Backpackers and Billionaires
By David Stanley  - Published May 5, 2005


It used to be that backpacking trips to Fiji involved a bus ride from 
Nadi to Suva, then a ferry to somewhere like Ovalau, Savusavu, 
Taveuni or Kadavu. No more. These days young budget travelers are 
lining up to go to the Yasawa Islands, a chain of 16 large volcanic 
islands and dozens of smaller ones roughly 35 km off the west coast 
of Viti Levu.

The dazzling white beaches, clear warm waters, colorful coral reefs, 
and sunny dry climate make the Yasawa Group an ideal tourist 
destination, but until recently a visit involved a rough sea voyage 
from Lautoka in an unsafe village boat—or an expensive seaplane 
flight from Nadi. Blue Lagoon Cruises has been plying the Yasawas 
since the 1950s, but passengers aboard those upscale vessels sleep in 
staterooms and local residents receive few benefits from their 
presence.

Until the 1987 Rabuka coups in Suva, it was the policy of the Fiji 
government that the Yasawas were closed to land-based tourism. The 
long years of military-backed government brought few changes to the 
Yasawas, although Australian investors were allowed to construct the 
deluxe Yasawa Island Resort (www.yasawa.com) in 1991 and a couple of 
village-operated backpacker camps sprang up on Wayasewa and Waya. 
Since the early 1980s, local families have operated three small low-
budget resorts on Tavewa Island, thanks largely to Tavewa's
status as 
a freehold island beyond the authority of the Fijian chiefs. For 
decades local church leaders have portrayed tourism as a corrupting 
outside influence to be kept at arms length from village life.

It would be hard to imagine anything more removed from real Fijian 
life than Turtle Island Resort on Nanuya Levu Island, Fiji's
ultimate 
hideaway for the US$1,500-a-night crowd. Nanuya Levu has been 
freehold land since 1868, and in 1972 Richard Evanson used US$300,000 
he earned in the Southern California cable television business to buy 
the island.

Evanson's Turtle Island Resort (www.turtlefiji.com) became the 
prototype of Fiji's current crop of boutique island resorts,
hosting 
notables like Hollywood stars and millionaires. Brooke Shields stayed 
here during the 1980 filming of the escapist classic The Blue Lagoon.

A self-styled environmentalist, Evanson has planted thousands of 
trees on his island, and has converted the mangrove forests into 
tourist attractions by cleverly creating boardwalks. The resort's 
food is grown in organic gardens and power is generated using solar 
and wind energy. Each year a group of volunteer California eye 
specialists visits Turtle Island Resort to perform eye surgery on 
needy villagers or to equip them with donated prescription glasses.

Yet for most Yasawans, life has changed little since 1789 when 
Captain William Bligh and loyal members of his crew paddled past the 
group in an open boat shortly after the famous mutiny on the Bounty. 
Even today, most villages are without electricity or running water, 
and opportunities for economic development are very limited. The 
Yasawans have felt neglected by politicians in the distant capital, 
envious onlookers as mini-cruise ships and yachts carried wealthy 
foreigners along their shores.

In May 2000, rabble-rouser George Speight and assorted thugs seized 
the Parliament building in Suva, turning Fiji on its head.
Speight's 
pro-indigenous rhetoric struck a chord in the Yasawas. Villagers from 
Nacula Island staged a mini-coup on Turtle Island, locking Evanson in 
one of his 14 luxurious bungalows as village youths rode wildly 
around Nanuya Levu on Evanson's golf carts.

When the excitement died down, plaited mats were spread and kava 
roots were pounded, and over many bowls of grog, Evanson and the 
villagers came to an understanding.

Rather than killing the golden goose, Evanson convinced the Nacula 
people that they'd be better off opening resorts of their own and 
allowing him to continue running his business in peace.

Evanson offered interest-free construction loans and promotional 
support, and the Nacula Tikina Tourism Association was born. The 
association's Web site (www.fijibudget.com) currently describes a 
dozen locally-operated resorts around the Blue Lagoon in the central 
Yasawas, including the three existing properties on Tavewa. All 
resort operators must conform to a strict code of conduct intended to 
preserve the environment and guarantee acceptable levels of service. 
Though primitive compared to the luxurious Mamanuca resorts off Nadi, 
the Yasawa backpacker camps provide basic food and accommodations at 
a relatively low price.

The mass influx of backpackers only began in 2002 when Awesome 
Adventures (www.awesomefiji.com), a subsidiary of New Zealand-owned 
South Sea Cruises, launched a fast catamaran service up and down the 
chain. You can now depart Nadi's Denarau Marina on the Yasawa
Flyer 
any morning at 9:15 a.m. and be at the resort of your choice in time 
for lunch. As many as 150 backpackers do this every day and the 
village-operated resorts on Kuata, Wayasewa, Waya, Naviti, Tavewa, 
Nacula, Nanuya Lailai, and Matacawa Levu are booming.

Reservations can be made upon arrival at Nadi Airport through any one 
of a dozen 24-hour travel agencies right in the airport terminal 
itself. All of these offices sell catamaran tickets with a bus 
transfer to the harbor included. Deluxe lodgings and gourmet food 
should not be expected at any of the Yasawa resorts—yet the
friendly 
people, spectacular natural beauty, and low prices make most 
travelers overlook these inconveniences.

David Stanley is the author of Moon Handbooks Fiji 
http://www.southpacific.org/fiji.html and his online guide to Fiji 
may be perused at http://www.southpacific.org/text/finding_fiji.html

click for top    back to Business Newsletter Home
 

Submit an article to our site