Fiji family vacation at Xmas - where to start?

[simongr]

Hi all

Due to the fact that I want to avoid my in-laws at Xmas we are thinking a vacation to Fiji next Xmas might be a great idea. I am thinking 10 days starting just before Xmas anf lying home just after New Year (that way I can dive between Xmas and New Year).

There will be three of us - me, wife and 4 and 10/12 year old boy. There might be another family if we can persuade them it is a great idea.

I just don't know where to start - ask me to pick a OW flight to anywhere in the world (apart from Africa or SOuth America) and I am your man. Ask me about certain Hiltons around the world and I am your man. Ask me about booking a non-points based family holiday and I have NFI...

"Only" requirements are:

- Good food
- Good pool
- Kids club?
- Fantastic spa for mrssimongr
- Sea access

I don't know whether to go to Flight Centre or find a real travel agent.

I would love to go in J on the flights but might have to live through whY (just burnt 600K QF points and might be burning 200K more on another trip this year).

Cheers as always

S

P.s. Is the weather actually good in Fiji in December?

 

[Simo]

Dec can have some cyclones.

We like Denaru Island due to the fact that it is close to the airport app 20 min trip.

All the resort on Denaru have what you want so it just comes down to how much you want to spend.

 

[Pvcmenace]

+1 Denaru.

Sofitel is on the cheaper side of things, has the best pool, ok kids club and free flowing Chandon for breakfast. Denaru island has ordinary beach so stick to the pool and weather will likely be wet hot and humid.

 

[YNWA]

Other than Denarau, I'd also consider somewhere like Castaway Island. Great food, diving, snorkelling right off the beach, kids club but no day spa as such. While it is more of a hike to get to, it won't be over run like the some of the the larger resorts. The Outrigger on the coral coast would also tick the boxes (the day spa there is one of the best in Fiji) but the beach and snorkelling is mediocre. Great pool and heaps of dining options too. In December, the humidity will be stifling and it is in the cyclone season. Great weather for knocking back Fiji Gold!!

 

[Simo]

+1 Denaru.

Sofitel is on the cheaper side of things, has the best pool, ok kids club and free flowing Chandon for breakfast. Denaru island has ordinary beach so stick to the pool and weather will likely be wet hot and humid.

We stay at Westin which is part of SPG.

All resorts on the Island have some good specials at certain times.

 

[cmon0005]

We stayed at Westin on Denarau Island (luckily we left a few days before the cyclone hit).
Fantastic hotel and we were upgraded to Ocean front room for being a Gold Starwood Preferred guest.

As for flights we flew Air Pacific Business class (Booked through QF site on a QF flight number) for around $830 each way per person.
On the way back we were booked in Y (booked through QF) but managed to do a paid upgrade at Nadi airport for around $200~ AUD each, on top of the Y fares we had already purchased.

 

[Ansett]

having stayed in various resorts in Fiji and experienced all seasons I would not recomend xmas in Fiji due to the unpredictable weather just look back at this year. Note so with a family I would NOT GO. Oh and I love fiji during our winter

 

[Simo]

having stayed in various resorts in Fiji and experienced all seasons I would not recomend xmas in Fiji due to the unpredictable weather just look back at this year. Nore so with a family I would NOT GO. Oh and I love fiji during our winter

We normally go to Fiji in Aug/Sept and the pool is little bit cool first thing in the morning but it does warm up a little.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

P.s. Is the weather actually good in Fiji in December?

Thailand would be a much safer bet Xmas wise.

I have had several Xmas's in Thailand and weather was very good each time.

 

[Neeraj]

Dec jan is not a great time unfortunately. I'm a native from there and even i hate the weather then.

Best is apr/may..but if u have to go dec

Try beachcomber island.

In denarau, I've stayed at Hilton and Sofitel. Both good but Sofitel is more kid friendly. Everything is Aussie price comparison on denarau though.

Also there is an amazing cruise to the blue lagoon. It's a 3 day cruise or longer if you want. Lookup blue lagoon cruises. Diving can be done too.

If you fly air pacific, stay out of Y, food is shocking and the IFE is from the 80's...but then again you may be on the new airbus.

Hole this helps.

 

[tuapekastar]

I've not been to Fiji, so this comment is second-hand, and maybe take it a with a grain of salt because. I was told that some of the resorts are a long way from anything else (shops, restaurants, bars etc.) so unless you are prepared to spend large amounts of time/money getting somewhere else to shop/eat/drink, then you are captive to the resort's overpricing.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I've not been to Fiji, so this comment is second-hand, and maybe take it a with a grain of salt because. I was told that some of the resorts are a long way from anything else (shops, restaurants, bars etc.) so unless you are prepared to spend large amounts of time/money getting somewhere else to shop/eat/drink, then you are captive to the resort's overpricing.

Yes in Fiji, you mainly stick to eating at your resort. So choose your resort with care. It is not at all like say Thailand where there will normally be cheap restaurants just nearby.

So food-wise Fiji is a lot more expensive than Asia. It is a bit like the Gold Coast for pricing.

Some resorts have good value meal plans which are worth getting.

However with young kids, Fii resorts are awesome destinatons as the Fijians are very child-centric and your kids will love being with them.

The upside of not having restaurants and markets nearby, is that one is not constantly pestered by touts.

You can go for a stroll along the beach, and not be pestered to buy cokes, massages, T-shirts etc...

 

[straitman]

I've not been to Fiji, so this comment is second-hand, and maybe take it a with a grain of salt because. I was told that some of the resorts are a long way from anything else (shops, restaurants, bars etc.) so unless you are prepared to spend large amounts of time/money getting somewhere else to shop/eat/drink, then you are captive to the resort's overpricing.

This is only true for the resorts away from populated areas. The resorts at Denarau Island have the shopping centre at Port Denarau nearby and this is accessed easily by the Bula Bus.

We normally go to Pacific Harbour and there is a nice little shopping centre quite handy.

 

[Katie]

We've done Coral Coast (ICH) in Feb for a long weekend. Bit rainy/overcast, but Little Miss then 4-and-a-bit loved the kids club. Around AUD15/session. I think they would order her chips whenever she said she was hungry (we could tell them not to order chips if we preferred).
Downside: an hour away from NAN on a two lane pot-hole laden highway. Pretty much stuck with the resort, unlike here in Koh Samui where we can go local or even to another resort restaurant/bar with ease.

 

[docjames]

We enjoyed our stay at the Intercontinental - 1hr minibus ride from the airport - the hotel can arrange pickup etc. Kids club, excellent spa, three restaurants, two main pools, nice sheltered beach, friendly staff (but that's most everywhere in Fiji I'd guess!). It has a basic store that sells drinks etc at a not unreasonable price. If you're into golf there's a great golf course, or if not, go up there (free shuttle bus) for lunch and look at the view / take a golf cart down to the water and have a look.

Pick up the IC Ambassador for a 2:1 and Priority Privilege also for a 2:1 and food discount. There's a few threads around about the IC Fiji.

Just realised Katie is describing the same resort. There's also a primary school tour which is well worthwhile (the IC supports the local school). Although doubtful that will be running when you're there (and it's one day a wreek

There's a local "restaurant" if you head down the beach (5-10 min walk). The IC dont tell you it's there (for obvious reasons).

 

[simongr]

Thanks all - looks like Fiji might be scheduled for 2014 winter holidays then due to the weather issues described above...

Going to have to find an alternative for this year...

 

[darklight]

P.s. Is the weather actually good in Fiji in December?

I've just returned from 2 weeks in Fiji, and found the weather great. Sure it gets hot in the middle of the day, but that just lends itself to a long lunch. We had 2 days with rain out of 14.

I do backpacker type accomodation so I can't comment on good resorts, but I did drop in at the Intercontinental near Nadi, has a great pool and awesome beach.

As nice as the mainland is though, the Yasawa Islands are truly spectacular. Diving at Mantaray Island is not to be missed.

 

[MelUser]

I have been on 2 family holidays to Fiji and about to depart on 3rd.

TRIP 1:

Flew on VA - they are always number one choice due to direct flights at pleasant hours from MEL to NAN. Air Pacific (about to be named back to FIji airlines) leaves Melbourne around mid night.


This trip was in February - stayed at Fiji Hilton - travelled - 3 adults, 4 kids - 0,0,2,4. Stayed in the 3 bedroom deluxe beachfront villa - yes these cost a small fortune (and there are only 2 of them on the property) but you have your own private pool. Weather was fine - it rains a bit which keeps everything cool and there are plenty of sea breezes. Kids love the pools - there are 7 in the complex I think and food is good.

I for one don't mind paying for things while on holidays so I am not out looking for cheap eats. Also, I really believe that hotel food is worth it - everything is clean and presented nicely etc etc.

(2) Trip 2 May - this time of year had no rain so it was dryer and perhaps a bit cooler. 2 adults and 4 children - stayed at Fiji Hilton. had a 2 bedroom deluxe beachfront villa - no private pool in this but a huge space - in fact it was on top of one of the 3 bedroom one from last time so had larger living areas.

Again - I could not fault the Fiji Hilton and was happy to pay whatever the price was for meals etc etc.

I very much trust the baby sitters that Hilton arranges for children.

Flew with QF to SYD and Air Pacific from Sydney to NAN and direct back from NAN to MEL. The headache of going via Sydney has put me off Air Pacific. Note that we didn't fly with DJ/VA as they had a limit of under 2s on their aircraft. This limit has now been removed.

(3) Trip 3 on 19 Jan for 1 week, Staying at the Sheraton Denarau Villas in a 3 bedroom Villa. Only staying here as Hilton was booked out in the 3 bedroom category. This trip is booked on VA/DJ.

Note: all travel has been in economy class other than domestic QF upgrades to SYD and also the trip back from NAN to MEL on Air Pacific was in business. As this is relatively a short flight I wouldn't bother with business class unless you want the extra baggage allowance. VA/DJ is particularly generous - their "premium" as they call it gives you 2 x 32kg per passenger which is useful if you travel with lots of stuff.

Also, out TA arranged to pay an express fee for airport staff to usher us out through immigration and carry bags etc which is very useful when travelling with 4 kids.

I wouldn't hesitate to go any time of year - it has been the most relaxing destination in the world I have been to with 4 children - you can have people do everything so that you can actually relax. We just got back from 2 weeks in Chicago last month and that was pretty hard work with 4 kids - for those flights however business and domestic First in USA is important I feel as space for kids but I don't want to get into that given the now closed thread about banning children from Premium cabins!!

I'm happy to answer any specific questions about Fiji travel.

 

[malmacdowall]

+1 for THAILAND in Dec / Jan. weather is excellent and hotel prices in Asia are much cheaper. Food / drinks are also cheap. We're off for 10 days in pattaya Thailand tomorrow. $150/night incl breakfast at Pullman resort with a pool access room .... Great value just book early.

Regarding Fiji - we did the winter holiday there a few years back and loved it. Stayed on the coral coast at Naviti resort ... All inclusive and has a kids club . They have 4 options for dining (but you pay a small extra amount to eat at one if them . Chinese restaurant ). Kids lived it and locals are wonderful. There is a small local village next door with wonderful people . Great for local massage or to get the kids hair braided . As others have mentioned , it's about 1 & 1/2 hours from airport and not much around. You can go to the sister resort and use thier facilities and pool also. Would highly recommend a "private transfer" in a car or bus as the resort shuttle bus takes almost 3 hours...

 

[Katie]

Just realised Katie is describing the same resort.

We did really like it, I'm just being brief as on hols and mostly using iThingies with little keyboards on the interwebz. A downside for us wasthat the hotel minivan did not arrive to pick us up. Little Miss also greeted the country by vomiting on herself and the ground when we got into the arrivals hall.
So we took any taxi that would take us with the risk of her vomiting again.

The trip back by minivan was much nicer.