Namena Island Resort
Namena Island Resort
The reason you go to Namena Island Resort – also known as Moody’s Namena Resort – is that it is ringed by some of the best reefs in Fiji, which are considered to be some of most beautiful reefs in the world. The reefs around Namena have been protected as a marine park for some time now, and the quantity and variety of marine life on the reefs is a testament to the beneficial effect it has had. In fact, other well-known resorts note that the highlight of their diving is the once-a-week, one-hour trip out to Namena, weather permitting, and liveaboards anchor offshore to dive the reefs regularly. Staying at Namena, the reefs are from 5 to 15 minutes away, and you can dive them every day.
There are only 6 burés (Fijian chalets) on the island, with a maximum of 12 guests. The burés are octagonal in shape, with 4 or 5 sliding doors. They don’t have air conditioning, but are set high enough off the water that they get the benefit the ocean breezes and we never found heat to be a problem. Beds are outfitted with good mosquito nets. The resort is very ecologically minded, with drinking water collected from rain and burés lighted by solar powered lights. Because the huts don’t have AC, though, batteries, laptops etc have to be charged at the main lodge.
Because the island has so few guests, we virtually always had the main 100-metre white sand beach to ourselves. There are other isolated beaches that are accessible by kayak. There is also a hiking path on the island, though we didn’t explore.
The food was consistently excellent, being a mix of Fijian and American fare. Eating is done communally, with guests sharing one of two tables at the main lodge. When we visited in 2010, you needed to buy your own beer, wine and spirits in town before taking the boat to the island, which was easy enough as there is a liquor store conveniently located across from the dock (they even opened on a Sunday morning to accommodate us, at the request of the Moody’s Namena manager Nigel).
The one cautionary note I would add is that the boat they use for transfers to the island is fairly basic, and if you encounter bad weather you’ll be riding it out wearing a rain slicker provided by the crew. On a nice day the crossing takes about 40 minutes (as did both of our crossings), though their website warns that in rough seas it can take considerably longer.
The price is moderately high but considering the access you have to such excellent diving it was a very good value. The resort has recently changed owners, so prices and details of what's included may have changed. As long as they've kept the same staff, though, you can be sure that you'll have an excellent experience staying there.
