Dive Review of Lalati Resort in
Fiji and Tuvalu/Beqa Island

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Lalati Resort, Oct, 2004, by Jennifer MacDonald, CO, United States . Report 2071.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Lalati is a very special place. It was a perfect vacation. Beqa Island is remote and pristine and well worth the fun journey to get there. There are no cars or roads on the island, only footpaths connecting the Fijian villages. The staff was wonderful and felt like family. Everything you read about the friendliness of the Fijian people is true. There is no tipping at the resort, and you feel that people are being nice to you because they are sincerely kind and friendly. As an example of the hospitality we experienced, I mentioned to one of the staff the lovely smell coming from a blooming Gardena bush - the next day a gardenia flower in a vase appeared on my bedside table. My husband and I normally need the first four or five days of a vacation to “wind down” before we feel relaxed. We both noticed that at Lalati we were completely relaxed within a few hours of arriving. We have never experienced such “immediate relaxation” on a vacation before. It made the whole week seem longer since we mellowed out so quickly. The owners are warm, welcoming and attentive to your needs without imposing on your privacy. Likewise, manager Beato makes sure you are happy and looks after your every request (before you think of it) without getting in your way. Beato is very funny and personable and you won’t want to say goodbye to him at the end of your vacation! The spacious accommodations (Bures) are beautiful, luxurious, extremely private and well-maintained. Fresh flowers are kept in the bathroom and living areas. The chef Beato prepares amazing meals that defy the remoteness of the resort! I have never eaten so well in my life. The food is truly gourmet and plentiful. The kitchen is careful with any special dietary requests (one of the guests was a vegetarian and seemed very happy with her meals). Meals are served at a large table, but guests are welcomed to eat privately at their own table if desired. The resort offered many non-diving activities – hikes, trips to the village, spa treatments, kayaking, trips to a small island for a romantic lunch or dinner - Storm Island – and surfing. Our favorite activity was to kayak across the bay to a secluded cove and snorkel. It was a world class spot, by far the best snorkeling we have ever experienced. The pool/hot tub area is lovely – we spent most afternoons sitting by the pool in the shade with a good book and cold drink. The view from the pool area across the bay is amazing. The dive boats left around 8:30 for a two tank dive. The dive shop picks up your gear on arrival and you don’t have to handle it again all week. Everything is set up for you and rinsed/stored after each dive. Hot chocolate and banana bread were offered during the surface interval. The dive sites were all within 10-20 minutes of the resort. Most of the diving was on pinnacles in Beqa Lagoon. Pinnacles were swarming with life – we saw the following plus much more: male ribbon eel, juvenile ribbon eel, lizard fish, lionfish, pipefish, Mertens’ butterflyfish, Ornate butterflyfish, regal angel fish, spine cheek anemone fish, jewel damselfish, fire dartfish, cleaner wrasse, orangeband surgeonfish, Moorish idol, yellow tang, clown triggerfish, pallid triggerfish, unicornfish, sea turtles, arc eye hawkfish, freckled hawkfish, knife razorfish, red-eye hovering goby, scythe triggerfish, crescent wrasse, two tone dart, signalfin goby, latticed sandperch, leaf scorpionfish, trumpetfish, blackspotted puffers, popcorn shrimp, spotted toby, saddled butterflyfish, humphead bannerfish, golden spadefish, orange spine unicornfish, clark’s anemonefish, longnose hawkfish, speckled damsel, blue and yellow fusilier, yellowtail coris, crinoid clingfish, octopus, emperor angelfish, two-spot snapper, steep-head parrot fish, three spot dascyllus, white spotted puffer, bi-color blenny, yellowstripe goatfish, bird wrasse, wedgetail triggerfish, longnose file fish, Picasso triggerfish, pyramid butterflyfish, black snapper, singular bannerfish, longfin bannerfish, masked bannerfish, black spot angelfish, mimic surgeon fish, barred rabbitfish, blackbar damsel, whiteband damsel, speckled damsel, midnight snapper, bi-color flag blenny. We took one trip to Frigate’s Passage (a longer boat ride around the island) where we did some neat swim throughs and saw several reef sharks. I cannot think of a single negative thing to say about the resort, the dive operation or our vacation! It was perfect. [lalati-fiji.com link]
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	51-100 dives
Where else diving	Turks and Caicos, Bonaire
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	77-79°F / 25-26°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	90-100 Ft/ 27-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	None
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities	N/A
Overall rating for UWP's	N/A	Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	[None]

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Dive Review of Lalati Resort in Fiji and Tuvalu/Beqa Island

Lalati Resort, Oct, 2004,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Lalati Resort in
Fiji and Tuvalu/Beqa Island