Blue Lagoon Cruises, Fiji

[essgee_ca]

Hello Cruise Critic Friends!  

It has been a long time since I checked in.  I finally feel safe cruising again and got the cruise bug.  A cruise came across my Travelzoo feed that looked interesting.  Long story short, I booked cruise of the Islands of Fiji on the Fijian Princess for the end of March.

What I'm looking for from you is information, tips, "must sees" and suggestions.  Any suggestions for my pre and post cruise stay would be welcome too.  I'm in Fiji (20 minutes from the airport) for 2 days pre cruise and 1 day post.  I will have traveled for over 18 hours by the time I get to Fiji so will likely be very jetlagged, meaning the first day may be shot.  But, hey, who knows?

Thanks in advance!

 

[cAPS lOCK oN]

We had a similar trip, but probably 20 years ago, so much of this is dated. But here goes...

 

Our travel agent was a Fiji expert, and she recommended staying off the mainland, which was a good choice, we thought. There are dozens of single resort islands in the area, and she recommended Tokoriki. So after arriving at the main airport in Nadi we took a seaplane to Tokoriki and spent two nights there. We had a beautiful beach bungalow (called a bure in Fijian) and had a great time there. The bure even had a plunge pool. We were somewhat jet-lagged, but travelling west lessens the amount of jet lag. Plus we crossed 18 time zones I think, which meant we were only 6 hours from Fiji time.

 

After we checked out, Tokoriki gave us a day room to stay in while we awaited the Blue Lagoon ship. Sometime after dark the resort motored us out to the ship and we boarded. The only downside was that we were the last couple to board. Everyone else had boarded in Nadi, and were in mid-party. We felt like outsiders, but before too long we'd made some friends. The upside was that they put us un the owner's suite for some reason, perhaps because we were the last to arrive.

 

The cruise was a lot of fun. There were loads of jolly Australians and Kiwis, and you got to hear "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!, Oi! Oi! Oi!" deep into the night. We visited a Fijian village, which was a lifetime highlight. We spent one day on a deserted island with a pig roast at dusk. Very cool. There's one day unaccounted for (it WAS 20 years ago!), but it was all great fun.

 

I'm sure a lot has changed in 20 years, especially in the last 3. But I'm sure Fijians still drink Kava, and you should try that. One other thing that sticks in my mind is how unbelievably friendly Fijians are. Lots of places say they are the friendliest on earth, but Fiji is the winner.

 

Hope this helps.