Fiji 2014 Day 5 – Arrival at Nadi

It was an early start as we warmed up some pies that we purchased from Pie Face the day before for breakfast. The sun rose early and before 7am, the skies were already illuminated by the rising sun.

Checked out was quick and after punching in the destination on the GPS, also with avoidance of tolls, we returned the car with the proper fuel level ( filling up gas was the same as Singapore, top up first before paying) without any hassle. Left my camera bag behind but managed to retrieve it before leaving on the free shuttle to the international airport.

Checked in took a little longer than usual at Virgin Australia, the staff checking on our visas and our itinerary. At departures, after filling up a departure card, we were greeted by a horrendous queue. The line was stagnant for a good 10mins before it started moving again. There weren’t much problems at the checks, just that it was so busy. It was a good thing that we got in early.

Our flight was delayed for about an hour; we only knew after getting past immigrations. Sat at the Coffee Club using the free wifi (from the airport or Qantas) till the announcement for our boarding. Again, the plane took another 10mins to get airborne and it was an easy 3hrs towards Nadi.

Flight was smooth and there wasn’t much turbulence. The plane was a small one but it wasn’t completely filled. Virgin Australia was actually quite comfortable though we still faced with noisy rowdy kids directly behind us.

Arrival at the small airport, we went through immigrations pretty quickly. There was similarly strict restrictions for visitors like in Australia. They were even questions asking if the visitors are having symptoms of fever, cough, diarrhea etc. We passed through with no issues. Luggage arrived not too long later and soon we found ourselves seated on the bench waiting for a free airport shuttle from the hotel at the end of the airport, with the help from the airport staff whom informed us the location to wait.

The mini bus came and the driver help with the loading of our luggage. There was a slight drizzle and because of this, we were unable to walk the 15mins to the hotel. Once we arrived some 2mins later, the luggages were automatically taken care of by the porter. Checked in with a OJ welcome drink and we were taken to our studio villa some steps away.

The Tokatoka resort was simple and sort of reminded me of chalet in Pasir Ris. But I guessed we can’t ask for too much for the price we paid. Wifi was chargeable but since we arrived around 5pm and the receptionist informed that the next day would be a better time to visit, we purchased a one day wifi usage, good for 2 devices, for FJD 25, which was about SGD17.

Went for dinner at the resort as there weren’t any places elsewhere to get a decent meal. Dinner costs about FJD80 with a beer, a little expensive but it’s resort food.

Spent the rest of the day in the room utilising the Wifi and catch up on sleep.