Dive Review of Ra Divers/Volivoli Beach Resort in
Fiji and Tuvalu/Bligh Water/ Vatu-I-Ra

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Ra Divers/Volivoli Beach Resort: "Exceptional Diving, First Rate Dive Operation, Wonderful Hotel", Oct, 2023, by Blake Hottle, CA, US ( Sr. Reviewer 9 reports with 10 Helpful votes). Report 12714 has 3 Helpful votes.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	I know, thats a lot of stars in the ratings, and I am gushing a bit here, but as somebody that has done a fair bit of diving in Indonesia with really good underwater environments, my wife and I agree this may be our new favorite place overall. People call Fiji the soft coral capital of the world, but how about just Coral Capitol of the World? The Bligh waters can be that good. On some dives the profusion of colorful corals hard and soft was overwhelming with each variety fighting for space, and no dead or dying coral in sight. This was certainly the case especially in the marine reserve sites. Ra Divers is the shop on the beach below the Volivoli resort, and it might be the best run dive operation we have been to. The training program is very impressive, with Interns, Trainees, Guides, and Dive Masters all working together, and weirdly never forgetting our names! There's no dock, so depending on the tide, you either take a small skiff out to the dive boats, or, if its high tide, the boats can back to the beach and you can walk on or off along a sturdy plank walk. They can take care of pretty much everything after each dive, if you like it that way. Just leave the gear on the boat and everything is ready to go the next day. They say they have over 80 dive sites that they frequent, and this is good, because often the ocean surface conditions may not allow a comfortable trip to the Vatu-I-Ra Conservation Park a 40 minute trip east of the resort. So on windy days, we would head to the lee side of the top of the island to find shelter and calm conditions. These areas are very good diving, but they are not blessed with the strong ocean currents that are keeping the corals so healthy on the NE side of the island. The smaller boats typically had no more than 8 guest divers, but they have different sized boats to suit different sized groups. For example, the dive clubs used the bigger boats, while we were with the couples and singles in a smaller, covered fast twin engine boat (with a head!) and never felt crowded. Underwater, typically one guide for 1-4 divers. Mostly drift dives. The water temps caught me a bit off guard. I actually got cold in my 3mm full suit, and was glad I brought an extra vest. While everyone on on the staff claims to be on mellow "Fiji Time", they really aren't, because you can tell that behind the scenes they are working really hard to keep things running smoothly. No annoyances or aggravations ever. Fiji Time, indeed. The ocean view rooms are wonderful, clean and quiet, and the staff is Fiji nice. The restaurant is very good, with lots of options and a kind a efficient crew. We felt like we had made many new friends. Everything you hear about how wonderful Fijians are is true. The Fiji Night show with dancing and singing was professional grade and a lot of fun with plenty of local food dishes. So, yeah, a lot of stars for a really wonderful trip.
Websites	Ra Divers Volivoli Beach Resort
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Bay Islands Honduras, Bonaire, Hawaii, Virgin Islands, Belize, Oregon, Washington, Southern California, Raja Ampat, Bali, Alor, Sulawesi, French Polynesia, Fiji.
Closest Airport	Nadi	Getting There	International Flight to Nadi, the main airport for Fiji, then a 2.5 hour drive to the resort on the far North end of the island of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, rainy, cloudy	Seas	calm, choppy, surge, currents, no currents
Water Temp	77-78°F / 25-26°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	50-100 Ft/ 15-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Experienced divers were given a lot of leeway as to time and depth. So much, that I felt like the guides were sometimes herding cats when returning quests lingered deep.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	The boat was smallish, so just a couple of tubs of fresh water, and we kinda had to rotate cameras unless we wanted them smashing together. Next time I'll bring a soft cooler just for me and stow it under my seat. They have very nice camera room with air and electricity at all 10 stations back at the dive center.

Report currently has 3 Helpful votes

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Dive Review of Ra Divers/Volivoli Beach Resort in Fiji and Tuvalu/Bligh Water/ Vatu-I-Ra

Ra Divers/Volivoli Beach Resort: "Exceptional Diving, First Rate Dive Operation, Wonderful Hotel", Oct, 2023,

Photos Submitted with this Report

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 Ra Divers/Volivoli Beach Resort in
Fiji and Tuvalu/Bligh Water/ Vatu-I-Ra