it,” said Mr Yaqona.
He said the airport was built to shorten the trip between Nadi and Korolevu and from other areas like Suva, but by the time it was established, other hotels and resorts had started emerging in the Nadroga and Nadi areas, with competition taking away the allure of Korolevu.
“It’s really got fabulous potential because of the combination between the residential and commercial development,” he said.
In 2008, millionaire Fiji businessman Hari Punja bought Korolevu beachside property along with other land adjacent to the Queens Highway.
He plans on building an integrated tourism development for the area. The plan includes a shopping mall, restaurants and other amenities on the airport side of Korolevu.
Exactly when, this project will commence is anyone’s guess.
However Korolevu’s greatest legacy is undoubtedly Fiji’s thriving tourism industry.
Great things all have an origin and Fiji tourism can indeed be thankful for that beautiful stretch of coastline at Korolevu.
