Fiji is a siren’s call to the world’s most powerful pleasure seekers, luring them to this string of 333 islands bathing in South Pacific Ocean. Google’s sleek silver superyacht Dragonfly cuts through its azure waters. Oprah soars in on a private jet.
And the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decamp to the islands for downtime (they took a minibreak there during a royal tour last year, when Meghan beguiled the world’s press, wearing local frangipani flowers in her hair). On one island, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood grew competitive and famously scrambled up the same coconut tree, before Richards slipped, ricocheted down the tree and knocked himself out.
Reaching such a remote paradise from the UK, however, takes some effort. Unlike the well-heeled Antipodeans who waft in from Sydney in a mere three hours, from London it’s a bleary-eyed 22 hours - with a change at LA. But it’s worth it. Fijans embrace a happily hazy pace of life, with their own version of the mañana mentality - the languid, much cited ‘Fiji time’. And you’re on Fiji time the minute you land in Nadi airport, greeted by a flurry of bulas [hellos].
At the newly opened Pullman Nadi Bay, a gorgeous beachfront oasis a short drive from the airport, a restorative, tension-busting massage revives the soul and the back (that, along with a welcome cocktail, a dip in the pool and a nap under the sun, banishes any lingering jetlag). Once senses are acclimatised, the islands beckon.
The Yasawas are the first stop - where Brooke Shields dazzled in the 1980s survival romance, The Blue Lagoon - are the first stop, a chain of six islands 30 minutes’ from Nadi by light aircraft. We're heading to Yasawa Island, a 22-km-long tropical oasis with 11 beaches and just one tiny resort. Soaring over the water, the plane steadies for landing on a lumpy field carved from the mountain that doubles as a runway.
Yasawa is all about wilderness and simple, laid-back luxury. There's no wifi in the rooms, only in the main bure (the Fijian word for a thatched hut). The idea is that guests should thoroughly switch off (and with a 12-hour time difference between Fiji and Britain, there’s little you can do anyway, but smugly turn on the Out of Office).
The pretty wooden bures have palm-leaf roofs thatched by island villagers, and are artfully rustic: an old school fan whirs above the bed and double doors that open onto a wooden veranda, leading to a private patch of beach dotted with a couple of sunloungers and a hammock. An outdoor shower, tethered to a coconut tree, adds to the Robinson Crusoe aesthetic. So does these sense of solitude: in this expanse of space there are never more than 40 guests. There's a freshwater swimming pool, a tennis court and a spa on the beach offering couples' massages to the sound of lapping waves. It is so remote that at night, a total lack of light pollution means the Milky Way glitters overhead and you can see shooting stars darting across the sky.
The resort’s very presence on the island is purposefully low-key, the result of years-long negotiation with the villagers, and everything has been done to preserve the local way of life. Many of the villagers are involved in some way – they're the chefs, the waiters and waitresses, the boys who bring the day's catch of Spanish mackerel and lobster to sell to the kitchen. On Tuesdays there’s a traditional barbecue (lovo), at which staff, swaying in grass skirts, sing songs so melodious you can’t help but be stirred.
Nor can you fail to feel a thrill as you're whisked by speedboat to a private shore (Lovers Beach or Honeymooners, perhaps), to find a parasol has already been erected, a rug rolled out, pillows plumped, ready for your arrival. Clutching a picnic hamper replete with cold white wine, sandwiches and pastries, you wade knee-deep through crystal clear waters towards the shore, as the boat motors away into the distance. It is the perfect castaway experience: there's not a soul in sight, save a heron, as waves lap the soft white sandy beaches. Perfect, blissful solitude.
Next stop, the Mamanuca Islands - a volcanic archipelago to the south of the Yasawas on which a series of mega watt resorts are sprung like citadels. There’s Six Senses, Castaway, and drawing up to ours, Likuliku, by boat is like entering a luxury version of Waterworld. On first glance it looks like the entire resort is on stilts.
Island-hopping is all part of the charm of a Fijian adventure, and for many travellers the next stop is the Mamanuca Islands, a volcanic archipelago south of the Yasawas. It's glitzier and buzzier than the Yasawas, with a series of megawatt resorts, like citadels. There's the Six Senses and Castaway Island - and Likuliku Lagoon Resort, where we're staying. Drawing up by speedboat is a bit like entering a luxe version of Waterworld.
A string of overwater bures rise out of the sea, curving around the bay. A planked gangway and coconut leaf thatched pagoda form the reception area, where the dulcet tones of a guitar waft through the air, backed up by a chorus of singing staff and a hand reaches out pulling you into paradise. 'Welcome home,' they say, as hotel guests snorkel by, happily kicking their flippers. At first glance it looks as if the entire resort is on stilts.
A string of overwater bures rises out of the sea, curving around the bay. A planked gangway and thatched pagoda for the reception, where the dulcet tones of a guitar waft through the air, accompanied by a chorus of singing staff. (Everywhere you go, you're greeted by music.) Friendly staff extend handshakes. 'Welcome home', they say, as guests snorkel past below, happily kicking their flippers.
likuliku is a grown-up paradise. The overwater bures are the only ones of their kind in Fuji, all pimped Hollywood glamour and hotly in demand. The decor is sleek - lots of marble, wood and neutrals, so the eye is drawn to the glass panels in the floor, where all manner of sea life passes beneath your feet; ladders lead down into the water for a closer look at the shoals of colourful fish that weave through the reef. There are huts on the land, too, which have private plunge pools and gardens that lead straight to the beach.
Unlike Yasawa, which caters for families during a few weeks of the year, Likuliku is completely child-free. All is serene: on Fridays there are cocktail nights, where locals sing and dance and the most delicious canapes are served, from deep-fried chicken to seafood ceviche. The main restaurant, Fijiana, stretches over candlelit decking, and serves an array of steaks, seafood and seasonal vegetables. For breakfast, the Gruyere souffle with truffle is utterly delicious.
Guests are given snorkel kits to explore the reef. There are also paddleboards, a mini catamaran, and scores of daytrips to make, such as a sunset hike to the top of an island for a breakfast of champagne and fresh fruit.
Or you can head to the islet where Tom Hanks famously filmed Cast Away. ‘Yes, he was here,’ laughs our guide Sai Rasalato, pointing to the huge message in the sand that reads ‘Help me' - which has been constructed time and again in coconut shells, in tribute to Hanks.
Of course Sia is more than the tour guide, he is the resort’s group environment manager, a flora and fauna authority devoted to protecting these islands. Because, for all the luxury of Likuliku - the visceral beauty of starfish strewn white beaches and the melodic lapping of turquoise waves at the shoreline - the magic of the resort lies in its conservation bid.
The Likuliku resort has been bestowed with the official status of a National Geographic Lodge - 'where sustainability meets splendour' - one of only three in the South Pacific (the other two are in Australia). That's because staff here are replanting swathes of dryforest on the island (Fiji’s equivalent of rainforest) and nursing an endangered species of iguana back from the brink of extinction.
In fact, the vivid turquoise iguana was thought to be extinct - its last official sighting in the Eighties. Then, one day in 2011, a groundskeeper discovered one wounded. Like Keith Richards, it had fallen out of a tree. International scientists, excited at the discovery, hightailed it down to the Mamanucas. From one iguana in 2011, there are now 82 - the culmination of further discoveries and a careful breeding programme that takes place at the resort. A portion of all guests’ stay goes towards the upkeep of the iguana nursery.
The final stop on our islands tour is Kokomo Private Island, perhaps the most exclusive spot of all. It is the kind of place where you’ll receive an email in advance of your stay asking how firm you like your pillows, enquiring about your optimum room temperature and which brand of vodka you’d like in your minibar.
Bought in 2011 by the Australian billionaire Lang Walker, who first set eyes on it when he was sailing by in his super yacht, Kokomo is a playground for the jet set, surrounded by the world’s fourth largest reef: the Great Astrolabe. From the beach, in five strokes you can swim straight from the beach up to an underwater jewellery box of vivid coral, see sea turtles grazing on the seabed and manta rays gathering en masse.
It’s hardly surprising that the resort attracts billionaire hedge-funders and Hollywood actors alongside scores of doe-eyed honeymooners. You might find Russell Crowe on the beach or Facebook's co-founder Sean Parker bobbing in the water. David Gray was flown for one guest’s birthday, performing his hit number Yellow, barefoot on sunlit sands.
Access to the resort is via helicopter or seaplane from Nadi airport. Naturally, Kokomo has its own fleet, in smart navy blue and white, as well as its own mini airport lounge - an oasis of calm in the rough-and-ready departures block of Nadi.
It is a family-friendly resort, with clubs for both kids and teenagers on site, so parents can check their children in and unwind comforted by the knowledge that there’s a pool, an ice-cream stand serving homemade scoops of mint choc chip, salted caramel and a woodfire pizza oven, happily distracting their brood.
The 21 bures all face the ocean and have private infinity pool, deckchairs, hammocks and private garden. The aesthetic is sleekly modern. Inside, they feel like luxury apartments, courtesy of polished marble kitchens, lots of light wood furniture and modernist artwork. All this is cleverly blended with traditional island chic: thatched palm-leaf-thatched-roofs and vintage ceiling fans. Five VIP mega ‘residences’ dotted around the island have their own butler and buggy.
But every stay at Kokomo comes with perks, including an introductory scuba dive. Kokomo's ethos is to embody your idea of luxury, with the help of its 300-strong team of staff. Even when the resort is at full capacity, you'll be just one of 130 guests - which makes for unparalleled pampered attention. The team includes Kim, a naturopathic doctor who plucks herbs from the island's five-and-a-half-acre farm and concocts remedies and ointments to help with mood and wellness. Guests can book appointments with her at the spa, which is set in serene tropical gardens, or find her fruit juices laid out at breakfast, promising vitality and detox (and some of which contain noni, a Fijian fruit referred to dubiously as the blue cheese of the fruit world.)
Much of the food served at Kokomo’s restaurants comes from the land - the aim is to be as self-sufficient as possible. The kitchen is overseen by executive chef Cory Campbell (who previously worked at the world-famous Noma in Copenhagen) and full of herbs and vegetables, while hens range freely in the grounds. There’s the formal Kokocabana and the relaxed beach chic of Walker d’ Plank, serving up Asian fusion dishes and plenty of seafood.
On sunny days the world is your oyster. There's a beach hut where you can borrow water sports kit, snorkels, kayaks, paddleboards, and even a pontoon in the middle of the sea, on which yoga classes are held on perfectly calm days. But out of nowhere, struck by a torrent of rain, I had to take cover indoors for hours, kicking back with rosé and watching the world go by. On a flooded path I spotted a Valentino in-sole being carried forlornly downstream. The rain stopped, the skies brightened, and we emerged into the sun. As the Fijans will tell you, all in good time.
NEED TO KNOW: For more beachside paradisal holidays, Turquoise Holidays is the specialist to know for exotic castaway cool. They can organise an eight-day Fijian adventure, staying at Yasawa Island Resort & Spa, the Likuliku Lagoon Resort and Kokomo Private Island, from £8,800pp, room only, including international flights and all transfers (turquoiseholidays.co.uk)
