The Pacific Islands are somewhere I’ve always wanted visit. I’ve had a fascination with their remoteness from home and the rest of the world and the way of life on these relaxed islands. When living in Australia I realised they were a lot closer than they had ever been before and therefore jumped at the chance to explore! We bought a Bula pass with Awesome Adventures Fiji which allowed us 10 days travel throughout the Yasawa Island Chain. We booked our accommodation all separately and made our way from Sydney to island time! After experiencing two beautiful islands on the Yasawa Chain, we were holding out on a lot of luck that our last stop would be as nice as the first two. Blue Lagoon Beach Resort impressed us from the beginning. With friendly staff, crystal blue waters and a well kept resort, Blue Lagoon felt like the kind of place where we knew we had made it. Blue lagoon seems to be inclusive to all budgets, allowing everyone to experience a little bit of luxury. We were in the 8 bed dorm whilst there were others in the resort in villas and lodges. Our dorm room was air conditioned, which was a nice surprise, and gave us all lots of room. After checking in, we made our way to the restaurant for lunch. We were overwhelmed with the menu choice and were giddy on how we thought we’d really made it in the world. After a delicious lunch, I had the spring rolls, we went for a swim, jumped off the pontoon and figured out what we wanted to do with our time at the resort. At around 4 we washed off and made our way to showers to get dressed for the evening. Dinner that night was a la carte and again we were thrilled with the choice and the fact that it was a three course meal. On top of that we were offered bread and Arancini balls. We all had a great time at dinner and joined a couple for the meal. Are we now officially adults? After dinner which was again fantastic, we took part in crab racing. Each person chose a crab and paid $5 for the bet. They put a number on your chosen crab and then released them all in the middle of a circle. Mine didn’t even make it past the semi final but it was a fun activity. After a couple of rounds of cards we were all knackered so went straight to bed. The next morning after filling up on the buffet breakfast, me and Holly took a hike up to the summit of the island. We were hot and sweaty at the top but enjoyed it and took in some great views. The water was beautiful as it steeped from different shades of blue and reminded me of the Whitsundays, just quieter! We got back just before lunch and sat in the sun whilst we waited, I got a bit burnt. We spent a few hours really relaxing with lunch and afterwards we got out the paddle boards. This was so much fun and we attempted to try some yoga on the boards. We just made a fool of ourselves but it was fun nonetheless! That evening we were treated to another three course meal and kept the same dinner company, we felt so civilised here! Again it was all delicious, especially the gnocchi for main and the pannacotta for dessert. That evening we were all so tired by 8.30pm we couldn't even stay up for coconut bowling and instead went straight to bed after dinner and cards. The next morning we got up early to visit the Sawa-I-Lau Caves. These are located at the very top of the Yasawa Island Chain and comprise of dozens of tunnels with tidal water following through them. The first cave is huge, with sunlight streaming through. The second cave is pitch black and can only be accessed through an underwater passage. To get there you need to hold your breath for 4-5 seconds and swim under the rocks. Guides are at either end holding torches to help guide you and will offer a hand to help push you through. They then give you a tap on your head when you're clear of the rocks and can come up. It sounds scary but doing it is less so. Just hold your breath and swim and the guides will do the rest! Once we all got through to the other side, by torchlight we explored the other caves. This was really fun and there were so many caverns to explore. The floor of the cave was probably 8 metres below us so we tread water for a while but there were rafts in the caves to hold onto. Overall it was beautiful and a great experience. I’m so glad I didn’t listen to people's dramatic re-tellings of the underwater passage and swam through. When we got back to the resort we were greeted by staff members keen to get people involved in the events they had put on for Fiji day. These included, kayak races, billi billi races -which were traditional rafts -, coconut bocce, the giant fijian foot race and coconut husking. We took part in all of the them and it was great fun! We came second in the kayak racing but first in the billi billi racing, against Fijians! This was also despite 2/4 paddles breaking early on in the race.
The Giant Fijian Foot race was two large planks of wood which 5 people had to stand on and move to a finish line. This was great to watch and we also took the win in this against housekeeping. Coconut bocce was less successful but still good fun. It was basically balls but with coconuts instead. Coconut husking was also not successful from us but fascinating to learn and watch. We learnt how to shave, break open and husk out all the coconut meat. We’re now fully prepared to live solely off coconuts on a deserted island! Our enthusiasm and hard work in all of the events paid off though and we were given a bottle of champagne to celebrate our win that evening which made it all worth it and was the perfect end to a lovely stay here. That evening's dinner was a traditional Fijian buffet and was all fabulous. The dessert section was particularly impressive with a huge cake for the day as well as multiple smaller dessert bites. That evening we also joined the staff for cava, had to be done on Fiji day! We stayed up later this evening, much to our amazement, just chatting to other guests we’d met during the stay. On our last morning, me and Holly got up at 6.45am to do yoga, which was a nice start to the day, I felt very inflexible! After another round of pastries and pancakes, we packed our bags and checked out. This was by far the worst experience at Blue Lagoon! We had wildly under predicted how much money we would need and therefore had to all pay on card. Worth it though! After packing up our empty wallets we headed to the water for one last swim and sunbathed on the pontoon watching the fishes in the crystal clear waters. We also watched a sea plane land and take off from a few metres away whilst we swam. It was pretty cool! At 12.30pm our own mode of transport arrived to take us off the island and armed with sandwiches we stepped onto the Yasawa Flyer for a five hour journey back to the mainland. I have to remark that the sandwich was disappointing, with only salad in the vegetarian wrap. But seeming as the rest of the food was amazing, I’m going to be kind and forgive them. Blue Lagoon was the resort we needed but didn’t deserve. We felt like 5 star visitors even though we were in an 8 bed dorm and loved everything we got up to there. All of the staff were friendly and we loved being there for Fiji day where we got to join in on traditional activities. It is a resort run by an Australian owner, but has the core feel of Fijian hospitality so it was both familiar, luxury and welcoming. Whether you are a traveller, a couple or family searching for a more high-end holiday, Blue Lagoon delivers on all fronts.
2 Comments
23/10/2019 07:38:16 am
Everyone loves to travel to the places they have never seen before to explore and understand the true beauty of the world. I am happy to read that you are having the best moments of your life by traveling to these islands.
Reply
4/3/2021 11:54:06 am
This is really great and helpful piece of information. I am glad that you shared this mind-blowing information with us. Please keep us informed like this.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Hi! I'm Holly, a twenty something traveller from the UK. Over the years I've been lucky enough to live and travel in many countries. I've studied in America and working holidayed in Australia and New Zealand! I currently live in South Korea. Learn more about me below!
Read More >> |