Kadavu (pronounced Kahn-da-voo), has a population of approximately 8700 and lies only 88 kilometers south of Suva. Kadavu is approximately 48 kilometers in length and varies in width from 365 meters to 13 kilometers. Its area is 411 square kilometers, just a bit less than Taveuni. Kadavu has several high mountains and numerous precipitous cliffs. In short it is a rugged island with few roads, which makes water taxis the prime mode of transportation. The airport, a government station and a new hospital are located at the eastern end of the island in the village of Vunisea. Note that most of the resorts on Kadavu are nowhere near the airstrip-you must be met and ferried another 30- to 60 minutes by small craft to your destination.

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Definitely Do Not Miss
Diving is first class on this island and all the resorts have dive operations. Visit a village - overnight stays can be negotiated through some of the resorts. Surfing is good, as is bird watching. (Keep your eye out for the local parrot).

Additional Info

Despite its proximity to the population center of Viti Levu, the population of Kadavu is deeply conservative. Perhaps the conservatism can be traced to the difficulty of getting around the island and the resulting isolation of its communities. Though remote, Kadavu is well known by divers for its rich diversity of undersea life, particularly in the Astrolabe Reef. Likewise there is a great deal of terrestrial flora and fauna of interest, particularly the birds. The colorful Kadavu Parrot, which is now a protected species, can be easily observed. Over the last five to ten years a number of fine low-end and mid-range properties have sprouted up on Kadavu. For visitors interested in getting away from the typical tourist haunts of the Nadi area, Kadavu is a good option. If you are not a diver, surfing during the winter months is quite good. Kadavu can be reached by air from Nadi and Suva. There are also regularly scheduled transport boats from Suva.

Geography

The Kadavu group is volcanic in nature, the main island being Kadavu, which is 93 km long and varies in width from several hundred metres to 13 km. It has an area of 408 sq km. All its coasts are deeply indented, some bays biting so far into the land that they almost divide the island. One geographer has suggested that the shape of Kadavu resembles that of a wasp, with the head, thorax and abdomen linked by narrow waists. Thus Vunisea (where the administrative center is), Namalata Bay and Galoa Harbor are separated by only a sandy isthmus standing a few meters above sea level; and at Vunisea the heads of Daku Bay and Soso Bay are within 1100 meters of each other, with only a low ridge between. This same characteristic occurs elsewhere on the island to a varying Kadavu’s coastline above Dive Kadavu Resortdegree; the shape and arrangement of these bays suggests that they may be drowned valleys.

Kadavu is rugged and its mountains are high for so narrow an island. Several peaks rise more than 600 meters, while many are half that size. Coasts are generally fringed with coral reefs, the most famous being the 48-km loop of the Great Astrolabe Reef on Kadavu’s northern extension.

The island can be divided into several main areas. The western end is 24 km long and dominated by Nabukelevu (Mt Washington), 822 metres high. Flanking the mountain on the southern side are lovely crescent-shaped beaches. From this peak a spur runs west to Cape Washington – a rocky bluff crowned by a lighthouse – and continues in a range terminating in a steep cross range overlooking Galoa Harbour. One of the most beautiful villages in Fiji, Daviqele, is in this area. The northern part of this region is called Yawe, known for its large earthenware cooking pottery still made by the women of Nalotu village. Most of the northern coast extending to the Sanima and Yale districts further east is dry and sheltered by reed-like vegetation and scattered reefs offshore. Much of the goat raising is done here.

The link between the island’s western end and its centre is Namalata Isthmus, known to Fijians as Na Yarabale (literally, ‘the place where the canoes are dragged across’). In the same area is the village of Namuana, home of the people who can call turtles from the sea.

Opposite the isthmus on the southern side is Galoa Harbour, and in the harbour is 2-1/2-km-long Galoa Island (after which the harbour was named). On the southernmost point of this part of the island is a tiny islet, Tawadromu, which was once home to an American Indian – the sole representative of his race among the mixed population of the period. Why he stayed and what he was doing there is anyone’s guess. Further along the southern coast is the Naceva area, perhaps the most untouched and primeval in nature, with forests, mangrove swamps along the water’s edge, many waterfalls and an ever-present mist hanging over the mountains.

The Ono Island group, enclosed by the Great Astrolabe Reef, has wonderful fishing and diving. Cruise ships sometimes stop at Dravuni Island, perhaps because there are great white-sand beaches. There is also a fisheries station. Yachts find the area appealing, but must first get a permit to stop there.