baffled by the bula pass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

helloooooo peeps

ok just a quickie, 7 days in fiji gonna be there on the 19th (pm) sept, 1 night in nomads in nadi, then i wanna spend 1 night on kuata, 2 nights 3 days on octopus and a cupla days on barefoot.

1: what else should i do? wheres the party island at? i want the sharks on kuata, the mantas on waya. done enough caves and trekking to last me a lifetime i need to chill out on a white sandy no wave bounty advert kinda beach :)

2: does the bula pass even take you to these islands?

3:should i pre book my bula pass seeing as though im arriving late on the 19th and wanna get straight out on the 20th? cheaper online or there? ive seen quotes of about £188...that bout right?

4:does anyone know what time the boats leave to hit up the next island, example, i want to do 2 nights three days at octopus but obviously only if there is a pm boat that departs for the next island.....

oh so confused and im not getting the info i need

soz for the stupidity folks greatly appreciate a little help :) mwah xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

There is only 1 boat that leaves Nadi each day - have a look at a map - it leaves about 8.30 and makes it way up to Nacula Island arriving at approx 1pm (from memory) then turns around to head back to Denaru - any islands that you stay at in the Yasawas send boats to meet the Yasawa flyer - that price sounds right - you can either pre book or line up at the wharf to pay - you have definite ideas where you want to stay so I would prebook - enjoy

Yasawas generally are not 'party' islands - probably the closest on your list would be Barefoot.
As 'kimm' says - the Yasawa Flyer does one round trip a day - leaves Denarau Marina at 8.30am. It gets to Kuata at 10.30am, Octopus at 11am, Barefoot/Manta Ray around 11.30am. On the return journey - Barefoot/Manta Ray 2.45pm, Octopus 3.15pm, Kuata 3.45pm - back at Denarau usually around 6pm.
- so you can work out your travel times around that. Octopus usually busy so you might need to book well in advance for that.
You can pre-book your travel and hold the booking with a credit card number, and then pay when checking in at the Marina.

"The Party Island" is Beachcomber in the Mamanucas where the Flyer also stops between Nadi and the Yasawas.

thank you ladies its greatly appreciated!!!!! im jumping on a bus from lima to santiago right now (3 days on a bus ahhhhhhhh) but when i get to the otherside i will book the things i need to book no doubt il have more questions for you....sorry again :)

erm....wotcha rec....is it worth going to barefoot if im going to octopus? maybe it would be better to start in kuata, then octopus then somewhere else before heading back to nadi? do you have a reccomendation about a hostel on kuata?

thank you so much sorry to be a pain in the arse!! :) xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Dunno about kimm, but I am certainly no "lady"! :p

TaiM is a lady, but til now I hadnt seen her (lovely) pic

Yes , Beachcomber is known as the "party island" though tame by the standards of say Thailand or Bali

Barefoot Is is nice but no party place.

ha! oh sorry.....ladies and gentleman ;)

just another quickie gang i know i sound like a right idiot but this is not simple stuff!!! ;)

i booked the bula pass, as far as i was concerned payed for it, now they are saying i havent payed and i need to confirm my booking 24hours before i go!!? what? i mailed them but no reply...great.....you guys have that as well?

i really want to stay in the octopus for three nights so ive gone to their website clicked on the mixed dorm option the one for $23 per night but this meal food thing has come up....i thought food was included in the price $23 per night food incl, just before i hit the book now button it said if i dont include and pay for the food then they will add it onto my bill.....im very confused i would like the food included ok if i have to pay more so be it but again its not simple a million option....ahhhhhhh

has anyone actually stayed in this place what the hell is going on?? hahahahaha

also i want to stay on kuata only for one night so i was wondering do you think it would be possible to take the boat from nadi arrive on kuata and go straight to the reef shark snorkeling thing? has anyone done that or know what time the excursion leave and the cost??

you are all superstars thaaaaaaaaank you xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"....i thought food was included in the price $23 per night food incl, just before i hit the book now button it said if i dont include and pay for the food then they will add it onto my bill.....im very confused i would like the food included ok if i have to pay more so be it"
No , the food (3 meals per day with choices) is extra - about $65 per day as I recall. Its is quite good and the variety is unusal for the Yasawas

They "just add it" because its easier for all if everyone stayiong there takes the food option.....plus there is no other choices around anyhow - its a small island.

No choice at Octopus - you have to take the food plan. There is no other place to get food and no facilities to prepare your own if you were to bring it. But the food is plentiful and very good - you will not be disappointed.

I'm going to drive to random villages and drink Kava, looking for travel buddies, let me know if you want to come!

:))

For people that think they can just "drive to random villages and drink kava" this often can be considered deeply offensive in Fijian culture. You cannot just barge into Fijian villages and do as you please, they are PRIVATE places, and bound by lots of taboos, protocols and other restrictions on behaviour. If you want to go to a village, ask a local that you have got to know, and then when you go take gifts, at the very least 1/4 kg of kava, or a kg of kava if being taken to the leader of the village (Ratu, Tui, Roko Tui etc). The older the kava, the better, the older the kava the harder to transport because it becomes brittle.

Moreso, Fijians are pretty poor and get paid relatively low wages. Just because your accomadation may be expensive doesn't mean the people are paid what you might expect. Also some imported things are as expensive as in the west, which mean for Fijians they are really expensive. SO it's really nice to take families gifts of things that aren't too expensive for you, but are very expensive for them. First Aid supplies, tinned imported food, sporting equipment etc are all ways to show Fijians that you appreicate sharing the real Fiji outside of the resorts with you.

Edited by: ashar26

yep sorry pal no driving to villages!!! im back in sydney and i just wanted to thank you guys for all your help it was mind blowing and exceeded all my expectations....had the time of my life il be heading back as soon as i can...

thanks again guys xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hi there...I took great interest in the recent posts relating to this thread, as I'm due to travel to Fiji around the 5/6th of Nov and am hoping to spend a few weeks there.

There just seems to be so much choice of where to stay and what to do!!! It's boggling my mind! ha ha.

Can someone help me with an itinerary plan please?! It's driving me crazy!!

I'd like to do a diving course also for around 5 days and get my open water certificate and also travel to a few island and enjoy the weather, relaxation time and a few party nights.

What do you think a realistic budget for a 3 week stay in Fiji would be? Or do you think 3 weeks is far too much to spend and should I limit myself to 2 weeks and then get to Australia sooner?

Thanks a million - I hope to hear from you soon

Craig - UK