Published on Feb, 2025
Excellent tour to get a feel of traditional Fijian life and also see some beautiful scenery. BOBBY was our guide and he was OUTSTANDING! Really, really nice guy who was so knowledgeable about everything Fijian - a local guy born and raised right in the Nadi area. We cannot recommend Bobby enough! We visited the Hindu temple, a local farmers market (try the kava!), a local department (like a Fijian Macy’s) which was interesting as a comparison. The store was where “rich” people shop (and you could also get good/coffee/etc there instead of shopping. It was interesting to look around the store and compare clothing styles, prices, etc. We also visited a local school (please make a donation!) and a lovely botanical garden, and got to walk around with the supplied umbrellas because it poured rain right then (we couldn’t go on the Sleeping Giant walk because of the rain and extremely slippery walkways up the mountain). Stopped for food at a little local spot, and also visited the oldest Fijian village. We ended the day with the mud bath/thermal pool/massage location which was very interesting. (We had massages because we had to get straight on a plane and didn’t want to feel icky from the mud but wished we had extra clothes because we could have just gone in the thermal pool!)
Yes, there were trinkets and jewelry for sale everywhere but that is always the case in similar situations. Bobby explained that there is no social security, or any government assistance for citizens, so people make money any way they can even into their elderly years - they are just trying to survive. (Side note: Fijian wage is $5/hr, please tip Bobby well!!)
Highly recommend the tour - request Bobby if you can!