We leave our beautiful little spot at Mana Island and head to Qalito Island, to the lovely resort called “Castaway Resort.” The funny thing is that this resort is not actually located on the island called “Cast Away.” But it is a super nice place to visit and they serve yachties which is an added bonus. All of these islands are within 12nm of eachother.
They are located on the corner of the island and have a beautiful white sandy beach. They offer all sorts of activities for their guests including, SUP, kayaks, hobbie cats, multiple pools and restaurants, tennis, basketball, volleyball and I am sure a lot more. We made our way to the restaurant for lunch and some colorful, tasty drinks.
I’m telling you the frothy drink on the left was so tasty, but what a pain in the you know what to drink! It melted so fast that I had to guzzle it which is never good with an alcoholic drink.
These islands are pretty remote so it can be challenging for guests to get to and from the resorts. So, what they do is ferry them close to the island and then long boats come out to collect guests and luggage. It is really a spectacle to watch.
Malolo Island – Musket Cove
Our friend Sharron from Town Basin Marina (Whangarei, NZ) comes to visit us for a few days. She was participating in the Tonga Blue Water Festival and stopped over in Fiji for a short stay on Sugar Shack.
Unfortunately we did not have the best weather. It was a little cloudy and rainy a few days and super duper windy the entire time. But we made the best of it and went snorkeling and hiking.
Our first walk was just around the Musket Cove Resort and the Plantation Resort. But we saw loads of beautiful flowers.
Sharron makes best attempts to emulate the local tree climbers.
On our second hike we walked the ridge line to an old bunker. We took the dinghy over to Funky Fish Resort which is on the end of the island. Can you read their name on the hillside?
Super cute surf / backpacker resort. They have a swimming pool, heli-pad, restaurant, and bar.
And then the hike uphill begins. They installed new signs which led the way to the mountain top.
After about an hour we arrived to the bunker.
The good news was that it was overcast so it was not terribly hot, but we still managed to work up a sweat. Gorgeous views from a top.
Seventh Heaven
Not technically an “island” but it is a floating barge. We visited Seventh Heaven 6/7 times last season because we had so much fun and the food was spectacular. Last season they charged a $50F ($22 USD) per person to board, but that money went towards your food, bar, or shopping tab. So, we had no problem paying that since we always spent way more than that! This is for those who do not come by their ferry. We came withour personal boat.
However, this season the were charging $50F landing fee per person and it was NOT applied to your tab. We were oturaged and completely bummed out. There was no way we would pay that on top of our bar/food tab. I contacted them via email and facebook and was able to get the landing fee waived for 5 people so we went with an additional 2 guests for a total of 7.
When we arrived, at 12 the staff could not let us board because their ferry had not arrived yet. For goodness sake! Seriously? So, we waited 15-minutes for the ferry to come. After that initial snafu we had a great time.
We enjoyed lots and lots of tasty and colorful drinks, amazing food, and super fun staff.
The barge is beautiful, especially around sunset.
Unfortunately this will be our last time at Seventh Heaven as they are pricing themselves out. Cruisers or private boats just won’t pay a $50F landing fee. Their competitor Cloud 9 does not charge this fee so we will have to go there.
You may ask what’s the difference? Well Cloud 9 is a party barge for younger people. It is loud dance music, no servers or wait staff, and nowhere to sit. They serve food, but it is not nearly as good as Seventh Heaven but there is nowhere to eat it. It is just a very different atmosphere. Not bad, just different.
It was a great day and we were rewarded with a beautiful sunset once we got back to the boat.
Matt is progressing really well on the foil board!
I am on a mission to try every fruity cocktail in Fiji!
Our blog posts run 8-10 weeks behind actual live events. This blog post occured in late September and early October. Did you read about our last blog Mana Island: A Refuge?