Fiji, Raja Ampat or somewhere else : 1 month, July-August

Hi,

I will soon have to choose my destination for my July-August travel. I was last year in Sulawesi and I discovered the great pleasure of snorkeling and life by the water. After a few years of vacations in India and South-East Asia, beating the road and being more "culturally" oriented, it was nice to have a trip where the focus was on relaxing, meeting incredibly nice people and enjoying the beauty of nature. So, this year, I'd love to experience a travel during which :
- I could do a lot of snorkeling (I don't dive) ;
- live in simple and calm places : I don't like the resort type accomodation with party at night... My ideal ? A simple hut by the water, simple meals, no loud music... Something low key, with not too many people around.
- I don't want to move too fast : a few spots would be better than rushing around during one month.

At first, my idea was to go to Raja Ampat. I saw you coud find some very simple accomodation (it doesn't seem to be such a good deal, but still ok). The weather wouldn't be perfect but it seemed reasonable enough. I also thought about Bada Island or somewhere else in this region.

But I am also curious about Fiji... After reading a lot about this destination on this forum and on various internet sites, I still can't tell if this destination is ok for me. I see "backpakers" accomodation in resorts (in dormitory) but, apart for a few nights, I'm skeptical about this kind of place. I looked at places like Octopus for instance and it seemed much too busy for me. To give you an idea, I spent a few nights in Ubud, Bali, last year and it was really too much for me : too many people, too "urbanised", too much oriented toward mass tourism that needs a lot of services... It was nice, but it's not what I'm looking for.

I travel alone but, if possible, I like to share transportation cost, excursion or even accomodation with people I meet on the road. 50 € (130 FD) a day seems to be the maximum I could afford for food and accomodation, given the price for transportation and activities will probably be much higher then what I'm used to. I plan to go for a month.

So, what do you think ? Any advices ?
Thanks a lot for sharing.

I've been to both places several times and would say Raja Ampat beates Fiji easily.
Most budget places there would feel less "touristy" than Fiji's "backpacker resorts", and the snorkeling or scenery would be far superior, too..
Your budget would be enough for either place.

Many thanks to you.
I was especially curious about your opinion as I knew you've visited both places.

I have to say I am quite surprised by your clear preference for Raja Ampat : from far away (very very far away indeed) the Pacific Islands seems so picture perfect, and the description of underwater world so fabulous... I thought that Raja Ampat was maybe more adapted to me regarding the type of tourism, but not for the scenery and snorkeling. So it's good to know your advice, especially because the price is much higher from Europe. There is obviously the Pacific culture, that would be nice to approach, but I can't have everything.

So, if I stick to Indonesia, what do you think of Raja Ampat in July and August ? What would be your advice for a good snorkeling spot during this season in Indonesia ? Banda Islands ? Or Malaysia, why not.

Thanks again.

If I might add a comment about Fiji ..

If the priority is the snorkeling then I would also trust Laszlo's advice.

But if you are still interested in Fiji for a future visit .. just for Fiji as a place .. then don't be discouraged by whatever you are reading about the backpacker resorts. Of course, we all have our own preferences and I don't know what is right for you or what your tolerance limits are for what counts as busy.

I had no difficulty finding quiet places without music or party vibe, where I could spend most of my days on my own swinging in a hammock, taking walks, exploring lagoon at low tide etc etc.

One strategy is to ask where the good backpacker places are, then go somewhere else, which is what I did when I was in Lautoka. The woman directed me to Waya island. Octopus resort is at north end, and I went to a place closer to south end. Three bure, I was the only one there for 5 days. The resort at south tip was 3/4 empty. This was in Sept.

I also discovered that low budget diver resorts are peaceful places. The divers are generally serious about their diving, don't drink much, get to sleep early. They're out all day on their dives, and the company in the evenings is affable enough. I like snorkeling so there's a shared interest in the sea world.

Thanks a lot for your funny tip : asking "the place to be" and then go somewhere else... I will remember this one ! :-)

I'm sure I could fine something for me in Fiji but, given the price of such a trip and Laszlo's experience , I will favor Indonesia again next summer. The Pacific Islands will have to wait for me a little more...

I was really disappointed by the the snorkeling on Waya in Fiji. In contrast, the snorkeling in Palau was out of this world. You could do a kayaking trip through the rock islands, camping in the different shelters and enjoying all the fabulous snorkeling. Then make a trip to Kayangel. Palau, however, is not cheap.

I didn't go to Waya for the snorkeling (and wouldn't recommend it as such) .. besides, I have several tricks to avoid poisoning my trips with feelings of disappointment.

Tilos : I didn't know Palau. In fact, I realize I know very little about Pacific Islands... It looks very very nice, but too expensive I think if I compare with what I can discover in Raja Ampat. But thanks, it made me improve a little bit my knowledge about Pacific Islands geography and we never know, maybe one day...

BthDth : "I have several tricks to avoid poisoning my trips with feelings of disappointment." Do I have some on my own??? Well, the only one I can think of is the "short-sighted trick" : if a place is a little too filthy or full of insects or little animals... I just remove my glasses ! Everything looks so much better... Obviously, this only works if you have, like me, a strong myopia... :-)
Well, more seriously, I think I have a faculty to remember only the good parts of my travel, or to turn into something fun or worthwhile most things that could happen.
But I'm really really curious about your tricks...

It's not so much a trick as it is an attitude .. somewhat similar to what you describe, although I go the whole way and even put a positive spin on that.

The short answer is that I don't worry about comparing experiences. I can do it, but generally don't bother.

If you think seriously about it, what would be the value of it? Would a 'best' experience therefore invalidate or render a waste of time all of the inferior experiences in a person's life? Maybe, if they want to think that way.

I take an experience for what it offers, sometimes looking for the best, or just take it for what it is and (if not so nice) turn it into something once-in-a-lifetime. Curiosity helps. On Waya there wasn't any snorkeling right off the beach where my bure was. So I spent more time in the hammock, or watched the crabs, or whatever. A couple of times I walked to a place further south with better snorkeling, not even the 'best' I'd managed in Fiji, but I wasn't going to let that stop me.

I also know that there is much better snorkeling elsewhere on the planet. But I was a week on the south tip of Taveuni and I was in the water 3 hours a day (or more). I don't care if somewhere else is better. It was the closest I've come to experiencing what it must be like on another planet, in an alien environment with alien life forms. Mind-boggling.

Of course if someone is looking for good snorkeling, and can choose in advance, then I'd say 'Listen to Laszlo'. But you are still left with what you have done, nothing else. Make the best of it.

The snorkeling is simply incomparable.
I also found Fiji at best "nice" on that front, but Raja Ampat is probably quite simply the best in the World. It certainly has the most diverse marine life anywhere, as per the opinion of marine biologists who have counted the fish and coral species.
Note however that July-Aug is not the ideal season for either Central Maluku or Raja Ampat - between Oct and April would be better. Of course you can still have good weather in July-Aug (I did last year in Raja Ampat myself), but statistically, that is the rainy season.
As for "Pacific culture" - I think the culture of the native Papuans in Raja Ampat is no less Pacific than that of Fiji. In fact I found most Raja Ampat villages more tradfitional than those Fijian villages readily accessible to tourists. Of course remote places like South Lau are different, but I don't think you'd get there on your first trip. In the cities and towns of both Fiji and Papua you will of course find many non-native people: Indians in the former, Indonesians in the latter.

Overall, it is a bit of an "apples or oranges?" question though.
I like and have repeatedly visited both, and hope you will have a chance to visit both at one point, too.
But for the first trip, with snorkeling and scenery as priorities, I would certainly recommend RA.

Looked at the beautiful pictures and am adding Raja Ampat to my bucket list the next time I have a free winter break.

I have a number of pages with tips on travel in Raja Ampat here:

http://www.east-indonesia.info/regions/raja-ampat.html

One warning for those used to Pacific travel but new to Indonesia:
English is far less widely spoken in the country, especially in villages in remote places like Raja Ampat. Of course those working with tourists speak some, but in general, your interactions with the locals will be much more limited if it has to be in English.
Of course that does not make the scenery or the marine life any bit less stunning!

I finally bought my airplane tickets for next summer : my port of entry / departure will be Kuala Lumpur, from July 16th to August 17th. So, I just have now to decide exactly what I'm going to do.
I know the weather is not perfect in July and August for Raja Ampat (that's why last year I decided to go to Sulawesi even if RA was a real temptation...). But I will give it a try, since I don't know when I will have the opportunity to travel for an extended period of time during the winter months in the northern hemisphere.

Thanks a lot Laszlo for your outstanding contributions. I knew already your internet site and will study it a lot before my departure. As I have one month of travel, I still don't know if I will spend all my time in RA of if I will explore a bit further. I'll come back with more questions later.

BthDth : reading your comments, I realize I share for a great deal your way of looking at things. I still have progress to do, but I'm on the right track... :-)

I suggest you post your RA Qs on the SE Asia branch in the future - but watch out for the idiotic troll infesting that branch. ;-)

As for July - if your stay in RA won't be too brief, you should get some fine weather along with the rains.
Just how much of either depends on your luck.
So good luck! ;-)