Fiji 4-Week

Our beautiful beach eco-resort on Fiji's Sunshine Coast will serve as a wonderful base for orientation, getting to know one another, and introductory community service activities with a local school.

To gain a full appreciation and understanding of Fijian culture, we set off from our beach base on a trek to our mountain community. This hike provides beautiful scenery and ample time for discussion about the Fijian lifestyle we are going to experience. When we arrive, a "sevu sevu" welcome ceremony inducts our group into the tribe for the duration of our stay. Small groups of two or three share mini homestays with our Fijian friends. We all eat together in a communal setting where our village family spoils us with inspired banquets full of fruits, breads, and native dishes. In our first few days, we will learn about the sustainable community development plan. The villages we work with have mapped out the need for health, education and community facilities. We will work alongside our hosts on projects that contribute to this movement, lending our time, labor and financial support. During the past thirteen summers, we have built nurses stations, constructed and restored community buildings and classrooms, led classes teaching English to village kids and planted thousands of young trees for the benefit of future generations. These are meaningful grassroots projects where we work side by side with the village families who will directly benefit from our efforts. The days follow relaxed "Fiji-time" and include projects, adventure activities, and introductions to traditional local customs, crafts, and games! Fiji is paradise in the Pacific, complete with volcanic mountains, coral reefs, waterfalls, hiking trails, and single lane dirt roads that transport us back to a simpler time.

After our incredible stay in the mountain village we return to our eco-resort base to unwind, swim and explore the markets before traveling a few hours along the Sunshine Coast where we have the incredible experience of an up close interaction with a school of Bottlenose Dolphins. The naturalist guides that accompany us on our boat tour will help us to understand these amazing creatures and the environmental issues that they face. You may even get a chance to swim with them!  After our incredible dolphin encounter our group will take a hike to a tropical rainforest waterfall and overlook the bays of the Pacific. It is a perfect place to reflect on our time on the mainland before traveling to the outer islands for the last component of our journey.

After circumnavigating Fiji's big island, Viti Levu, and working alongside our community hosts, we will travel by ferry to the world famous Yasawa Islands. We spend the final five days at a small island resort where time will be spent snorkeling above colorful coral, windsurfing, sea kayaking, playing beach volleyball or simply soaking up the sun. We will have a day of PADI Certified diver instruction (a SCUBA resort course). You will find yourself enchanted by the underwater dream worlds!  As we explore the reefs and view dazzling colored fish, it is easy to see why Fiji is known for its world class diving!  Your evenings will be spent under the bright stars of the Southern Cross with new friends reflecting on an incredible four weeks of service, adventure and friendly people. Your time in Fiji will forever be an example of communal village life, a way of life that may soon be lost in time. Join us to explore this amazing culture, to meet people who will forever be in your heart, and to discover what it means to have a truly meaningful travel experience!