The Naviti Resort

“Perfect birthday escape !”

My husband, my son and I went for a 5 day escape for my birthday. The staff, especially my dear Ana were fantastic, the food and atmosphere was wonderful . ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“A cool 3 star family holiday”

# Naviti Resort, Fiji — Honest Review **Trip type:** Mother and 10-year-old child **Dates:** Late July–early August 2026, arriving Monday, departing Saturday (7 nights / 6 days) **Booked via:** Luxury Escapes **Total cost:** ~NZD $6,000, including return flights from New Zealand (domestic + intern… more

# Naviti Resort, Fiji — Honest Review **Trip type:** Mother and 10-year-old child **Dates:** Late July–early August 2026, arriving Monday, departing Saturday (7 nights / 6 days) **Booked via:** Luxury Escapes **Total cost:** ~NZD $6,000, including return flights from New Zealand (domestic + international) ## Booking & Package The deal included a room for two adults with a child staying free, plus: - Buffet breakfast and dinner - Soft drinks (glass only — not cans, bottled water, alcohol, mocktails, or juice) - Two 15-minute foot rituals for two adults - Two snorkelling trips for two adults - A day cruise and a coral-viewing cruise for two - Two free cocktails We were on half board, not all-inclusive. ## Getting There Flight time from Auckland to Nadi is about 2.5 hours. From Nadi airport to the resort is roughly 1.5 hours without traffic, more realistically 2 hours. The package included a private transfer both ways — an air-conditioned car, easy to find on arrival, smooth and comfortable. ## Overall Vibe If you're familiar with Ibiza-style or Spanish coastal package holidays, this is the Fijian equivalent — a "Butlins, but nicer" atmosphere. It felt like a resort built around couples that gradually became a family destination. The airport was easy to navigate. Hotel reception staff were not especially friendly or helpful initially, but warmed up once I started tipping. The porter, on hand at arrival, was great and got us settled quickly. ## The Room We stayed in the Nadi wing, room in the 600s, third floor (which is actually the second floor above ground level — floors run ground, first, second). I paid extra for an ocean-view upgrade. **Tip:** if you don't want to deal with stairs to get to the pool or activities, request a room ending in 1 through 10 (e.g. 601–610) — you can walk straight out your sliding doors to wherever you're going. The resort markets itself as four-star — it may have been when first built, but doesn't quite live up to that now. That said, the room was: - Clean, spacious, and functional - Equipped with a safe (reception will send someone to show you how to use it if needed) - Stocked with an instructions booklet covering bookings and amenities - Fitted with air conditioning and a fridge/kettle — both a bit loud, so bring earplugs if noise disturbs you - Fitted with sliding doors with a mesh screen option, so you can get a breeze without mosquitoes Towels are changed daily on request via a door hanger system. The 500s and 600s wings are quieter, being further from the pool, music, and restaurant noise. ## Pool & Daily Activities The pool is large and clean, a little cold depending on season, but lovely on a hot day. There's a daily schedule of activities covering a wide range — from cultural sessions like weaving demonstrations through to games like crab races. Examples include: - Free ones (pool aerobics, volleyball, "Sundance" music sessions) - Paid ones ranging from about $10–$40 (currency as spoken, likely FJD) There's an in-pool bar — you can sit dry on one side or stay in the water on the other — serving drinks, popcorn, and chips. ### Kids Club There's an on-site kids club, staffed by adults, running from 10am to 10pm. If your child doesn't want to be signed in for the full day, there's also a shorter, drop-in-friendly option: a half-hour activity session at 8pm on the grass by the restaurant. ## Food & Dining The buffet restaurant covers breakfast and dinner (lunch too, if all-inclusive). It's large and can get very loud once families arrive. **Best times to avoid crowds:** - Dinner: avoid 5–6pm (when most children eat); around 7pm is noticeably quieter before adults arrive - Breakfast: runs roughly 7–10am, fairly manageable throughout There's also a grill restaurant for lunch or dinner, plus two specialty on-site restaurants: **Bamboo** (Chinese) and **Talei** (adults-only). **Food quality, honestly:** - Buffet food is generally overcooked — unclear if that's a food-safety precaution or a kitchen skill issue - At Bamboo, the steamed/grilled fish was excellent when it first arrived but overcooked quickly sitting in its own juices; the duck was cooked too fast and came out tough - Fresh fruit, salad, meats, and vegetables are always available - The kids' section at dinner is small - Overall cuisine leans American/European (cereals, bacon and eggs) rather than authentically Fijian, though there's a themed night each day (Mexican, BBQ, an underground lovo cooking pit, Indian) - Don't expect elevated island cuisine — it's catered to a fairly conservative, meat-and-two-veg palate **Genuine standouts:** the fresh seasonal fruit and salads, the stewed beef and lamb curries, and especially the lovo (meat falls off the bone — pork and chicken were both excellent), plus the roasted and grilled vegetables including okra. **Drinks:** on half board, only juice, water, and glass-served soda are included. Cans, cocktails, and mocktails are extra. On all-inclusive, alcohol is included but bottled water and cans may not be (unconfirmed, as we weren't on that package). **Grill/bar menu:** pizza and the beef burger were fine. Skip the steak ($30-something) — thin and overcooked, no rare option available. ## Activities Hub & Gear Hire Located in one corner near the pool, next to the on-site shop and gym. This is where you book cruises, snorkelling, and other excursions, and borrow non-motorised gear (towels, snorkel gear, fishing gear) using your room number — everything must be returned by 6pm. **Ticket system:** - Half board guests get blue tickets and a white towel ticket plus room key - All-inclusive guests get a gold wristband - Swap your towel ticket for as many towels as you need for the day; return before 6pm to get your ticket back, or leave it with them and just bring towels back to dry on your veranda **Extras (not included):** - Jet ski: 15 minutes, tandem or solo, ~$200 (beginners kept in the bay; confident riders taken to rougher water) - Diving/scuba: extra add-on **Age restrictions:** gym (9am–5pm) and resort snorkelling are for over-15s/adults only. ## On-Site Shop Stocked with essentials (Imodium, water, chips, soft drinks, sweets) plus some clothing, swimwear, goggles, and souvenirs. Prices are steep compared to a NZ supermarket — a packet of chips is roughly $13, a drink roughly $7. Larger 1.5L water bottles run roughly $7–8. ## Spa & Laundry Spa pricing is comparable to home (NZ) rates — expect around $160 for an hour's massage versus $120 at home. Services include massage, facials, mani/pedi, henna, and hair braiding. **Book as soon as you arrive** — slots fill up fast. Details are in the in-room spa menu. Laundry service is $35: drop off before 10am for same-day return, otherwise next-day. Between the spa and the buffet restaurant, there's a small nook where local villagers come to sell souvenirs directly — prices generally run from about $10 to $30. ## Excursions ### Through the resort (Rosie's Tours, booked at reception) We did the waterfall trip: $210 for me, $180 for my child (Fijian pricing). Included a shared taxi to Korolevu village, a small welcome kava ceremony, and an optional preschool visit with access to a community hall selling crafts (souvenirs run from ~$10 for a small bracelet up to $30–40 for a coconut bowl or small carving). We paid an extra $80 each for horses to the waterfall rather than the 45–50 minute walk (the ride itself was closer to 35–40 minutes each way) — a genuinely beautiful route through streams and rainforest. There's a changing hut and toilet at the waterfall, and swimming is lovely (cold water, but worth it after the trek/ride). Bring reef or water shoes. ### The village huts (walk right of the resort, down to the beach) Independent huts run by village families offer henna, hair braiding, massage, snorkelling, and horse trips to waterfalls, mud springs, and Sigatoka. **Recommendation:** go to the **Silver Hut**, run by Joe (the village chief) and his wife Lydia — reliable and fair pricing. I'd avoid the **Yellow Hut** — I was overcharged there for a poor henna job by a woman named Sarah. Approximate Silver Hut pricing: - Full head plait with beads (child): $45–50 - Snorkelling: $50 adult / $25 child (masks and water shoes available if you don't have your own) - Horse riding: $50, roughly 40 minutes around the beach, two small islands, and along the reef We used the village option for snorkelling since my daughter was under the resort's minimum age. ## Payment & Tipping Contrary to some online advice, PayWave does work in several places: - The spa - Reception - The on-site shop (also takes card) - There's a Westpac ATM on-site for cash Village huts are cash-only. My pre-trip internet research suggested Fijian culture is not traditionally a tipping culture — this turned out to be incorrect, at least at Naviti. Tipping does smooth the experience. If you tip by adding it to your bill or receipt, it reportedly takes 2–3 months to reach the staff member by name — that's the method I used, tipping on my receipt and paying it all at checkout, either as small amounts regularly or a larger tip to one person I'd built a rapport with. Entirely up to personal preference. ## A Note on Service & Wages Service throughout the resort is slow and unhurried — this isn't a fast-paced, efficiency-driven environment. From what I understand (worth verifying independently), wages for resort staff are very low — I'd heard figures in the range of $2–5 an hour, which by New Zealand or UK standards is pretty horrible. I also heard that a speeding fine for Fijians generally runs to roughly a fifth of their weekly salary, which was quite shocking to learn. This context shaped how I felt about tipping. ## Conclusion This is a fun holiday, not a luxury one — though it feels luxurious simply by virtue of being in Fiji, which is stunning, and because of the pool and lounge areas. On service, food quality, and room standard, I'd rate it more like a 2–3 star experience. **If you get this on a deal, it's a bargain and worth taking.** I wouldn't book it expecting the trip of a lifetime. - **Would I return to Naviti?** No — I'd rather explore other destinations. - **Would I book through Luxury Escapes again?** Yes — if you're flexible on travel dates, their deals can offer excellent value.

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“Naviti - King of Coral Coast”

Located approximately 30 minutes from Sigatoka and 90 minutes drive from Nadi. Hotel has a huge ground area and 9 hole golf course (free to guest) . There is a lagoon area, which is safe for kayaking. The hotel has variety of hotel room types including garden and ocean view villas. There are 4 res… more

Located approximately 30 minutes from Sigatoka and 90 minutes drive from Nadi. Hotel has a huge ground area and 9 hole golf course (free to guest) . There is a lagoon area, which is safe for kayaking. The hotel has variety of hotel room types including garden and ocean view villas. There are 4 restaurants located in the hotel and a new sunset bar area facing the lagoon. The is hotel is much warmer as sheltered from the sea area ( compared to Warwick which very open to the sea and windy) The Rooms are of good quality but the bathroom is well due for an upgraded. Hopefully they will be upgrade in near future as it will make it more attractive than other hotel in this area. I would recommend to give hotel a try as much fun and has a larger pool area and tennis court. Staff were very friendly and took us for a tour of the hotel, including showing various rooms and villas. Vinaka Vaka Levu.

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“Resort needs an update and to improve the food.”

Basic hotel in a beautiful location. Food was very poor, room was below average. The resort really requires a face lift and modernisation. Eating at the buffet was as if we were in a school canteen- noisy, food all over the floor and bland unappealing meals. Plus points - very friendly and obligi… more

Basic hotel in a beautiful location. Food was very poor, room was below average. The resort really requires a face lift and modernisation. Eating at the buffet was as if we were in a school canteen- noisy, food all over the floor and bland unappealing meals. Plus points - very friendly and obliging staff, beautiful massage at the spa, and of course the beautiful location.

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