Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# January 03 - 10 on Taveuni, Fiji Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea / Fiji
julian81 01:01 UTC 08 Dec 2008 | Hi, I will spend one week on Taveuni, Fiji in January (01/03 - 01/10). I only have a small budget and would like to spend the whole week on this island. My question is if it is possible to explore the island without a guide? Another question is if it really rains 24/7 during that time. If that is so , are there any other great places to visit with a small budget. Maybe you are in that area at the same time and we can explore the island together. I am Julian, 27,male from Germany. Right now I am in San Diego, California and will travel to Fiji, New Zealand (4 weeks) and Australia (4 weeks). See ya. Julian |
smandkjc 21:27 UTC 08 Dec 2008 | Not sure what time of the year we were at Taveuni but it did rain most of the time. It did not stop us from enjoying the island though. Don't think you need a guide just some way to get around, we hired a taxi but it could no doubt be done cheaper. We found Taveuni to be a much wetter place than the Mamanuca's. | 1
oldpro 17:20 UTC 09 Dec 2008 | No problem exploring without a guide. Take buses between towns. Not many roads on Taveuni and the buses travel the length of most of them. Most of the jungle walks in the national parks are easy to follow on your own. Yes, Taveuni gets a lot of rain. Probably 2 out of 3 days during my visit (not all day, though) and that was the dry season. Carry a fold-up umbrella. I used one while on one of the trails. Not a big inconvenience. Drier would be Ovalau, if you're on a tight budget and want to escape Taveuni's rain. It's close to the Suva cloud trap (that corner of Viti Levu gets a lot of cloud, maybe from direction of prevailing wind), and gets its share of rain as well. There's a case to be made that Ovalau and nearby Caqalai and Leleuvia would give you a more varied overall experience than Taveuni. But if you want a lot of dry, then stay on the west side of Viti Levu, the Mamanucas, or the Yasawas. That's the Fijian equivalent of desert. You'll have to pick your island if you want budget. | 2