Dive Review of Island Dancer in
Fiji and Tuvalu

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Island Dancer: "Wonderful Dive Experiene", Oct, 2014, by James Ferman, AZ, USA ( 1 report). Report 8003.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	It was our pleasure to travel on the Island Dancer out of Suva, Fiji on October4th through 11th, 2014. This was our second trip in two years on this particular boat. The first time we were onboard was July, 2013 and the weather and wind precluded us from traveling around the eastern coast and thus we were unable to enjoy the best dive sites in Fiji. We decided to roll the dice and go again, this time a little later in the year. The reason? Captain Joji and Moises made the trip extremely memorable. This time we were two of five passengers onboard that week. To say we were pampered would be a tremendous understatement. My wife and I arrived five days early and we stayed at the Wananavu Resort on the northern coast. It was our second stay there, the last being in 2003. What a beautiful resort and in the last few years Alan Carter, the owner, has upgraded and improved upon almost every aspect of the resort. There were new bures (bungalows) built Oceanside and they were tastefully decorated and spotlessly clean. The bures were cleaned daily with fresh towels and drinking water. The dining room had been updated and upgraded and we found the food to be very good. The Dive Operation has been turned over to a new American, Trevor Wise, who is doing everything in his power to make the guest's dive experience as fulfilling as possible. Trevor has a real hands-on approach and is training his staff to be as attentive and responsible as they can be. All in all, a very pleasant dive experience. Our dive trip was arranged by Reef and Rainforest's Mike Hoppe whose years of experience transitioned into effortless transitions for us. He arranged our stay at Wananavu and all our transfers to and from airports and resorts and transfer to the Island Dancer in Suva. Mike is a true professional and we certainly will use him in the future. We arrived at the Island Dancer close to noon on Saturday and captain Joji and his crew made us feel very welcome again. All bags were carried to our room and placed on the bed for our unpacking to begin. We stayed in the Owner's Suite and found it to be large and very accommodating. The queen bed had a very comfortable mattress on it and the bathroom was spacious. The boat, though showing some serious age, was clean and the air conditioning worked very well. There was always more than enough hot water for showers. As soon as we arrived the boat was prepared for launch and we departed the dock immediately. Because of the prevailing winds and waves, the first two hours of the initial journey was directly into a pounding surf, but after they turned northbound, we were treated to a following sea and a smooth ride. All week long the meals were tastefully prepared and very good. The chef was kind enough to prepare an alternate main course for those of us who did not eat fish or pork. Fresh salads were always on tap and after heaping servings of the main course were served, tasty deserts were soon to follow. No complaints here! The diving was wonderful and more than made up for the previous year where we were forced to avoid the better sites due to inclement weather. Moises gave thorough dive briefings and went above and beyond to insure the best dive possible at every site. I will never forget his hilarious marching, as if on parade, with fins off, in Nigali Pass. vcxbvfd /32wa He is a wonderful man who has worked on the Island Dancer for many years and is intimate with the best dive sites in the islands. This is an experienced crew who have worked together for years and it shows. I would recommend this boat for everyone who wants the finest service and best diving experience. This is a smaller boat with a maximum of 10 guests and I think most people would like the attention to detail and the less than cattle boat feeling you have on the larger live-aboards. After we departed the Dancer after our wonderful week onboard, we stayed a few days at the Sofitel Hotel on Denarau Island, an area inhabited by the nicer hotels. Most of the major hotel chains are represented and there is a nice retail shopping area in the port area. We went downtown in Nadi and shopped for wooden carvings and other typical tourist souvenirs at Jack's. They are really the best at wrapping and shipping your purchases world-wide. We have stayed at smaller hotels that are located near the airport, but have found them to be not as nice. There is certainly more to do up at Denarau Island.
Websites	Island Dancer
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Papua New Guinea, Tahiti, Cozumel, Bonaire, Bay Islands, Cayman Islands, Belize.
Closest Airport	Nadi	Getting There	Fiji Airways
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, cloudy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	78-80°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	75-150 Ft/ 23-46 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	None- allowed to dive like responsible adults
Liveaboard?	yes	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Large camera tables and rinse tanks dedicated to cameras

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Dive Review of Island Dancer in Fiji and Tuvalu

Island Dancer: "Wonderful Dive Experiene", Oct, 2014,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Island Dancer in
Fiji and Tuvalu