Suva & Port Denarau visit

[bateau bay]

Can anyone tell me when in Suva & Port Denarau do you have to change money or can you use aussie dollars?:rolleyes:

 

What is there to do in suva and Port Denarau?:rolleyes:

 

Any info would be great.:rolleyes:

[thied]

for both places you will need fiji money, but here are some places that will take oz dollors but they are few.

[windsor26]

for both places you will need fiji money, but here are some places that will take oz dollors but they are few.

 

There is a money exchange in the thatched hut in the centre of the Mall in Port Denarua They give good rates and no fees charged and they will buy back

 

You are less likely to need Fiji dollars in Suva as they mostly will take AUD and US

[Aus Traveller]

What do you want to do in each port?

 

We have been Suva more than a dozen times and have never used Fiji dollars. Taxis take AUD and the tours sold on the wharf take AUD. I suggest you take a tour from the wharf.

 

Port Denarau - if you want to take a taxi you can pay in AUD or in FJD. Money change in the mall and the rates are good. They also change money back. The shops take AUD but things will cost too much as they will probably do one-for-one when the FJD is worth a lot less than the AUD. I suggest you either get a taxi and do a sightseeing tour including a Fijian village or take the Bula bus around the resorts on Denarau Island. These are lovely with pools, restaurants, shops etc. and allow free entry.

[Sandielle]

There is a money exchange in the thatched hut in the centre of the Mall in Port Denarua They give good rates and no fees charged and they will buy back

 

You are less likely to need Fiji dollars in Suva as they mostly will take AUD and US

 

Thanks for this information - my son and daughter-in-law are cruising there soon so I will give them this info.

[Sandielle]

What do you want to do in each port?

 

We have been Suva more than a dozen times and have never used Fiji dollars. Taxis take AUD and the tours sold on the wharf take AUD. I suggest you take a tour from the wharf.

 

Port Denarau - if you want to take a taxi you can pay in AUD or in FJD. Money change in the mall and the rates are good. They also change money back. The shops take AUD but things will cost too much as they will probably do one-for-one when the FJD is worth a lot less than the AUD. I suggest you either get a taxi and do a sightseeing tour including a Fijian village or take the Bula bus around the resorts on Denarau Island. These are lovely with pools, restaurants, shops etc. and allow free entry.

 

Oh, and thanks for that Aus T. I will pass that on too. (We must have cross-posted. :D)

[thied]

if you want to waste time waiting for them to do the money converstion in the shop and get a bad exchange rate it way easyer in suva to pay in fiji money, with taxies they will take oz and are very happy to do so because they end up getting paid more.

 

This why we only use Fiji money quote ( The shops take AUD but things will cost too much as they will probably do one-for-one when the FJD is worth a lot less than the AUD. ) end Quote

 

Just a little laugh most people have herd of the super butcher here in brisbane area,

 

But the is one in Suva its on the corner just as you leave the dock/port and does not that good either. and has nothing to do the one in Australia.

[Aus Traveller]

if you want to waste time waiting for them to do the money converstion in the shop and get a bad exchange rate it way easyer in suva to pay in fiji money, with taxies they will take oz and are very happy to do so because they end up getting paid more.

 

This why we only use Fiji money quote ( The shops take AUD but things will cost too much as they will probably do one-for-one when the FJD is worth a lot less than the AUD. ) end Quote

 

Just a little laugh most people have herd of the super butcher here in brisbane area,

 

But the is one in Suva its on the corner just as you leave the dock/port and does not that good either. and has nothing to do the one in Australia.

I'm puzzled at your post (but that is not unusual:)). The money exchange I mentioned is in Port Denarau and the transaction would take only a couple of minutes (literally) and the rate is very good. We have never had to queue there. Have you ever used them?

 

I would not exchange AUD to FJD for Suva (but I mentioned that already).

[thied]

I'm puzzled at your post (but that is not unusual:)). The money exchange I mentioned is in Port Denarau and the transaction would take only a couple of minutes (literally) and the rate is very good. We have never had to queue there. Have you ever used them?

 

I would not exchange AUD to FJD for Suva (but I mentioned that already).

yes the money exchange at port Denarau is very good and there is about 4 of them and if you walk from the money exchange to where they the island live show, dancing and singing, behind them is two car rentals if any one wants to hire a car. There is also a hard rock cafe right where you wlak the dock where the tenders dock. nice beer there as well.

[cjm66]

Can anyone tell me when in Suva & Port Denarau do you have to change money or can you use aussie dollars?:rolleyes:

 

What is there to do in suva and Port Denarau?:rolleyes:

 

Any info would be great.:rolleyes:

 

You can use Aussie. We changed some AUD in Nadi on a tour from Port Denaru and they came in handy in a supermarket and to pay the taxi driver in Suva. I got into the habit of using local currency years ago in more distant places and have never lost it.

 

For Port Information try the Pacific Islands All board . I tried to find some earlier threads about Suva and Denarau but no luck so here is what I recall.

 

Port Denarau -

 

It is a man made island / resort complex / marina development and you come ashore at the Marina Development. It is a tender port so some all day type tours can be a problem to organise unless you book a ship's tour - expensive but assured! Check what the ship offers and then try and see what you can book independently on line. There are tours out to the off shore islands on sale at the Marina but some of the better tours will have been booked out by the ship or on line. The Bula bus (as recommended) is a good idea - some resorts will not allow swimming in the pools but beaches will be open. Village tours can be fun and there are performances in the central area of the Marina.

 

Suva

 

The area around the ship is not attractive except on market day (Saturday)when there is so much going on that it is really buzzy. As you come off the ship there will be drivers and touts offering you tours out of Suva or to the sights of Suva. Check what the ship offers so you have an idea what you would like to do and how long it might take. You can avoid the touts and walk onto the town, which is an odd collection of tourist shops and low key shopping malls for locals with a few pompous public buildings thrown in. We hired a cab, went to the Fiji Museum (quirky and set in the Botanic Gardens) and had a guided tour of the harbour and other landmarks, with a commentary on Fijian politics.

 

Enjoy!

 

Colleen

[Aus Traveller]

Colleen,

When you were in Suva did the locals sell tours from tents set up on the wharf? They have every time we have been there during the last few years.

 

Port Denarau - Last time we were there I checked out the independent tours to the islands but the time was a bit tight and there would be a real risk of not getting back in time. If someone wants to go to the islands I think it would be wise to do it through the ship. They pick up passengers directly from the ship (saving 30 minute tender ride) and deliver back to the ship. When we have been there the Denarau resorts have always welcomed visitors. The beaches are not very attractive.

[cjm66]

Colleen,

When you were in Suva did the locals sell tours from tents set up on the wharf? They have every time we have been there during the last few years.

 

Port Denarau - Last time we were there I checked out the independent tours to the islands but the time was a bit tight and there would be a real risk of not getting back in time. If someone wants to go to the islands I think it would be wise to do it through the ship. They pick up passengers directly from the ship (saving 30 minute tender ride) and deliver back to the ship. When we have been there the Denarau resorts have always welcomed visitors. The beaches are not very attractive.

 

Yes there was a tented area with signs advertising tours. We did not enquire as we need a boot large enough for the scooter. I agree about the day tours from Denarau - I would not risk a long day tour or even one returning later in the afternoon. We did a ships tour to a village - it was excellent - because they had arranged ahead for us to be assigned to a bus with a large luggage area.

 

Colleen

[rkmw]

a couple of years ago we had a group of CC members and we hired about 3 taxis in Port Denarau and the driver took us to Raymond Burrs place the Sleeping Giant (if you are into flowers its a must see) plus to see the First Landing which involves going to the village of the local tribe who have been there for a very long time and some free time in Nadi

 

we had the drivers for about 4 hours and it only cost us at the time about $20 a head (would be dearer now)....Princess had the same tour for about $100 pp....to go into the Sleeping Giant it cost about $10 pp

[Aus Traveller]

a couple of years ago we had a group of CC members and we hired about 3 taxis in Port Denarau and the driver took us to Raymond Burrs place the Sleeping Giant (if you are into flowers its a must see) plus to see the First Landing which involves going to the village of the local tribe who have been there for a very long time and some free time in Nadi

 

we had the drivers for about 4 hours and it only cost us at the time about $20 a head (would be dearer now)....Princess had the same tour for about $100 pp....to go into the Sleeping Giant it cost about $10 pp

I agree that it is easy to put together a tour visiting the Garden of the Sleeping Giant, a village, the Hindu Temple in Nadi. Taxis cost around AUD$20 per hour, but when negotiating specify whether it is AUD or FJD because there is a big difference. A reasonable tour would take around three hours. Entry into the Garden of the Sleeping Giant would have to be paid in FJD. When we were there last I think the entry was around $13, but I think the FJD has dropped a bit more since then.

[rkmw]

I agree that it is easy to put together a tour visiting the Garden of the Sleeping Giant, a village, the Hindu Temple in Nadi. Taxis cost around AUD$20 per hour, but when negotiating specify whether it is AUD or FJD because there is a big difference. A reasonable tour would take around three hours. Entry into the Garden of the Sleeping Giant would have to be paid in FJD. When we were there last I think the entry was around $13, but I think the FJD has dropped a bit more since then.

 

when we went to The Sleeping Giant in 2009 we could pay in AUD

[Aus Traveller]

when we went to The Sleeping Giant in 2009 we could pay in AUD

That's good to know :). Our driver paid and the entry fee was added to the cost to hire him for a couple of hours.