One of Crazy Daisy’s favorite stops when in the Fijian Islands, has always been ” The Sacred Islands” Navadra, Eori, Kadomo and Vanua Levu. These are a small group of Islands that lie northwest of the Mamanucas. They’re totally uninhabited, other than goats and many, many sea birds, including the rare “White Tern”.
The anchorage we’ve usually favored is off Navadra, but it can be very rolly if the wind and current are not in your favor, and we’ve spent more than our fair share of uncomfortable nights there.
These Islands are held sacred in Fijian culture, and held holy in Fijian myth. Many Fijian’s think of them as the birthplace of Fijian culture, believing that the first people landed here 2500 years ago.
We simply loved the isolation and peace there, the islands are absolutely beautiful in their “way off the beaten track location”, which is always what we’re searching for. The snorkeling and diving are great too. If we wanted crowded bars, disco’s, casinos and all that crap, we would head right back to Aruba. Having said that, the cruise ships and tour boats discovered the “desert Island” attraction for their guests, and used these islands to stop for day trips, shoveling them all ashore in their hundreds, with their bright Hawaiian shirts, long socks, floppy hats and flourescent sunburnt skin, to spend an afternoon on a desert island, which quite honestly defeats the whole idea of “desert Island”.
In the meantime: The people on the Island of Tavua who consider themselves guardians of the “Sacred Islands” put up large signs on the beaches in 2019, demanding money from any visitors that dare to set foot on the Islands, I believe it was $20 per person; on one hand it will quite possibly stop the cruise ship/tour boat infestation, but on the other hand, cruisers like Bob and myself will simply avoid these islands. In the long run, this could be good as it will preserve the natural unspoiled beauty of the Islands and its wildlife, so perhaps there is an upside after all.
Since COVID, the cruise ships have yet to come back, unfortunately I’m sure they will return before too long, so we should make the most of it while we can, either pay for our visit and enjoy the tranquility, or stay away!
Either way, keep the beaches clean, leave only footprints, take only photographs 🙂