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Volcanic Islands
Mamanuca Group
Fiji Islands
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Volcanic Islands - Mamanuca Group
Malololailai (Plantation Island), the closest of the larger islands to Nadi, is the most developed of the Mamanuca Islands and the only Freehold land in the group enabling private enterprise to develop without the hindrances so often caused by traditional landowners. The island boasts an airstrip with four flights a day depart from Nadi Airport, four resorts, a fully serviced marina, residential homes and a golf course. Boat access is provided by the Malolo Cat, a fast 60-seater catamaran that takes about 1 hour from Denarau Marina. Private water taxi charters from Denarau Marina cost around F$240. Malololailai is the third largest of the Mamanuca islands. The island has rolling hills with several peaks rising to 60 metres offering fantastic views of the lagoon and adjacent islands. Walking tracks meander throughout the grassy hills connecting the four resorts on the protected west side of the island to the more exposed and secluded beaches on the east side of the island where the lagoon is deeper and better for snorkelling. A soft sand beach backed by coconut palms encircles most of the island making it ideal for beachcombing. During the peak sailing season between May and October, Malolo Bay is transformed into a picturesque vision of bobbing yachts. Musket Cove Marina (moorings F$10 per day, berths from F$16 per day weekly, monthly and storage rates available) operates the popular Trader Store with groceries, yacht accessories, general mechanics and limited boat repair facilities. You can also buy meat and fish packs here and wander over to Ratu Nemani Island Bar on the point overlooking both Marina and Bay to cook your own BBQ, watch the sunset and listen to local musicians over F$4.5 beers. Ketches, sloops, catamarans and luxury 30 metre motor yachts are available for day charters, overnight trips and month-long excursions of Fiji. The sailing season culminates in the week-long Musket Cove Regatta in mid-September with race days for serious yachties and casual races in hobbie cats as well as organized day cruises, drinking competitions and skimpy bikini contests.
The four resorts on Malololailai each have their own distinct tourist market but their close proximity along the protected west side of the island means you can enjoy the beach front, amenities and restaurants of all. The largest is Plantation Island Resort with 134 units in all set amongst spacious landscaped gardens with tropical trees and aimed primarily at families with young children. There's a daily kids club, two swimming pools, enclosed swimming lagoon, 9-hole golf course, snack bar, shop and two restaurants serving kids meals at 5pm with movies after. The rooms and bures are a little cramped with basic out-dated furnishings but there's a continuous stream of organized activities to keep everyone busy enough not to need them until bedtime. The beach front is the most attractive on island with plenty of shade from coconut trees. The islands newest resort, Lomani Resort adjacent to Plantation with just 15 spacious suites has a sedate atmosphere with few on-site activities. The islands premier resort is Musket Cove Resort adjacent to the Marina and set partly along inland waterways. The new lagoon bures and villas are built with veranda's over the water and offer spacious modern living with air-conditioning. The older beach front and garden bures are set amongst coconut plantations are traditional thatch bungalows with gloomy but cool rooms and older furnishings. The palm fringed cove beach overlooks a shallow protected lagoon which drains at low tide making swimming impossible a fair compromise is the resorts two large fresh-water swimming pools overlooking the beach one for children and the other for adults. From the resort there are lovely views across the bay to the hilly landscape of Malolo Island. Malololailai Lagoon Resort, on the far side of the Marina, is a timeshare property with 42 individual thatch bungalows. From its point, you can wade ankle deep across the lagoon for 20-minutes across to explore neighbouring Malolo Island.
Malolo Island is the largest of the Mamanuca Group and is also the chiefly island for most parts of the group and the benefactors of most lease agreements with the resorts. There are two villages on Malolo, Yaro and Solevu, at opposite ends of the island. Both can be visited from the nearby resort islands to experience a living Fijian village and to enhance the welfare of the inhabitants through visiting fees. Malolo Island is a wonderful place to explore by foot. There are lots of walking tracks around the island, mostly ancient paths used by the villagers to get to their plantations. The island is more rugged than either Malololailai or Mana and you'll find small cove beaches enclosed by rocky outcrops that are perfect for picnics. However, the land here is owned by the villages so make sure you have permission from the landowners before you explore. If you want to stay overnight on Malolo Island but don't want the large resort experience, try the lively Funky Fish Resort, the pick of the backpacker places. in this group. Also on Malolo, but tucked away on the west side of the island fronting a lovely beach is Malolo Island Resort and offers 49 traditional thatch bungalows set in beautifully landscaped gardens. The restaurant and two-tiered pool is set on the hillside in amongst tropical trees overlooking the ocean and sunsets. The beach is beautiful and stretches for almost a mile. This is a good place for a pampered down-to-earth holiday with an exotic tropical spa as well as kids club. Over the hill from Malolo Island Resort is fantastic Likuliku Lagoon.
A few hundred metres offshore is the rock island of Waidigi with its exclusive tourist villa. If you can afford F$1450 per night price tag and wish to have a private island to yourself, private beach, private boat and nine staff including two gourmet chefs to wait on you, then Waidigi Island provides the ultimate in relaxation.
Castaway Island (Qalito) one km off the west tip of Malolo is a small volcanic island just 173 acres in size rising to a central peak and covered in light tropical forest. The island has a gorgeous curved beach along its western point beyond which rocky outcrops tumble to the sea. Castaway Island Resort has 66 spacious thatch roof bungalows and offers most water sports and a kids club. Another tiny uninhabited volcanic island with a small cove beach, affectionately known as Honeymoon Island (Mociu), is visible off Castaway and is popular as a day trip destination and has excellent snorkelling off the beach. The island is reached on the fast catamaran Tiger IV from Denarau or by sea-plane or helicopter.
Another 4km north-west of Castaway is the popular Mana Island, also on the Tiger IV circuit. Mana is the only island apart from Malololailai with an airstrip (F$85 one way, 5 flights a day, 15min). Mana Island is owned by the high chief of Yaro Village on Malolo Island and although never settled, villagers used the island as a coconut plantation for many years before the western half of the island was leased to an Australian who developed Mana Island Resort. The resort has subsequently been sub-leased to a Japanese businessman who runs the current resort primarily for the Japanese market. The 569 acre island has several hilly peaks with outstanding views of the surrounding islands to the west, with sunset providing spectacular vistas silhouetting the distant high islands of Matamanoa and Tavua with reds and purples. Mana's main beach stretches along its southern flank between the Mana Island Resort and the two backpacker resorts, divided by a 50 metre wooden pier that allows the twice daily Tiger IV fast catamaran from Denarau Marina to disembark its passengers without getting their feet wet. The beach in front of the resort is usually busy with Japanese tourists participating in all sorts of water activities, but alongside the backpackers part of the beach you're more likely to see locals working on their fishing boats. The high chief of Malolo, Ratu Kini, started his own budget accommodation in the workers village adjacent to the resort but over the years it has become both unwieldy and unhygienic with inadequate septic tanks that seep into the lagoon. The lagoon offshore has copious amounts of seaweed, but swim 20 metres out from the main resort and you'll reach a fantastic drop-off with great visibility, coral heads teaming with fish and the chance to spot the occasional sea-turtle. Past the rocks enclosing either side of the main beach are fine stretches of secluded sand with Sunset Beach having the most picturesque setting. At low tide the island can be circumnavigated with ease, taking about an hour and a half, though with the incoming tide it is necessary to scramble over several slippery rocky outcrops to complete the circuit. A short hike over the middle of the island from the resort village and past the fresh water bore leads through coconut lined trees to secluded North Beach, usually deserted and offering the best snorkelling on Mana, but soon to be developed into another 100-room tourist resort. Another trail from the resort village climbs through a cassava patch to the highest point on Mana at 62 metres and follows the entire eastern length of the island along its ridge eventually leading down into a seldom visited coconut plantation on the eastern side of the island and a secluded coarse sand beach.
Four km north west of Mana and 30km north west of Nadi is a collection of seven spectacular volcanic islands with steep cliffs and pristine beaches. One of these, uninhabited Monuriki, was the location of the Tom Hanks film Castaway chosen for its savage appearance and daunting rock faces. The customary owners of Monuriki on neighbouring Yanuya Island found themselves in the limelight for a year and benefited financially from its lease agreement with the filmmakers. The women of Yanuya village are renowned for the traditional pottery making skills. Tavua is the largest of these islands with a picturesque fishing village on the east side of the island and lies equidistance to the two resort islands, Matamanoa to its south and Tokoriki to the north. Both resorts are upmarket properties focusing on honeymoon couples and diving enthusiasts and guests are either flown in by helicopter or seaplane or catch resort boats connecting to Mana Island.
Matamanoa Island Resort sits on a flat coconut grove that juts out from the rugged island. The small point is surrounded by a picturesque beach but is enclosed by steep cliffs either side making it impossible to explore. However, with only 35 rooms and a no children policy, the beach rarely feels crowded. Take a boat ride around the island and you should spot several species of seabirds nesting in the cliff face.
Tokoriki Island Resort has one of the finest white sand beaches in Fiji that stretches for a km, faces west, and has 23 thatch bures along its edge, each one surrounded by trees and coastal plants to ensure absolute privacy. The hilly island is covered in semi-dense tropical forest with walking trails to its 94-metre summit with outstanding views towards the Yasawa islands in the north. On the south east side of the island, high up on cliffs, is an ancient Tongan fortification overlooking the sea. The trail continues down the other side of the island where another sandy beach awaits development. Several species of endemic birds inhabit Tokoriki including the pink-billed parrot finch and fruit dove.
Northwest of Tokoriki is a small group of uninhabited and seldom visited islands which extend towards the Yasawa Group including Camel Island, with two large humps protruding from its body, and the Secret Islands, believed to be the first land the ancient Fijians set foot upon before arriving at Vuda Point on the island of Viti Levu. Apart from Viwa Island in the north, these are the most westerly islands in Fiji.
Almost midway back towards the mainland of Viti Levu is the unusually shaped and isolated Vomo Island, a high volcanic island with flat top and protruding point giving the appearance of a baseball cap. Vomo Island Resort was originally established in 1993 as Sheraton Resort but was sold in 1998 to private investors. The 28 spacious air-conditioned villas are all beach front and guests arrive by helicopter or sea-plane. Vomolailai, a small rocky island off Vomo provides protected anchorage for yachts – the seas to the north across the Bligh Passage are often rough as the winds and currents whip around the north coast of Viti Levu. wind-surfing off the north shore of Vomo is at times exceptional and in calmer weather, some of the best scuba diving spots in the Mamanucas are found off the more protected southern reef.
Flights to Mamanuca Group
Sea plane and helicopter transfers are available to all Mamanuca Resorts. There is an airstrip on Mana Island and Malololeilei Island with regular daily flights from Nadi Airport.
Local Flights
Fast Catamarans to Mamanuca Group
The mamanuca group is served by numerous fast catamarans and smaller boats, most departing from Denarau Marina off Nadi. South Sea Cruises operate a daily fast catamaran to Waya, Wayasewa, Naviti and Tavewa islands. Takes between 2 - 4 hours from Nadi.
Local Cruises / Ferries
Readers may also be interested in the following destinations:
Cook Islands Travel Guide
Samoa Travel Guide
Tonga Travel Guide
Tahiti Travel Guide
Hawaii Travel Guide
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