Things to do in Coral Coast
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Coral Coast
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Dry season, cooler and less humid with the calmest lagoons and best dive visibility, peaking in price from July to September.
Wet and cyclone season, hotter and greener with fuller waterfalls, lower prices and a real risk of flooded roads and cancelled trips.
Shoulder value sweet spots, May and October, with good weather odds outside peak school holiday pricing.
What's on
- Fiji Day 10 October
Public celebrations and a long weekend feel in towns including Sigatoka.
- Diwali October or November, lunar date varies
A major celebration in Sigatoka's Indo-Fijian community, with sweets, lights and open house hospitality.
- Hibiscus Festival, Suva August, dates vary
Suva's festival, a day trip east from Pacific Harbour in dry season.
Best things to do in Coral Coast
Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park
Fiji's first national park, Lapita era dunes up to 60 metres with forest loops and a big coast view, best walked early.
Sigatoka River Safari
A jet boat run up Fiji's longest river to a working village for a kava ceremony and a hosted Fijian lunch.
Kula Wild Adventure Park
Boardwalks, native birds and the crested iguana breeding programme, plus a water park that makes it the family fallback.
Biausevu Waterfall
A village guided walk of about 30 minutes through forest and stream crossings to a swimmable pool under the falls.
Tavuni Hill Fort
An 18th century Tongan hill fort above the Sigatoka Valley, where the local guide and the valley view are the experience.
Lawai Pottery Village
A working pottery village using river clay, with a welcome ceremony, a demonstration and a showroom to buy direct.
Sigatoka Market
The coast's real town market, Salad Bowl produce, kava and cheap cooked lunches, busiest on Saturday morning.
Damodar Arts Village
The reopened Pacific Harbour cultural village, with a bure kalou, artisan bures, meke dance and Beqa firewalking.
Where to stay in Coral Coast
Natadola Bay
best mainland beach, golf, short Nadi transfer
The western gateway, about an hour from Nadi, for Natadola Beach and championship golf rather than coast culture.
Sigatoka and Korotogo
first trip, excursions, eating out of the resort
The working town plus the walkable Sunset Strip, closest to the dunes, Kula, the river safari and town eating.
Central coast
big resort stays, families, a middle position
Yanuca, Maui Bay and Korolevu resort heartland, between Sigatoka sights and Pacific Harbour adventure.
Pacific Harbour and Navua
shark diving, rafting, Suva access
The adventure capital end, greener and quieter, with Beqa boats, Rivers Fiji, tubing and the Arts Village.
Best restaurants in Coral Coast
Navo Restaurant
The coast's signature fine dining room, a show kitchen over Natadola lagoon built on local produce.
Ivi Restaurant
The Outrigger's intimate fine dining room by the ivi tree, Pacific Continental menus and the Sigatoka end's special dinner.
Wicked Walu
A sunset seafood dinner on its own platform off the Warwick beach, built around the day's local catch.
Flying Fin Restaurant n' Bar
An independent beachfront restaurant at Cuvu serving kokoda and ika vakalolo alongside Western favourites at sunset.
Shiva's Wine & Dine
A well rated Sigatoka town dinner of Indian, Fijian and international dishes at town rather than resort prices.
Cafe Planet Fiji
A garden cafe at Korotogo with good coffee, wraps and pies mostly under FJ$10, the coast's best cheap breakfast.
Cuppabula Cafe & Bar
The useful air conditioned cafe in TappooCity for coffee, smoothies, pizza and pasta on a Sigatoka town day.
Naidu's South Indian Restaurant
Cheap Indo-Fijian curries, fried rice and vegetarian dishes on Queens Road in Sigatoka, ordered by locals.
Outdoor things to do in Coral Coast
Rivers Fiji
Upper Navua gorge rafting, Grade II to III water through a narrow canyon past dozens of waterfalls, with village guides.
Beqa Adventure Divers
The Beqa Lagoon shark dive at Shark Reef, certified divers only, to about 30 metres with bull and tiger sharks.
Ecotrax Fiji
Electric assisted rail bikes on the old cane railway, through mangroves and villages to a beach swim stop.
River Tubing Fiji
A longboat ride up the Navua River, a village visit and waterfall swim, then tubing back down gentle rapids.
Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course
An 18 hole championship course on Natadola Bay with coastal holes and ocean views on the back stretch.
Diveaway Fiji
Reef diving and PADI courses from the central coast resorts, soft corals, turtles and reef sharks without the shark dive.
Maui Bay
Do it yourself lagoon snorkelling at high tide at Maui Bay, and a reef flat walk in reef shoes at low tide.
Best hotels in Coral Coast
InterContinental Fiji Golf Resort & Spa
The flagship luxury resort on the best mainland beach, with a Club wing, Navo dining, a spa and championship golf.
Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort
A large village style family resort at Korotogo with meimei nannies, a big pool, Bebe Spa and Ivi dining.
Bedarra Beach Inn
A small, personal inn on the Sunset Strip facing the lagoon, the coast's best value stay near cafes and Sigatoka.
Gecko's Resort
A small Fijian run resort near Sigatoka known for cultural and fire dance shows, a pool and honest mid prices.
Shangri-La Yanuca Island, Fiji
Fiji's original large island resort, joined by causeway, with multiple pools, a marina, golf and a big lagoon.
Fiji Hideaway Resort & Spa
A Fijian managed Korolevu resort of beachfront bures, known for staff warmth, nightly entertainment and its spa.
Warwick Fiji
A large five star Korolevu resort with an adults only pool wing, good lagoon snorkelling and Wicked Walu dining.
The Naviti Resort
A big all inclusive garden resort at Korolevu, the family pick for travellers who want the bill settled in advance.
Is Coral Coast expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | FJD 180 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | FJD 450 a person |
| Splurge | FJD 1,100 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Sigatoka River Safari: a few days ahead
- Hot Glass Fiji: a few days ahead
- Rivers Fiji: weeks ahead
- Beqa Adventure Divers: weeks ahead
- Ecotrax Fiji: weeks ahead
- River Tubing Fiji: a few days ahead
- Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course: a few days ahead
- Diveaway Fiji: a few days ahead
- Book Ecotrax, Rivers Fiji, the Beqa shark dive and Sigatoka River Safari before you arrive in peak season.
- Navo and Ivi need days ahead, and family resorts fill in Australian and New Zealand school holidays.
Is Coral Coast safe?
- Avoid driving Queens Road at night, slow down in rain, and never enter flooded causeways in the wet season.
- Swim in rivers only where your guide swims, wear reef shoes on the reef flat, and follow Fiji Meteorological Service cyclone warnings from November to April.
Coral Coast travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Resort desks marking up excursions you can book direct with Sigatoka, Pacific Harbour and Navua operators.
- Itineraries that stack a Pacific Harbour dive, a Sigatoka lunch and a Natadola sunset into one Queens Road driving day.
Getting around Coral Coast: public transport and more
- Everything moves on Queens Road: about 1 hour to Natadola, 1 to 1.5 hours to Sigatoka, 1.5 to 2 hours to Korolevu and 2.5 to 3 hours to Pacific Harbour from Nadi Airport.
- Local buses are cheap and frequent by day between Sigatoka and Suva, and taxis are plentiful in Sigatoka if you agree the fare first.
Who Coral Coast suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | OK |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Coral Coast your trip
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