A day in Fiji

Help me make the most of my time in Fiji! Interests:

• Seeing rural towns/villages
• Amazing scenery
• Trying local food
• Hiking and nature
• Maybe a little beach time

I'm flying in and out of Nadi. I'll rent a car. Thanks!

I'd say drive down to the Sigatoka area, visiting Nadi, Natadola Beach, the Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park (interesting hiking there) and the Tavuni Hill Fort, and maybe the Kula Eco-Park.
If time allows, you could also drive inland to the Sigatoka Valley for some distance.
I guess that's pretty much the most you can get out of a day.

Thanks Laszlo. What do you (or anyone else) think of driving down to Sigatoka, then inland back to Nadi. See sample route here. Or even further up to the northwestern part of the island, then back to Nadi. Is there anything interesting to see inland? I hate backtracking.

Also, do you know of any guesthouses where I can sling my hammock for the night? I think I'm arriving around noon and leave evening the next day so it's more like 1.5 days.

I think parts of that route would be on very rough roads/tracks and I am not sure your rental car would enjoy them. ;-) The scenery inland should be interesting - go as far as you can. A bit further north of your proposed route is Navala, a famous and touristy all-tatch-roofed traditional village.

Fijian guesthouses rent rooms or huts, not spaces to sling hammocks.
Sigatoka itself has a few options, and there are many more along the beaches nearby.

In 1 1/2 days it would be possible to circumnavigate Viti Levu via the Queens and Kings roads by car.
We did it by bus a few weeks ago (in 3 easy days). From Lautoka to Korovu is wonderful country (especially Raki Raki to Korovu) and took 5 hours in the bus, so the road through there is no where near as bad as it used to be. Still about 30km unsurfaced, but OK.

Cheers,
Peter

Thanks Peter. Yeah, google maps shows about 7h (500km) to circumnavigate the island. Raki Raki to Korovou, you took King's road, yes? Not the coastal route? I wouldn't mind going around the whole island, I quite enjoy sightseeing from a car, and we are two drivers so can take turns, doing a few short stops on the way, and perhaps spending the night in Suva.

Laszlo, have you taken King's road? Any opinion on what you think would be more interesting, the route I previously suggested, or going around the whole island?

I've taken both roads around the island.
It would certainly be possible to circumnavigate it in a day and a half, but I wouldn't recommend doing so. It's not like driving 500 kms on a motorway. You'd have little time to actually stop and see things, and most of the road (either road) is not that scenic. The route you suggested would be far more interesting than the Kings Road, but as I had said before, I am not sure doable in a rental car. Rent a 4WD if trying to attempt!

As I said, we did it by bus just a few weeks ago (via Kings Road). The 30km that is not sealed is quite good and only took half an hour. There were plenty of 2WD cars and it would be no problem (at least until the next wet season). They are currently working on a new section there. The rest of the road between Lautoka and Suva is pretty good. The worst section is between Nadi and Lautoka.
About 2/3rds of the way between Raki Raki and Korovo the road follows a beautiful river valley (forgotten its name).
Lautoka to Korovo took 5 hours in the bus (including a couple of short stops). When you get to the roundabout at Korovo, there is a local hotel up the hill to the right where we stayed the night. We took a mini cab from there to Ooma and back.

Cheers,
Peter

P&M: You are talking about an entirely different thing.
The Kings Road is a major highway of Fiji and is of course doable by 2WD.
However OP proposed to do an entirely different route involving tracks in the interior (see his link in #2) and that's what I said would require a 4WD.

Ok, thanks Peter! Hmm, I haven't decided yet, I might end up doing the route I previously suggested, but good to hear it's doable in a 2WD as it is substantially cheaper to rent than a 4WD!