Fiji Guides
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The many reefs around the 300 islands that comprise the Fiji Islands afford many excellent diving locations for the most fastidious diver, and cater for divers of different levels of experience. There is a wide diversity of marine life, with soft corals, pelagics, coral reef fish, sharks, rays and turtles. The dive locations are all easy to access, and there is a wide variety of accommodation to suit all budgets.
Some of the top dive spots include Rainbow Reef in the Somosomo Strait that separates Taveuni and Vanua Levu in Fiji's northern island group. The world famous Astrolabe Reef is located in the Southern Islands and may be accessed from Kadavu. Beqa Lagoon is another very popular diving spot, and there are a number of dive operators servicing the dive sites there from Pacific Harbour as well as Beqa island. The dive sites in the Mamanuca group of islands are excellent for both snorkelling and diving as they consist of large shallow lagoons. There are some interesting caves to explore in the Sawa-i-Lau in the Yasawa Group. Other great diving spots include the barrier reefs between Viti Levu and Vanua Levu (Fiji's two largest islands), notably around the island of Nananu-i-Ra and the Lomaiviti group (Wakaya, Ovalau etc).
There are two distinct seasons for diving: Summer (November - April) and winter (May - October). During the summer months water temperature lies in the 80 - 85 Fahrenheit range (27 - 30 Celsius). A 2 mm Darlex or equivalent would suffice. During winter the water temperatures are in the 75 - 80 Fahrenheit range (24 - 27 Celsius). An 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch wetsuit or equivalent would be needed.
There is a Recompression Chamber in Fiji, located in Suva (the capital). It is available on a 24 hour basis, staffed with trained medical personnel and technicians, and serves much of the South Pacific.
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