Honeymoon ideas...

Need some suggestions for a nice honeymoon, especially diver friendly resorts.

Looking to go last week of Oct this year, so not sure what's in season then. Prefer a nice resort that might have good diving nearby. Me: avid diver and u/w photography junky... Bride to be: newish diver, not a fan of muck diving Budget wise, looking for high end but not $1k+ per nite places... 1 week, working on taking 2 full weeks off... We're based in Hong Kong.

Been thinking maybe the following:

Fiji - have no idea which islands... is it the right season? Any high end resorts that are close to Bligh Waters? Travel will be a pain going from HK (via Oz or NZ) How's that J.M. Cousteau resort? Unfortunately, we would arrive after most of the LoB's head out for that week

Tonga - Humpback whale watching would be in season, but are there any nice resorts?

Maldives - we were there last Christmas but didn't get out to the good places... which atoll is in season then?

Tahiti is probably too far...

Any other South Pacific spots that are recommended? New Caledonia? Solomons? Vanuatu? I guess travel wise for us, they would be the around the same as Fiji.

www.divevavau.com Tonga No idea what resorts are like but they do have whales so who cares?!

Mike V, you're showing why you're not married... whales over resort for a honey... LOL

Pakman

Fiji/Maldives is probably your best choice due to travel times. No matter what you'll be going through Oz or Guam anyhow for Fiji. JM Cousteau is not worth the money and they dive the same Somo2 straits as the resorts on Taveuni. Personally I didn't think much of the resort. The bures were nice but overall I wouldn't rate it to be worth the rates they charge at all.

Now there are some nice honeymoon resorts around Fiji but only a few near the good dive spots and often takes long boat rides.

For starters check out these ones I've been to for the Bligh waters (a liveaboard is best but I understand about scheduling):

Wananavu Resort (the honey moon suite is good but overall the resort isn't the Aman, but very nice for a holidaying couple but for a honeymoon I wouldn't get away with it). Kai Viti divers were very good but boat rides for pretty long(esp for the good sites) and if you had a bit of chop, VERY long for a not so enthusiastic diver ( ) Also only 3 dives a day max.

Lalati Resort at Beqa Lagoon is small and intimate but at most 4* but the diving in Beqa (sharks(a no no ), wreck and even muck diving) is quite decent.

Maravu Plantation is nice and from there you can reach Somo2 straits (good diving but nothing stellar).

Navutu Stars is a cute little place in the Yasawas that was actually quite fun and intimate. We had a great time there.

You can start with these but check your weather window. I'm sure more people will chime in on resorts. PM if you need more info.

Drew... no no no..

I just choose girls with the right priorities..

thanks Mike... you're such a romantic...

Actually I just found out if we back track to Seoul, KAL has direct flights to Fiji making the total trip less that the 20+hr via Oz...

thanks Drew on the input. The fiancee isn't keen on me doing shark feeding dives on our honeymoon... although I see her searching life insurance sites online lately when I suggested it... hmm...

I can recommend you Taveuni Resort in Fiji. We went there 4 years ago and had a great time . Is really beautiful , great service , very good food and stunning views .

Diving is good specially w/a and the island looks like a giant garden with great waterfalls and colorful birds.

Namena have a great diving ( maybe some of the best in Fiji ) but the accomodations are rustic and food not for my taste. But is a little place and feels like you are in a desert island.

Good luck and happy honeymoon

I went to Wananavu during the middle of last November with the wife. The resort is nice, but nothing posh. They do have a honeymoon bure which is a bit bigger than the standard bures. The resort is pretty nice, laid out across a hillside. The resort has a decent menu for lunch/dinner with kava and a live band for entertainment. Breakfast is buffet style. The resort also has a "spa" that the wife said was a little less than she expected for the money she paid. The resort also has daily activities for non-divers, should you not spend every day diving or in the bure (honeymoon after all!). Is the resort fancy? Not really, but its not a rustic backpacker's retreat either.

Like Drew said, Kai Viti divers will take you out to the Bligh Waters, but its a longish ride (1 hour or so) and they only go for 3 tank trips. On 2 tank trips they stay closer in. The divemasters are nice enough and fairly lenient, but with that laid back attitude comes a laid back service underwater of the follow me and I'll get you back to the boat, no more, no less. Kai Viti will allow you to do shore diving, but the viz sucked, but it gave you plenty of time to play in the shallows without a boat waiting on you.

When we were there, the rainy season had started, so October might be a better time to go. The rain decreased the visibility, but the fish life and soft corals were spectacular.

Have you thought about maybe a week in one really nice honeymoon quality, white sand beach, fancy dinners, posh spa type resort and then spend another week at a more dive friendly resort as a compromise.

Cheers,

Ken

Check out the Maravu Plantation resort on Tavauni Island in Fiji- that is where I spent a 10 day honeymoon- dive operators 2 of them are nearby (easy walk) and the resort has all of the amenities to keep somebody who might not want to dive every day occupied- food was good, bures were very nice- the island also has lots of nice hikes. There is another more dive related set of accomodations there called Garden Island, but the place looked a little less Honeymoon like and I was glad we didnt choose it.

Pakman,

For the Maldives, here are my top choices:

Cocoa Resort by Como: I went for the soft opening and it was near some good diving. I only did 4 dives there because of the schedule (I was there for 4 days only) but it's very nice and relaxing and the guraidhoo channel is one of my fave spots to dive in Maldives.

4 Seaons and Soneva are as nice but the diving isn't as good.

If you want new different, I suggest Mnemba Resort in Tanzania. Wonderful resort and some nice shark (unfed) diving around Pemba and the east coast USED TO have some nice shark life. This was 4 years ago so it could all be gone now. The resort is very nice and different from the wholistic spa like Como or the Soneva. You get some great touristy things to do like Zanzibar and Stonetown (old spice island) and the beaches are gorgeous. Birdlife is fantastic too. A nice mix.

Need some suggestions for a nice honeymoon, especially diver friendly resorts.

 

.Me: avid diver and u/w photography junky... Bride to be: newish diver, not a fan of muck diving

I cannot say where to go, though I want to say congrats One bit of advice, you already got a bride who dives, now get her into shooting, worked for and my wife now carries some of the things which is a big plus and makes it easier to upgrade rigs

But congrats again

I second Drew's opinion of Lalati on Beqa.

Ever consider Bali? Easy destination for you from HK. There are lots of high end places that are swanky and reasonably priced in both the south and esp. around Ubud. The Ubud places can have gorgeous views over rivers and rice fields and the north coast is a few hours away by car, although I don't know if any of the places to stay close to the diving up there are "honeymoon" quality. Don't know about the weather around that time either.

Phil

Congratulations Mike! We had a great time at Beqa Lagoon resort. Might be what your looking for. It's not super exclusive, but the rooms (seperate bures) were very nice and the food was great. Easy, colorful diving for your lady. No currents to speak of, bommies covered with anemones. The island is great too, you can hike to the waterfall if you ever get out of the room. The local village school is only a 15 minute walk away. The kids will sing to you if you go on that little excursion. The real reason I bring it up is there is a small (very small) island north of Bega that any of the resorts can take you to for the day. They'll drop you off with lunch and some beverages and you and your lady will have it all to yourself for as long as you want. White sand, palm trees, soft lap of the waves, no one else around for miles. I'd sign up for the island ahead of the trip if it sounds like something she'd like. Good luck what ever you decide to do.

Steve

Look into some of the resorts in Bunaken or Ganggi Island. Manado isn't all muck diving.

, now get her into shooting,

no no no I need to keep her carryon allowance for all my stuff... Anyways, I just tell her that her P&S shots are just fab and there is no need to upgrade... Although this might backfire on me on my next DSLR/ HDV upgrade...

Thanks everyone... Great suggesetions and I'll add these to my research list...

We love Bali, but understand that being based in Hong Kong, Bali would be the equivalent to Cancun for you US mainlanders (no offense intended about Mexico). So we're looking for somewhere special where we might not get a chance to go back in a few years.

Tanzania - now that sounds interesting... Just had a quick snoop around the net. The beaches do look gorgeous... and I have been pestering the fiancee about doing a African safari as well. Climbing Kilimanjaro would be off the list though... :glare:

What about Mauritius?

Mnemba/Zanzibar is a special place... and the Ngorongoro park and Serengenti is very special topside, and you may even catch the tail end of the great migration (Go to Mongkok and pick up the Sig Monster 300-800mm) on the Mara plains as the predators follow the wildebeest and zebras.

It's the sardine run of the topside world. But with 1 week, I'd skip the safari since those take one week at least. My gf joined me from HK and took Kenya Air back then. I think it's still flying. The stop is in Nairobi I think.

Mauritius diving is nothing to write home about and none of the resorts are near the Mnemba level. You'd do better in Fregate Resort in Seychelles but the diving isn't all that great either. I think SImon wrote an article about it.

If you want different, Mnemba/Zanzibar is the place. It's easy to run back to the resort after spending a day in Stonetown and the amazing cultural history there. The wildlife around Zanzibar is already pretty good with the rare Red monkeys and the birds. If you can squeeze 2 weeks, then definitely think about doing the land safaris. One caviat, end October is near Ramadan so many smaller shops etc are closed... however if you arrive Edil Fitri, you'll get to see some really colorful feasting (but the shops will still be closed )

Oh yeah... did I mention whalesharks from Oct-Feb?

And Bali isn't Cancun... it's more like the Caribbean. Phuket is Cancun to Hongkies. My neighborhood PROVES it!

[edited by Drew]

And Bali isn't Cancun... it's more like the Caribbean.

[edited by Drew]

more like Ft. Lauderdale/ Panama City now that Veitch and Simon are there...

errr more like patong beach really.