Have decided to go to Fiji for New Year break. Am considering staying at the The Fijian or the Sheraton Fiji Resort.

Anyone been to either, which is better, AND is 14 days too long (ie. will we get bored ???)

Any input appreciated.

Maria (my daughter, 27 years) and her boyfriend Dani (25 years) stayed at The Fijian last april 2000 (2 weeks on Fidji), they were never bored but enjoyed close contacts with the local people.

alexbs,

I stayed at the Sheraton at Denaru Island (near Nadi) last Fall and liked it very much. It's a large complex with several different "resorts" within the entire Sheraton resort. I stayed in one of the Villas and thought the accomodations were more than adequate. The staff, extremely friendly. The food, plentiful and diverse in nature (great seafood, obviously).

I stayed for about 7 days and was ready to go by the last day. It had nothing to do with the resort, but rather my own personal preference for what I like to do on holiday/business. Although there are plenty of activities (golf, tennis, scuba, para-sailing, jet skiing, etc.) Fiji (with the Sheraton Resort as my reference) is really a fantastic place to just lay around and do nothing. I'm so used to a heavily urban environment that I literally begin to go nuts after a while of too much peace and quiet!

The weather is typically wonderful...it was very hot and humid in Oct., but I've been hot and humid in worse places!

I only wonder how things are now as a result of all of the unrest? I was there (believe it or not) on business, so I met with a lot of businesspeople and government folks--some of those government folks ended up being held hostage in the recent Coup attempt. There are definite issues between the ethnic Fijian population, and the LARGE Indian population. I have no idea how things are now, given what's happended.

But assuming its safe to travel there, I'd take a look at the Sheraton and see which "resort" fits the budget and needs of the traveler(s). It's closer to the Nadi Int'l Airport, which is the likely entry point for most visitors. Plus, the Sheraton is situated close to several great island "get away" locations, like Beachcombers Resort several miles offshore, which offers a vacation within a vacation.

Also worth mentioning is how affordable Fiji can be once outside of the resort (like most places in the world). Get out of the Sheraton or Fijian and you'll meet some wonderful people who obviously take a lot of pride in their culture(s) and work. Great art, including many wood carvings. Their is also great wooden furniture to be had at some very reasonable prices (assuming you can ship it reasonably). There's junk, too, but a little bit of shopping around and skillful negotiating can yield a treasure trove of keepsakes. You can make your home country Customs Agency very happy if you aren't careful!

Sorry for the long-winded message, but hopefully this gives you some food for thought

We spent a week at the Hideaway on the coral coast. I'd highly recommend it. Probably not as upscale as the Fijian but the people (both staff and guests) were fantastic. Not much of a beach there but we went out to plantation resort for another week where there are great beaches and water/land activities.

Bored? Sun, beaches, warm water, bikinis, tropical drinks, hammocks. Not me!

DR

We stayed at the Sheraton Royal Denarau for 2 days en route to two of the smaller resorts on the other islands. Two days at the SRD was way enough for us; the place was nice enough, the rooms were great (huge), and the property was very well maintained, but: (1) the beaches weren't that nice, and (2) you knew you were staying at, if not a Sheraton, at least a Western-style resort that actually could have been in Hawaii.

We much preferred the smaller resorts (Dive Taveuni and Namale) to the SRD, since they were significantly smaller with better personalized service, and much nicer beaches for swimming, snorkeling and diving. Again, nothing particularly wrong with the SRD, but nothing particularly compelling about it, either. And I think 14 days at SRD is WAY too long. I'd rather spend a couple of days there and then venture out to some of the smaller resorts.

Thanks for the advise,will look at perhaps breaking up the stay with another hotel.

Maybe a nice island.

i flew to fiji about 12 years ago for new year's, and arrived on what i learned was the third day of a major (and not moving )typhoon. i had paid for a dive vacation at matangi, and the typhoon prevented me from going anywhere. i stayed at the fijian and after about three days, i wound up buying a round trip on air pacific thru honiara to cairnes. i should've been suspicious when i saw there were candles in the drawers of the fijian (blackouts due to weather, i mean). you are going in typhoon season!

You might want to check out Vatulele http://www.vatulele.com I stayed at the Royal Denarou for a day before going there. It doesn't compare.

On the "outer islands" there are some of the most pleasant resorts of the world. I'd highly recommend one of those, if you don't want to stay at one of the Sheraton or the Shangri La's. Very unique and breathtaking. The Sheraton is nice, too but it could be any (sunny) place all over the world. The problem with those chain resorts.

http://www.navinifiji.com.fj/
http://www.southpacificgateway.com/f...orts/wananavu/
http://www.fiji-islands.com/resorts.html#namale
http://www.anzac.com/fiji/fiji.htm
http://www.fijifvb.gov.fj/

thanx for the info.

Will look into the smaller island resorts, for a week maybe. BUT with the Aussi Dollar tailspinning, the better resort are getting abit pricey, and they seem to charge in USD.

See what I can find

Oh well, they are no Hot Deals, but in this case paying some xtra bucks is well worth it. They really "feel" south pacific, the Sheraton does not - could be Sanibel as well.

There are some others on the main island. too (like the Hideaway), which will provide some more exotic touch. The very last of 'em links is the Fiji visitors bureau, if I remember correctly. ?

Well,

following everyone's advise, booked into Nukabati Island...a Small Luxury Hotels of the World, member. Sounds great, small island, with 7 bures, and 40 staff to look after you.

Wasn't cheap, but hopefully will be nice.