We got a flight with Fiji airways from Auckland. We spent one last evening in Verandas Backpackers before catching our transfer to the airport. As soon as we got on the flight, we were welcomed by the crew saying Bula Vinaka. I'd never even heard the words before, but for the next 2 weeks, i'm going to be hearing Bula a lot. It means hello and welcome in Fijian. The crew were very smiley and welcoming, as i've heard, the Fijians are amongst the friendliest people in the world. Our flight was only 3 hours and we landed in Nadi where we got picked up by our hostel, Wailoa Beach Resort. The guy who picked us up wasn't Fijian, and it's suppose to be a free transfer, he said they just work on tips. Now tips are suppose to be discouraged in Fiji, but we gave them a $10 dollar tip, only to find out later, that a taxi from the airport to the hostel would have been that price anyway. Not a good start so far. Once we get off the mainland, we'll be in the heart of true Fiji. On arriving at the hostel, it seemed like a cool place, it had a large pool and lots of space in the open air bar and restaurant. Our room was a little dated, but spacious, still the free wifi and other facilities make up for the room.

We aim to be staying on the mainland for as little as possible and head to the islands. I didn't do much research before we came, so we're hoping to find out more info and book a Bula package. By the time we arrived, it was too late to book a tour for tomorrow, so we'll have to stay here for 2 nights and book the package for the day after. That night, we started planning research as to what packages there were, and what one we wanted to book. We got given an awesome adventures brochure and looked at all the available options. There were Bula passes just on their own, which are just the transportation around the islands. There's a Bula combo pass, which is the transport plus the accommodation. Then there's the full monty packages, which include all of the above, and activities. We liked the look of the full monty packages as there are so many good activities on offer and we'd be bored of just doing nothing for the whole time.

The next day, we spoke to the tour desk at the hostel and found out if it was possible to get on a tour for the next day, they said yes as long as it's booked by 4pm. She did warn us about agencies in town as some of them are not selling the true packages and will just take your money and run. We went into Nadi town anyway to see if we could see any reputable companies. When we got a taxi there, the driver said be careful about people from shops calling you in for cava ceremonies as they'll want you to spend money in their shop. We heeded the advice and went off to shop for booze and water to take with us. We walked into some supermarkets and some didn't even sell alcohol. There is a big Indian Muslim community in Nadi, so perhaps this is why. When we did find some selling alcohol, we couldn't believe how expensive even the 'cheap stuff' was compared to what we could have bought duty free in New Zealand airport. It's around $65 dollars for a bottle of vodka, we could have got 3 for $99. John was feeling gutted that we didn't pick any up at the airport before we left New Zealand. We decided to buy it anyway as it will still be cheaper than buying drinks on the islands. We also stocked up on bottled water as we heard most of the islands only have salt or rain water.

While walking around Nadi, there were lots of men trying to call us into their shops, but we didn't go in, on the advice of the taxi driver. We didn't find any tour companies selling the Bula pass either, so decided it would be safest to book it back with the hotel, so if anything goes wrong, we can speak to them. Awesome Adventures is run by an Australian company, so that's why the prices of the packages are expensive compared to typical Fiji prices, although the prices will be dearer on the islands. We got a taxi back to the hostel and went and booked the Tropical Awegasm package, it's 12 days, 11 nights, staying on 6 Islands, including all our activities. We were thinking of booking the accommodation independently, but it's likely that the resorts you want to stay at are booked up, and it's more hassle and it won't actually work out cheaper as you have to pay for all your food. Whereas, we get it included in our package. There are 3 star ratings for accommodation, 1 coconut, which is the most basic, 2 coconut, better facilities, and the 3 coconut, which are more likely to be beachfront bures with sea views. We decided to book the cheaper package here, as 3 of the nights we get upgraded to a 2 coconut anyway. I didn't really get a good vibe from Nadi, and most people told us to get off the main land and head to the islands, so that's what we'll be doing. Bula Fijian Islands tomorrow, can't wait to have a holiday in between travelling! That's what we told ourselves we would do, treat ourselves after spending 4 weeks in the car in New Zealand.