Tides Reach Resort

Lovely boutique resort but hugely overpriced for what you get (this is compared to other Fijian resorts we’ve visited). We stayed in a standard beach villa with our young daughter for 7 nights. The room was large with a spectacular view out to sea. Your laundry is done every day which is great and the (payable) activities we did good fun. The resort is beautifully kept and the staff very friendly but for us the price point wasn't justifiable. Yes, you are right on the beach with almost exclusive use, but it wasn't the most alluring stretch to swim and the snorkelling off the beach wasn't good.  The food included is good but simple. Starter was usually a small salad (eg carrot ribbons on their own) or soup. Pudding invariably included vanilla ice cream which became a little tedious.  The hotel was missing a few little extra touches to warrant the price tag. Very small things that added up like in the rooms there wasn't any sort of vanity kit or little extras like a Nespresso machine, in fact no coffee at all, just some tea bags but no milk. There was a minbar with a small jar of cookies (not replaced throughout the week) but no other snacking food. There certainly wasn’t a ‘private butler’ as advertised on the website and I don’t think a remote control existed for the television (not that we wanted to use it). The service was a little haphazard. There were seemingly lots of staff but no staff, we'd no idea who the manager was. There wasn’t a phone in the room or any way of contacting reception other than finding someone in person. You were never offered anything, such as a drink when arriving for lunch or dinner, you always had to ask. It would've been a nice touch to have a bit of music in the dining area and offer some nuts/canapes to have with a pre-dinner drink. Cocktails were $25 dollars each so we opted for beer and wine (very limited offering). There seemed to be a problem with keeping much in stock and they had to go to the shop (despite us drinking the same every night). That said, when we did ask for something nothing was too much trouble. The resort was very quiet when we were there and we felt it was slightly coasting along. It is worth noting our feedback would be very different if the cost of the stay wasn’t so high!

If I could write a wish list of accommodations in relation to location, professionalism and personability of the staff, quality of the rooms and food there is no question that Tides Reach Resort would be the result. Taveuni is renowned for it's diving, but with the appearance of this tiny luxurious resort, it now has something else to be proud of. The resort is pristine and upon arrival one is greeted by the staff who are assembled at the entrance singing traditional greetings. For some reason, we were fortunate to be the only guests and were upgraded to a large bure a mere few yards along the pristine beach. The bure is immaculate. A large porch marks the entrance upon which are scattered chairs and couches which welcome your slumber after a challenging day exploring the dive sites or the rest of the island. Upon entry, a spacious lounge area, again with beautiful furnishings, welcomes you into air conditioned comfort. However, if the weather permits, you can merely open all the panoramic glass doors to embrace the tropical breezes. The bathroom has a part wooden floor in the twin shower area and a bathtub as well. Opening the door to the tropical garden beyond finds another shower where one can rinse off the sand of the ocean comfortably and then peacefully enter the bure. There is a huge area with sinks and a closet that leads to a large bedroom; again with panoramic views and doors. Most people come to Taveuni for the diving and the dive center is merely a few yards down the beach where children play and leap into the warm waters from large trees, cavorting and laughing most of the day. Diving is on air, but they have the capacity obtain Nitrox. A small inflatable is sued to reach the dive boat and most sites are reached within 25 minutes or so. Dive briefings are very casual and the guides do their best to take you to places you would find interesting and depending upon the tides as well. The Great White Wall, and Rainbow Reef are inevitably asked for and entry must be timed just right to experience the soft corals in full bloom. Food is served in a beautiful restaurant on the beach and the Chef goes out of his way to prepare and cater to the guests requests. William, who attended the restaurant was superb and extremely professional. Most people wish to adopt him at the end of their stay. Besides diving, there is hiking, kayaking, swimming, horse riding etc. All in all, the team manage the resort superbly and cannot do enough for the guests. This is a dream destination.

We had a great time at Tides Reach. Everything was as described, only better. The villas are bigger than they appear, the beach is just perfect for lazy afternoons in the shade of an old tree, the food.... oh the food.... it was just amazing! Consistently fresh, varied and tasty. Not once in our 2 weeks did we get tired of eating in the same restaurant. The only limit on variety were our requests for repeats, for example for the coconut ceviche which we couldn't get enough of. All the staff were just wonderful and took great care for us including our 1 year old without being over the top. Add to that great diving and hiking, and I'm really struggling to think of another resort, big or small, anywhere in the world that provides all this in 1 place.