Colorful Fiji

Nothing about Fiji is dull. From the moment you step off the plane, smiling Fijians greet you in vivid flowered shirts singing bright, happy music.

The lush green mountainous islands with abundant bird life and pretty flowers could almost convince a traveler to stay on land to enjoy the all the beauty. At least until he/she sees the colors underwater.

The first descent into the appealing blue waters surrounding Fiji is like jumping into a painting. Pink and purple splotches of soft corals cover the walls and little anthias, like specs of splattered orange and yellow paint, flit back and forth just off the corals. With a sapphire backdrop of ocean, the scene looks like a painter’s dream masterpiece.

The Islands

Fiji is an archipelago made up of more than 300 islands and 500 islets, most of which are uninhabited. These islands of white sand beaches with tropical forests extending up mountains stretch over 75,000 square miles of ocean. Postcard perfect views are plentiful and that’s just on the surface.

Known as the soft coral capital of the world, there are several hundred species of corals and sponges. More than 1000 species of fish have been identified, and there are sharks, mantas, turtles, rays and sometimes even migrating humpback whales passing by.

Dive guides with a good eye can point out hidden nudibranchs as colorful as the reef. Other masters of disguise such as scorpionfish are common, if you can find them.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF TOURISM FIJI

The diving throughout the archipelago is fantastic. In many places, coral bommies or pinnacles rise up from the deep and the nutrient rich waters help these isolated areas flourish.

Carpeted with intense pink and purple soft corals, bommies are like an oasis for fish. From a distance they could almost be underwater beehives, the way the fish seem to buzz around the hive of coral. Divers can spend an entire tank circling the bommies and admiring the colors and life.

Fiji also has wall diving, drift diving, several wrecks, and a famous shark dive that often included bull and tiger sharks. No matter where you are diving in Fiji, get ready for a whole different palette of color.

Further Reading

All Other Articles By Brandi Mueller

Overview of Scuba Diving in Fiji

Beqa Island’s Shark Adventures

Fiji Diving, The Soft Coral Capital of the World

Directory of Dive Sites in Fiji

Directory of Dive Shops in Fiji