Guys,
I have 12 days off work and I'm looking to get away with the wife (and maybe the daughter) for about a week. We live in Brisbane and we are considering Fiji and the possibility in going on Friday. Of course, we are open to suggestions of better places to go for a week.
Firstly, can anyone recommend Fiji at this time of the year and secondly, where should I start looking for last minute deals?
Many thanks.
@gasman70:
If you have a 28° cc use it for the big bills like excursions or duty free on the way back.
The exchange rate is better than the best one you can get changing cash when you are there.
You still need to change some cash there for the small expenses.
Sorry for the downer. I would just spend lots of your time going on day trips on boats to little islands around phuket. You will still enjoy yourself, just don't expect the towns and people to be nice.
Well that's the plan. A few tours on boats an kayaks and most of the time at the resort and some decent food joints. We are certainly not clubbers or big boozers but it would be churlish not to pay one evening visit to the seedy strip
@gasman70: +1 recommend doing the kayak full day trip, any of the islands are fine. Just check the prices at several local tour agencies when you land and read up trip advisors for reviews.
Cheers Keith. I have looked at the best trips and tours in Phuket on Tripadvisor and market them. I can see me spending as much on the tours as I have on the flights and accommodation!
Damn, I thought this was going to be a reasonably cheap holiday!
@gasman70: You shouldn't need to spend that much. From memory about $60aud per adult for a full kayak day trip including lunch and transport should be all you pay. Children should be half that. Granted that was a few years ago…
@gasman70: Do yourself a favour and don't pre-book any day trips before leaving, don't book any trips based on a taxi driver, tuk tuk driver, or airport transfers.
Once you've established what you would like to do, check a few street agencies for base price and then barter, always starting at at least 60% off the listed value. You should always be able to book the trips at ~50% off the listed price, make sure you tell them how many people because they will usually allow a heavy discount for more people.
Goodluck!
Phuket is nasty. Bali was much nicer than phuket. Thailand is great, but hang around bangkok or chiang mai instead. Malaysia has langkawi which may be better suited to you as a first timer.
Well, it's too late now. Phuket it is.
Sorry. My place had already had creatures staying there 🐛. Had to change hotels immediately. I had an excellent dinner at a big resort hotel there one night. The seafood market there is also excellent but messy. If you stay at a very nice resort, you'll enjoy it.
You stayed at the same place as me? If not, I'm confused at what relevance your creatures have on my stay.
I'd recommend Phi Phi Island and go to a resort if you want peace and quiet. Its a 40 min boat ride from Phuket and quite breathtaking.
I've changed my accommodation to the best resort in the area, according to Tripadvisor, but I may well spend a night or two on Phi Phi Island too.
Cheers.
Phuket is good for sex snack, or anywhere in Thai.
'Sex snack'? Whatever floats your boat mate.
Get a camper and travel around OZ, it is an amazing country!
I totally agree with you but I'd need more than a week to make a dent in it. Maybe I'll start when I next get 6 weeks off.
You don't :)
Start small then go big.
I started with Victoria and then SA, NT, QLD, NSW. Simply amazing.
I have no doubt that it's amazing. The wife has been on about buying a camper for some time now to see Oz. Maybe next year
Nobody going to stick up for Fiji?
I spent 2 weeks at a resort in Fiji last year and had an awesome time. If you love water sports eg surfing, diving, fishing, SUPing, snorkelling you won't find too many places better.
I would go back, stayed at plantation island resort (island off NW coast) looked very good for families.
I guess the downside is prices are similar to oz for alcohol and food is slightly cheaper if i remember correctly.
Plantation Island is a dump of a place, it feels like a 80s caravan park, and everything there is $$$
I didn't think it was that bad, I guess I can see your caravan park reference, we had a little hut thing on the beach, probably one of the better accomodation spots I would say
@Mrgreenz: we had a hut to wasn't to bad though the prices there were out of this world. Kids wanted a slurpee and they wanted 8aud…
How much did u pay for those 2 weeks?
Let me sing it for you, "We're going to Bonnie Doon."
The serenity is bloody awesome.
Don't go to Fiji they treat you as a walking Atm, you pay 5 star prices for EVERYTHING but get 3 star quality if you are lucky.
Good example is the hungry jacks at the airport, a couple of burgers and drinks cost 50
$50 for how many people?
Phuket as long as you have a nice hotel, will be relaxing. It's just very commericalized but it will be relaxing and fun at the same time.
Lot's of white trash with locals with exploited to an extent but it's the biggest gainer for their economy so it's made locals wealthier.
I have lived in Thailand and I would prefer somewhere near Koh Samui but you will still have a good time regardless.
I'v just seen you went to Holiday inn. Don't expect too much from their pool area, so you'll be at the beach a fair bit. Beaches aren't the best.
Anyway do a few day tours and you guys will have a ball.
Have fun.
Thanks mate for the heads up. I've changed the hotel to the Nap Patong, which according to Tripadvisor is very good.
I am considering hiring a car for a few days but I will wait to see the standard of driving out there. Hopefully it's no worse than Oz!
The driving is definitely worse than Oz but I still did it anyway. Was very handy having the convenience of going anywhere we wanted without having to negotiate with taxis. I used to think drivers in Australia were bad but now after driving in Thailand, Korea, USA, Canada, Italy and Fiji I feel like we are among the best.
Well, I've travelled extensively and the driving in Oz is unquestionably amongst the worst I've witnessed……..until I can here! The line is the middle of the road is purely decoration, the speed limits are completely ignored and mirrors are for checking your hair/make up. Oh, testing while driving is a must.
Great choice on the Nap, good balance of quality and price - stayed there in 2014 in a pool access room - yes it is just a 'hotel' rather than a resort.
Yeah, I can confirm that it's just a decent hotel. I'm not sure if it's had a recent makeover but it seems new inside, especially the bar and dining area. We sleep and have breakfast there and we are out all day, every day.
@gasman70:
I hope you've been to see my mate Neno the tour guide outside Eden Bungalows in the street to the north of you.
Very reliable guidance on what is good and what is not so good.
https://goo.gl/maps/9WJqkfwJTAs
Koh Samui…
Yeah, should have, could have, would have.
Did 15 day Vietnam and Cambodia buy buying Groupon deal, dealt with Vietnam tour agency Halong tour. The service was great etc, the price of the deal was great, pickup to and from hotel etc, great for family tour. Every week Groupon seems to have 10% off, worth looking IMO.
this will sound boring, but we have a fixation on travelling overseas for our "holidays". mostly due to media articles and social media (oh look at me im checking in at airport X). Australia has some of the nicest places to visit locally, it really does. You dont even have to get on a plane, you would be surprised where a few hours in a car can get you. Travelling to cheap asian countries, is really over rated. Except Japan, that place is just…. wow.
Horses for courses.
Overseas culture is quite different from local, it's not just posturing. Scenery and swimming aren't what people want all the time. Aussies have always been great travelers, it's just got easier and cheaper. Particularly the latter. These days you pay just as much for food and lodging here as in Europe.
Sometimes you want to experience something a little different….food, culture, people. Of course, there are some great places in Oz and NZ but that shouldn't mean that you should never travel overseas. How boring would life be without getting out there on occasion?
Are you there yet? Looking at Nap patong, it doesn't look much like a 'resort' as you say. I think the katathani may have been a better option in a quieter area of phuket. Only been to Phuket once (and doubt I'd return) and would definitely avoid patong.
Well, it's pretty decent by my standards. The place is really well finished, great bar, great staff, room is top notch. I can't comment on the area as I've not been out yet.
Post mortems are really my thing. I've paid the money, so wishing I was elsewhere would be as futile as it is stupid. I think I'll enjoy myself anyway. There's a nice beach, good food and the people, so far, seem very pleasant. And at the end of the day, I've got a decent room to sleep in. Maybe I'm easy to please?
You pay your money, you take your chances.
Anyway, thanks for the wonderful input.
Do I sense a touch of sarcasm? ;)
Didn't mean to upset you. I was just giving you my opinion as one of the earlier links that you sent was for the katathani which I had been to.
Anyway I hope u enjoy ur holiday. Make sure u go kayaking in phang nga bay - good experience.
Of course I was being sarcastic but you're account was only hours old before you came in and shat on my holiday. I suppose I should ask for advice on TripAdvisor rather than Ozbargain? Once bitten…..
The holiday has been booked and paid and I arrived this morning. You're right, the place we are staying is hardly a resort, more of a hotel complex but it has a nice pool, restaurant, bar, amenities and is close to the beach. It's more than adequate for us.
I've been to worse places than Patong in Australia…….just don't ask for places names!
It was great although it was bloody hot.
We did a few tours including The Big Buddha, Phuket Town, Phi Phi Islands and ate ate some great places. The people were generally very nice and the hotel was excellent.
My only negatives were that everyone is out to rip you off, so you have to be smart or just get used to saying 'no thanks' in a polite manner.
Avoid 'Irish' pubs as their stouts and ciders are often much more expensive than is Oz……in fact there are few bargains to be had anywhere in Thailand, unless you're well off the beaten path.
The driving is deplorable and I gave up hiring a car or moped immediately - witnesses several crashes during our stay.
Everyone wants to sell you a hand-made suit…..Boss, Armani, etc.
Everything is fake. Everything. Even in the higher end shopping malls.
Taxi drivers really start to grate after a while. 'Taxi sir, taxi sir'. There are three drivers chatting together but each one will in turn ask if you need a cab.
Phuket must have 50 times the world average of deaf people. About 50 deaf people approached us with a card explaining of their disability and asking if we'd like to buy one of their unique, hand carved trinkets…..that all of them had.
Otherwise it was really good. We loved the food and met some great people but overall it was a fairly expensive jaunt. Next time we will go to Vietnam for a bit of real cultural enrichment.
I've already booked flights to Fiji in July and will be going for 6 days. Kind of getting put off now with all the negative comments but is there anything good there?
Don't stay at a Nadi or Denarau resort. Take a multi day cruise of islands, overnighting at the guesthouses on the islands. Facilities are less luxurious but you get real beaches and sea-nery :)
I've many friends who've been and love it there. From my experience over the last few days, I'd log off from here and just go and enjoy yourself.
I got to Phuket and based on some of the posts here, I was expecting a complete shithole but so far, I've loved it. The people have been very nice and the food has been great. The hotel is faultless, as are the staff. Of course, there are better parts of Thailand and I'm sure that regions of Vietnam and Cambodia are more fulfilling but I'm happy enough and more importantly, so is the Mrs.
The driving is diabolical though…..even by Australian (low) standards.
Visited Fiji/Denarau a few times. If you want 5star (and I mean 5 star) not paper 5 star, then look at Raddison Blu or Sofitel. Amazing rooms & beach is out your window. We recently stayed at The Westin which is rated 5star but it's a bit dated - I would say 3.5-4 stars in reality.
Denarau is pretty great - it's got it's own shops & atmosphere (touristy) but is safe & fun with lots of things to do. Check out the map - especially great that you can walk from one resort to others (just carry your towel) and you can see & use other resorts pools etc…
Watersports (not the kinky kind) are specialties there but they also have open movie nights under the stars, kids activities, and tribal dances/activities. Overall Fiji is pretty damn safe, especially if you're with kids; locals will dote on them and generally people look after each other. Think 30-40yrs ago here (or a country town) and thats where Fiji is right now - especially in terms of social norms.
However, be prepared to have uncaring shopkeepers and pestering workers when you visit shops - they know you're not local so be prepared to fork out more. I found that just going to Nadi town and shopping there was 1/2 times cheaper than Denarau which is exclusively the richest place in Fiji (outside of a couple of Suva suberbs).
Yes, I know a bit about Fiji and could be biased but for a safe, family trip I don't think anything which can beat it.
Airasia sale has started today with flights for May to Kuala Lumpur for $220 return. Awesome deal if you were heading to Thailand.
I heard Colombia is pretty good, can pick up some pretty good headphone deals while you're there…
@greenpossum:
Thanks.
Still considering cancelling the Holiday Inn Express (although the reviews are great) and booking into a resort.