Island life as it should be writes Mike Bingham

One hour’s flight from Nadi and I am a world away from jumbo loads of tourists, salesman and traffic noise. I have discovered the real Fiji, where villagers still feel at home fishing, planting their gardens, thatching bures and hunting wild boar. And providing a genuine welcome to the tourists drawn by the magic which is Taveuni.

The island is about 40km long and no more than 10km wide. There are 28 extinct volcanoes, patches of rainforest, coconuts, mangoes and bananas grow wild, as do exotic flowers. And coral reefs known to scuba divers around the world.

Not that snorkeling is necessary when the lamplight fish appear as dinner is completed by the shore.

There are scads of lamplighters, which are about 10cm long with a fluorescent patch under each eye. On a moonless night they produce laser–like aquatic magic as they gather by lava tubes beneath the resort, Paradise Taveuni.

The resort of 10 self-contained bures is the creation of Australian couple Allan and Terri Gortan.

They have lived in Fiji for seven years, adopted two local children and formed a working relationship with Vuna, the nearby village.

Check-in after the bumpy transfer from the airstrip, is a world away from the foyers of big scale tourism. Guests are greeted with a foot massage on their bure’s veranda.

The villagers carved the traditional furniture and artifacts and provided and installed the thatching of the bures.They also staff the resort .When traditional Fiji evenings are staged for guests, all the villagers come along.

The bures are big comfortable and free of radio, TV and air conditioning. Along with conventional bathroom, there’s a splendid outdoor shower and spa.

There is a horse-riding, forest tour, a village visit, sports fishing, spa sessions and jet-ski rides. Seventeen prime dive sites are within easy reach and manta rays patrol within 10m of the shore. Taveuni has a dive shop and night dives are popular.

Marabu, one of the villagers, offers guided tours on his boar-hunting expeditions. The boars weigh more than 100kg and Marabu wears a long scar on the back of one leg from a past encounter. He was amused by a New York cop who checked into the resort and wanted to go hunting. “What kinds of guns do we use?” he asked.Marabu smiled.”No guns. Just my wooden spear.”             The cop wisely gave up the idea.

It’s early to bed at Taveuni and an early rise for breakfast of fresh picked coconut, pineapple, pawpaw, pasionfruit and two different varieties of bananas. There’s good coffee, but the blended natural fruit drinks are the way to go.

The island’s claim to fame is it is one of the few inhabited places on the meridian. There’s even a church near the resort where the meridian cuts through the pulpit.

Mike Bingham was a Guest of the Fiji Visitors Bureau and Paradise Taveuni.

Mike Bingham’s article appeared in the Escape Sections of the Sunday Tasmanian, Jan 20^th and the Sunday Herald Sun

Infinity Pool

]]> http://www.paradiseinfiji.com/positions-vacant-in-paradise/feed/ 2 http://www.paradiseinfiji.com/158/ http://www.paradiseinfiji.com/158/#comments Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:51:26 +0000 Taveuni Resort http://paradiseinfiji.com/newsite/?p=158

Romance in Paradise

Bula!  We couldn’t have had a longer journey to get here. London is a long way away. We can’t begin to explain just how worthwhile it was. Each and every staff member here deserves a gold award for not only being the nicest people, but for the outstanding service and the way they make you feel at home. The Resort looks and feel like Paradise every minute of the day. No married couple is meant to forget their Honeymoon and we truly never will, thanks to every single one of the true beauties in the world, environment and people alike. You are all so wonderful. Don’t ever change. A thousand times, Thank you for everything. Maikeli – you are a living legend, a God among men. Seriously dude, you rock.
Fiji Honeymooners – Anna & Kyle Stenson, UK.

To the Paradise Team, Thank you for our wonderful stay. Not only did the resort cater to the needs of a couple in need of a romantic getaway they took great care of and entertained our four children while we relaxed & recharged. The location is gorgeous, the staff friendly & well trained. Thank you for your hospitality. Paul & Candice Lingard, Australia.

It is our understanding you guys read this at your monthly meeting. With that being said we would like to say “Bula” to everyone. Thank you for your dedication and service for our every need while we were enjoying our Fiji Honeymoon. As you read this now we are back in the real world working. Reflecting back on our stay Feroz summed it up best when he parked the car and said ”Welcome to Paradise!” Each guest has a set of expectations. It’s the little things that make a difference. From the foot rub from Mere, turn down with flowers on the bed and in the bathtub, Thomas coming to get us for dinner, to water served after diving and much more. The property is beautiful and the views breathtaking. Most importantly, it is the people that make a difference. Will miss this place dearly and think of you often. We hope to come back soon. Fiji Honeymooners – Tim and Audrey, USA

What made Paradise Taveuni very special were the people. Whilst it is an extraordinarily beautiful place, one rarely meets people anywhere in the world as magnificent as fabulous extended family of Archie, Kini, Pini, Suli, Mere & all. Tomasi created a theatrical dinning experience each time he looked after us. The highlight among many amazing experiences was the lovo feast. The skill of the family was astonishing – the dancing, singing & playing! The food was great, too. Thank you Terri, Muriel, Allan, Carl for making the experience possible for treating each guest in a special way! No thanks at all for me having to work out for weeks to shed the extra kilos put on so easily at the sumptuous, all too frequent meals. We’ll be spreading the world – weary Westerners there is a place to remind us of the value of relaxation, family & valuing people first. Many thanks, Peter & Robyn Phillips, Australia.

Share a couple cocktail in Paradise

To all the wonderful people at Paradise, thank you, thank you, and thank you. It has been a very relaxing and memorable 2 weeks that we have spent here in this wonderful place. We even managed to experience a slice of heaven for a day and then return to relax in this special part of the world. We have dived, snorkeled, toured, fished and been looked after by staff. A special mention must be made us feel part of the family – Tomasi, Kata, Kini, Pini, Perina, Mere, Archie, Manasa, Wilson, Toutou & the serenaders are what make this place special. Thanks to Muriel (vice commodore) & Karl for the great fishing & diving operations – and it was even better coming 1st equal in the first major fishing competition at Paradise. Last, but no means least – Allan (horse) & Terri for letting us share your dream – Thank you & very well done for creating such a hospitable place. We will be back…… John & Anna Johnstone, USA.

From the moment we arrived you welcomed us with open arms. Your warmth and love is amazing
Your hospitality and love for this place is more than words can say. Hearing the beautiful harmonies and traditional Fijian songs each night that are song from the heart made each day more of a memorable experience. Luke your organization of the staff are amazing right down to your perfection to deal. To Terri and Allan you have created an amazing place in such a small time. It is just Paradise!! In all our travels we’ve never experience more of an amazing and memorable place. Who said you could not find Paradise? Its right here.
Ann-Maree and Chad, USA.

To all the staff at Paradise – thank you so much for a wonderful stay! I can’t think of anything more you could offered in the way of hospitality, experiences food, diving…..The only thing that surprises the beauty of Paradise is the team that has cared for us for us for the last 8 days. You have all captured my heart. I cannot find words enough to express the incredible week we have spent with you. You anticipate our every need. A magical setting, wonderful hospitality. We look forward to seeing you again soon. Special thanks.
Judi & Bill Gallagher, New Zealand.

Bula Allan, Terri and fantastic staff. Wow, what a beautiful place. It’s a credit to you all from the moment we arrived. We have felt welcome. It just got better. Your staff are brilliant they have there job and shows through there happiness to help you no matter what your needs are. The outlook here is brilliant where the land meets the water. Its been the most relaxing holiday we will be back. You guys have made us feel like a family and that’s fantastic. Keep up the good work. Miss you already. Linda & Gary Denman, Australia.

To all our friends at Paradise Taveuni, thank you all for making our stay with you so very special! From the word go we simply knew we’d made the right decision and only wished we’d arrived sooner! From the fishing trips with Archie, Snorkel adventures with Joe. We will leave ever so slightly sad but with warmer hearts as than those with which we arrived. Every single moment of our time here has been absolute bliss and huge part of that has been down to the people here and just a hint of that good old Fijian spirit!! The Lovo night was a perfect way to end our visit. Please pass on our thanks to all involved. The dancing was such fun and those beautiful melodies voices will stay with us forever. We hope to see you all again I the not too distance future. Until then our warmest regards and best wishes to you all. Danielle & Andy Youngs, Australia.

After reading about it’s legendary reputation we deviated from our trip to Australia and took all available days at this most beautiful place with it’s heart warmling people and extraordinarily friendly staff. A decision we are now so happy about. Not only did we learn to dive and saw the most beautiful aquatic life ever – it was a glimpse into the culture of Fiji with it’s beautiful and for us city dwellers- so natural and friendly people. Even a start time here has given us so much to aspire to and look forward to. We are counting the days already to come back! With many thanks to everyone. Peter and Rosemary Bissinger, Vietnam.

We had a great time here. Loved the diving and beautiful setting. We enjoyed the cave tour and Lavena coastal walk with wonderful guide Maikeli. Thanks to him we never went hungry on each of these trips. Thanks to all the staff for taking such good care of us. We don’t want to leave. We look forward to returning soon to visit the while. Steve & Robin Dorrepaal, Canada.

Paradise is lovely. The Fijian staff are so friendly and accommodating. We have enjoyed the outdoor shower immensely and all of the special touches – fresh blossoms in the bure each day, glasses of water ready after diving . Yes, we noticed and appreciate those things – I could list more…umbrella handy, lantern in the evenings, serenaders. The dive staff were great as well. We think Wilson is one of the best dive masters/guides we’ve dived with (over 360 divers for me and 400 for Peter) – so I think that’s saying a lot. Toutou was also good and such a cheerful happy person! Thanks to Luke who was most helpful. Allan, it was good to meet & the children. All in all – a memorable visit for us and since we are both getting the old, we got a lot of pictures! Farewell to Paradise! Thanks to all – don’t forget to have movie night for the staff. Peter and Jeanine Mellem, USA.

Paradise is the perfect Fiji Honeymoon destination

Thank you so much for taking us in, when Garden Island Resort would not take us and shut down. It certainly was a win for us! Every aspect of the resort and dive has been well thought out and just a class operation. We thoroughly enjoyed getting to know each and everyone involved with the day to day operating of the resort and the diving and dive guides were all terrific and unforgettable. Rick and I feel very fortunate to have spent none days here and we will definitely leave here with wonderful memories. Vick & Rick Eveleth, USA.

Vinaka Vakalevu. We were thrilled with our whole experience here. Everything was more than we could have hoped for. The dive team was especially brilliant. A huge thank you to Wilson, Toutou & Archie for all our days under the seas. You all made it a truly beautiful experience. You have a little piece of heaven here. The rest of the resort staff is not to be missed, where the thank yous are concerned. The food was great & our bure was always spotless  & ready to use for us whatever time of day. We will see you again soon…..and will be counting the days…. Lynne & Stan Armstrong, Canada

To all our new friends. Thank you so much for a beautiful stay in Paradise!! It was everything we had hoped and more. We use to have a favourite holiday destination in Coffs Harbour – but our stay in Paradise has changed that. Paradise Taveuni is now our favourite!! To all of the staff – a huge thank you – you made us feel like part of the Paradise Family. Terri & Allan you are geniuses!! Hope to be back soon…..Vinaka Vakalevu. Eddie & Cheryl Johns, Australia.

Bula! We will never forget our 1st trip to Fiji via Taveuni is definitely Paradise. We would like to thank all the staff at Paradise who make this a truly wonderful experience, you have all made us feel like family. We love you & miss you and you will stay in our hearts forever. What a marvelous experience! We looked very long & hard for a holiday that would be relaxing & rejuvenating, we found it here at Paradise. The memories will linger of the warmth & friendliness of the staff. You were all so welcoming and looked after us so joyfully & graciously. We especially enjoyed the walk to the village and the cannibal cave tour. Thank you very much for making this an exceptional holiday. Continue to look after each other to keep the Paradise magic. Warm wishes. Carmel & Phil Fox, Australia.

Bula! Have a wonderful 2009 all the staff of Paradise. Thank you so much for making the start of 2009 such a special celebration. We loved the meke & the children were adorable. After our stay here, we are blissfully relaxed & looking forward to the start of 2009. Everything at the resort is exceptional (Big Thanks to Kelly at Taveuni Palms for the booking). Wonderful diving (cheers Toutou, Carl & Archie). Top tunes from the frog charmer Band. All the staff are extremely friendly& attentive – Big hugs & kisses to Winnie, Tomasi, Perina, Terri & Allan. Paradise has a wonderful ambience & we look forward to a return trip. Steve & Sharon Standard, New Zealand.

What an unbelievable ‘piece of paradise.’ we stumbled upon your resort and now couldn’t imagine holiday anywhere else. The resort is breath taking, the grounds, bures and the views will stay with us forever. The dive team is the best we ever had. They made every dive memorable and we learned so much ‘under the water‘. They take such pride and care of the coral – it is hopeful to last a life time. The staff is truly amazing – their smiles and generosity did not go unnoticed. They truly made the stay remarkable. We have made friends and it’s hard to pick one exceptional person because they are all so special. I have to say Fiji Night and our kava ceremonies will stay in our hearts forever. It let as we had been welcomed into their families. What beautiful individuals they are. Maikeli is a gem. A truly wonderful person. Very knowledgeable and so willing to share his tradition. He made our activities & tours so fantastic. Terry & Allan you have a wonderful place and you have made it an amazing holiday. Jessica & Thomas are the sweetest little children and so very lucky to have been raised here in the wonderful setting. We will cherish each memory & picture of your family. We are so sad to leave – which is a loss for us. I am always ready to go home after weeks holiday, but in Paradise two weeks wasn’t enough. I hope you will enjoy memories of our dive group as much as you have touched our lives. Vinaka. Thank you so very  much. Jim & Shannon Austin, Canada.

Getaway with your love to Paradise

To all of you at Paradise Taveuni, this has been an ultimate experience of our around tour trip so far. After spending almost an hour on a bumpy road (with experienced driver!) we arrived the paradise of the earth. We had a warm welcoming by Maikeli, Allan and Kini and then we were escorted to our Bures; Papaya and Niu . We got a fantastic foot massage (nothing is better than that after a looong flight from Canon, Mexico via Los Angeles, and the rest of the day we relaxed by the pool and did some snorkeling outside the resort. The day ended with Fiji Night, with excellent food and a Kava Ceremony which we get invited to. Nice Fijian Music as well with excellent musicians! Cuisine – variated both in sorts and volume, and always with the little extra from Paradise Taveuni! The service has been excellent, we always got what we wanted, when and where we wanted it! No other place in the world have we been met with this kind of personalized service, we felt like family. Diving & Snorkeling: we went fishing & diving in Steve’s Corner, Fish Factory, the stairs, Fish …, and orgasm. Really fantastic!! Thanks to Archie, Toutou and Sam for taking me snorkeling on the sites, I really had a great time with you guys on the reefs! I’ll miss you. Thanks to Toutou & Charlie for the diving. The last dive was the ultimate, stopped counting sharks after reaching 10, a huge sea turtle spotted as well as about 50 barracudas swimming around. We were the only ones at Vuna Reef! Thanks to Kini for excellent service, always with a smile, teaching us Fijian words and sulu tying. We will always remember you. Thanks to the Sunset Boys for breathtaking sunset music, just outside our bures. You are always singing and playing with a smile on your faces and the goodnight song was really nice! Thanks Maikeli, Suli, Sepo, and Pete. To Tomasi for your kind service during dinner, and the turn down service. You are all special people, you always made us feel good when you were there!. To Luke for serving us really good cocktails by the pool and after dinner and for nice chat. To Maikeli for the snake show and the trip to the waterfalls and dateline. To Shelly for the excellent massage, nice Fijian atmosphere – and the massage was perfect! Everybody should try that!!. Thanks to Allan and Terri for letting us stay here in Paradise with excellent bures and facilities inside and outside. The Jacuzzi and the outdoor shower is amazing. We have traveled a lot but never been to a place like Paradise Taveuni – regarding the friendly staff, excellent snorkeling and relaxing Spa facilities. This was the best place ever and we really do hope to come back again. Paradise Taveuni offered what we really were looking for; personalized secluded, and enormous friendliness! Snorkeling and diving – Top of the World. We will strongly recommend your resort! Elise, Helene & Tom Gundersen, Norway.