Fiji Soft Coral & Shark Bonanza Photo Workshop Oct 2026

Why Join This Trip

Dive the world’s best shark dive in South Fiji plus the world’s best soft corals in the Bligh Waters in warm, clear water
Learn from one of Bluewater’s top photo instructors - Mark Hatter
Easy travel from the USA, stay at two of Fiji’s best dive resorts
Bring your non-divers to experience some of the best snorkeling in the world at VoliVoli resort
Fully refundable deposit until 12 months from departure
25% discount on rental photo gear from Bluewater Photo

Trip overview

Trip Overview

Start off your Fijian adventure with a day of reef diving followed by 2 days of exhilarating shark diving in the Pacific Harbor area where you have the opportunity to observe and shoot several species of sharks, including bull sharks, silvertip sharks, lemon sharks, and the occasional tiger shark. There is also the opportunity to explore the hard coral reefs and massive sea fan gardens in the southern part of Viti Levu.

In Fiji, it's all about the corals. The colors are so incredibly vibrant and the anthias so plentiful that its hard to ever look away. Around every corner is the next world-class image. One of the main draws of diving Fiji is the reef scenes - they are quite spectacular!

The gorgeous, lush, color-splashed images of Fiji that you see in dive publications are courtesy of a soft coral called dendronephthya. Few other places in the world offer such an abundance of this coral, nor the wide spectrum of colors, ranging from pink, purple, and orange, to yellow, and fiery red. Dendronephthya soft coral needs a brisk current to really look their best. With little current present the soft coral colors are muted, but as the current increases they inflate with water and their color really begins to glow. As the current picks up, planktivores such as beautifully colored scale fin anthias spring up off the reef in polarized schools. Together, this forms a rich pageantry of color. Underwater photographers will want to shoot when some current is present, making a dramatic difference to the color of the underwater imagery.

One of the best places for soft coral in Fiji is the Bligh Waters between Viti Levu and Vanua Levu where there are numerous reefs and pinnacles. The reefs in the surrounding Bligh Waters, also known as The Vatu-I-Ra Passage, are some of the healthiest in the world, with very little pollution and few boats, so youll be able to see an array of marine life including anemone fish, turtles, colorful soft coral, and reef sharks.

Read the trip recap from our Fiji Trip Report here.

Marine Life To Photograph

You're going to see the healthiest soft coral in the world, more colors than you can imagine, and some extremely rare macro creatures like the ornate ghost pipefish, orangutan crabs, frogfish, nudibranch, and seahorses and in all likelihood, turtles, moray eels, schools of barracuda, trevally, giant groupers, grey, black and white tip reef sharks, and the occasional tiger shark.

(L) Colorful Reef By Paul Gruner. (M) Clown Fish By Dan Bishop. (R) Sharks By Cindy

Read the reviews on diving Fiji here.

Diving Conditions In October

June through October is the dry season. During that time, the water is clearest with visibility often reaching 100 feet or more, but it can be windy and water temperatures can drop into the mid-70s. Most likely marine life sightings during this season include sharks, eagle rays, whales, and turtles.

Important Information

No. of dives: 2 days of 2-tank shark dives and 1 day of 2-tank reef dives at Pacific Harbour plus 3 days of 2-tank boat diving and 3 days of 3-tank boat diving at Volivoli Beach Resort - includes all tanks, weights, and dive guide
Avg. visibility: 50 - 130 feet
Required skill: Beginner to advanced
Wetsuit needed: 3-5mm full-length wetsuit (recommended)
Topside temperature: 72-81F (22-27C) in October
Currents: We can, and regularly do, encounter medium to strong current

Recommended Scuba Gear

Download our full scuba gear guide to Fiji, Bluewater Travel guests receive 10% OFF! Click the image below to download (PDF).

3mm wetsuit. Browse Wetsuits at Bluewater Photo
SMB. The Mares Dive Marker Buoy is our choice!
Skins. Check out these sharkskins
Snorkel gear. We recommend the Cressi ZS1 & Corsica Snorkeling Package
Travel BCD. Read our Best Travel BCD Article
Travel regulator. We suggest Mares Ultra 62X Dive Regulator

Trip Inclusions

3 nights accommodation at Waidroka Bay Resort
7 nights accommodation at Volivoli Beach Resort
Full meal plan (3 meals daily with juice, milk, rainwater, coffee, and tea at breakfast)
FREE daily underwater photography tutorials and workshops
Round-trip Nadi Airport/resort transfers
Transfer between Waidroka Bay Resort and Volivoli Beach Resort
1 day of 2-tank reef diving at Waidroka Bay
2 days of 2-tank shark diving at Pacific Harbor
3 days of 2-tank boat diving & 3 days of 3-tank boat diving at Volivoli Beach Resort
Unlimited shore diving at Volivoli on dive days (reserve tanks 24 hours prior)
Tanks, weights, and dive guide
Complimentary wifi at Volivoli on 2 devices per person
Welcome drink on arrival
Beach BBQ
Traditional Meke performance
Hosted group event on the last night
Free use of kayaks and participation in a variety of complimentary resort activities
Dolphin Safari at Volivoli Beach Resort
Resort and Government taxes

Trip Exclusions

Nitrox ($125USD - must be pre-booked) *only available at Volivoli Beach Resort
Marine Park Fees ($20FJD per day)
Beverages other than tea, coffee, and rainwater
Lobster and crab menu items (market price)
Personal dive equipment
Dive courses
Extra dives at Volivoli ($78US per tank)
Night dives at Volivoli (min. 6 divers; $125US per tank)
Excursions
Dive and Travel Insurance (diving insurance is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED) - ask us about our preferred partner plan
Fuel surcharge

Book this Trip

Accommodation

About Waidroka Bay Resort

Waidroka Bay Resort offers the best of world-class scuba diving with amazing variety, combined with some of Fijis finest soft corals and the great Fiji Shark Dive in the Beqa Lagoon. Expect comfortable accommodations, great services, and an overall excellent value for money!

Waidroka Bay Resort Features

On-site full-service dive center
Restaurant and bar
Internet available throughout the resort. Surcharges apply, depending on the option you choose
Laundry service available at $15 FJD per load

Waidroka Bay Resort Restaurant & Bar

Breakfast, lunch and dinner available around the clock at the resort, freshly prepared using the best local produces
Outside pool bar with a happy hour every day. Wines, beer, cocktails and soft drinks available.

Read more about Waidroka Bay Resort here.

About Volivoli Beach Resort

Volivoli Beach Resort is the ultimate diving paradise in Fiji for beginners and advanced divers alike, located in one of Fiji's best diving destinations. They offer 32 comfortable rooms with panoramic beach and ocean views.

Volivoli Beach Resort has recently opened its brand new camera room, which can accommodate up to 14 people and comes complete with international and USB charging ports, and individual air-guns at each workstation.

Resort Amenities

2 x licensed restaurants and 3x bars
Large swimming pool with swim-up bar
Onsite dive operation RA Divers
Airport transfer service
Multiple happy hours
Large screen TV for sports events
Hammocks
Poolside furniture
Day spa
Beachside bar
Beach towels
Beachfront location
Lush tropical gardens
24-hour main grid power
Onsite backup generator
Reception and day room facilities
All tide swimming beach
Weekly beach BBQ

Read more about Volivoli Beach Resort here.

Trip Price

Trip starts from $4,109 per person.

Panoramic & Standard Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Garden view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,109

per person

Deluxe Bure & Deluxe Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,329

per person

Deluxe Bure & Premium Oceanview Villa

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,454

per person

Panoramic & Standard Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Garden view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,109

per person

Deluxe Bure & Deluxe Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,329

per person

Deluxe Bure & Premium Oceanview Villa

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Double-occupancy

$4,454

per person

Payment Schedule

Deposit: $800 to book your spot
Payment 2: $1000 due 1 May 2025
Balance: due 1 July 2026

Book this Trip

Extend your trip

Want to extend your trip? We can help with that! See more of Fiji before or after your trip. Flying all that way merits a multi-destination vacation! Fiji is an amazing destination that offers a range of additional unique experiences. Here are some examples of packages we can add on to your reservation:

Trip Leader

Mark Hatter

Mark Hatter is an accomplished photojournalist who has had nearly one hundred feature articles with many hundreds of images published in more than two dozen fly fishing and diving publications over the last two decades. His most recent destination features have appeared in Alert Diver and Diver (UK) magazines.

Mark has traveled the world in pursuit of new underwater photography challenges, including cold-water destinations such as British Columbia and even Antarctica in January 2018.

“Of course, I love shooting in tropical locations but I think cold water diving is a great forcing function to hone one’s photography skills as the environment and equipment are much more demanding of a diver. Good image capture in cold water is particularly rewarding.” Mark tells us.

Mark has been shooting underwater since the early 1980s and has worked in both film and digital mediums in his photojournalism pursuits. In 35 years of diving, Mark has logged over 2000 hours, much of it doing underwater photography. Currently, he teaches underwater photography classes locally at Seminole Scuba in Lake Mary, Florida.

Gill Flaherty

Gill is in charge of all Bluewater Travel's Photo Workshops and is a PADI and TDI Instructor in her free time. Gill learned to dive in her home country of Scotland and continued with much of her dive education in the UK. She quickly expanded her diving repertoire with trips to the Red Sea, Mexico, and Indonesia, and was surprised to learn that diving didn’t always involve poor visibility and chilly water temperatures. Gill has a thirst for travel and adventure and spent a year driving around Europe in a motorhome before settling in Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean. After working full-time as a Dive Instructor for three seasons, she now teaches and guides in her free time on the famous Zenobia wreck. When not underwater, Gill can be found paddle boarding, hiking, or rescuing cats.

Check availability
and start planning your perfect trip

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Why Join This Trip

Dive the world’s best shark dive in South Fiji plus the world’s best soft corals in the Bligh Waters in warm, clear water

Learn from one of Bluewater’s top photo instructors - Mark Hatter

Easy travel from the USA, stay at two of Fiji’s best dive resorts

Bring your non-divers to experience some of the best snorkeling in the world at VoliVoli resort

Fully refundable deposit until 12 months from departure

25% discount on rental photo gear from Bluewater Photo

Trip overview

Trip Overview

Marine Life To Photograph

Diving Conditions In October

Important Information

Recommended Scuba Gear

Trip type

Trip Inclusions

3 nights accommodation at Waidroka Bay Resort

7 nights accommodation at Volivoli Beach Resort

Full meal plan (3 meals daily with juice, milk, rainwater, coffee, and tea at breakfast)

FREE daily underwater photography tutorials and workshops

Round-trip Nadi Airport/resort transfers

Transfer between Waidroka Bay Resort and Volivoli Beach Resort

1 day of 2-tank reef diving at Waidroka Bay

2 days of 2-tank shark diving at Pacific Harbor

3 days of 2-tank boat diving & 3 days of 3-tank boat diving at Volivoli Beach Resort

Unlimited shore diving at Volivoli on dive days (reserve tanks 24 hours prior)

Tanks, weights, and dive guide

Complimentary wifi at Volivoli on 2 devices per person

Welcome drink on arrival

Beach BBQ

Traditional Meke performance

Hosted group event on the last night

Free use of kayaks and participation in a variety of complimentary resort activities

Dolphin Safari at Volivoli Beach Resort

Resort and Government taxes

Trip Exclusions

Nitrox ($125USD - must be pre-booked) *only available at Volivoli Beach Resort

Marine Park Fees ($20FJD per day)

Beverages other than tea, coffee, and rainwater

Lobster and crab menu items (market price)

Personal dive equipment

Dive courses

Extra dives at Volivoli ($78US per tank)

Night dives at Volivoli (min. 6 divers; $125US per tank)

Excursions

Dive and Travel Insurance (diving insurance is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED) - ask us about our preferred partner plan

Fuel surcharge

Accommodation

About Waidroka Bay Resort

Waidroka Bay Resort Features

About Volivoli Beach Resort

Resort Amenities

Trip Price

Trip starts from $4,109 per person.

Panoramic & Standard Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Garden view

Wifi (surcharge)

Deluxe Bure & Deluxe Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Deluxe Bure & Premium Oceanview Villa

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Panoramic & Standard Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Garden view

Wifi (surcharge)

Deluxe Bure & Deluxe Ocean View Room

Air Conditioning (AC)

En Suite Bathroom

Ocean view

Wifi (surcharge)

Deluxe Bure & Premium Oceanview Villa

Air Conditioning (AC)

Check availability
and start planning your perfect trip