Part of the Manmanuca group of Islands, Matamanoa – home of the Matamanoa Island Resort – is located some 30 km northwest of the Fijian mainland. If my first impression of Fiji itself was that it was beautiful, then I’d have to describe Matamanoa Island as idyllic! 😎
You get a sense of just how idyllic this island is going to be when you first arrive; as I mentioned in my previous post, disembarking from the water taxi is a case of stepping into the crystal clear blue sea and walking barefoot onto the sun-kissed sand…just like you see in a movie 😍
As you’ll see in my next post, the water taxi run by Purple Turtle isn’t the only ocean-going means of transportation, but it sure is the most fun! 🤩
Luggage disembarks the same way you do, though typically without it physically going through the water 🤞
Island Resort
Matamanoa Island Resort is couples-only (or, in my case, also for singles), and offers the only accommodation on the island. Disembarking the boat, one is greeted by the resort staff in the traditional friendly Fijian fashion – involving the use of the word “Bula” many times over – as you’re guided to the bar/welcome area where a refreshing fruit juice beverage and a cooling towelette await. Whilst you embrace the welcome sensation of both, your hosts take the necessary preliminaries (as in name, address, contact details, method of payment, etc.) before you and your luggage are guided to your room.
The literal translation of Bula is “life”, and, as I mentioned in my previous post, it is, in essence, the traditional Fijian greeting for “hello” or “welcome”. The phrase “Bula Vinaka”, which means “good life” in English, is also a very apt one when it comes to describing Matamanoa 😎
I was staying in a standard Resort Room situated a short distance from the bar, the restaurant, the pool, the shop and other resort facilities. Though the room is a perfect size for any couple – as well as little old me – other (larger) rooms are also available, many of which have direct beachfront access too.
Tropical Paradise
Whilst an accessible beachfront isn’t continuous around the whole of the Island – there are rocky areas that are either difficult to navigate or impossible to traverse – what is accessible is simply stunning!
The less inaccessible areas are, however, far from uninteresting! They are home to a selection of the other island inhabitants, as well as providing some other perspective views 😎 Though I didn’t personally take part (I was just happy soaking up some rays of the “sunshine” kind) there’s an abundance of other marine life that one can explore as well.
Culinary Delights
Dining in the restaurant included a changing assortment of options for breakfast, lunch and dinner – the latter accompanied by a near-limitless repertoire of serenades (with requests for anything by the Eagles being the preferred option).
On my last day, Kal (who you can read more about below) decided that we all had to try Kava – a beverage made from the root of the Kava plant, that has sedative, anaesthetic, psychoactive and euphoriant properties! 😳 Quite honestly, it tastes foul – so it really is a case of not letting it touch the sides – and, let’s just say, I spent a not-insignificant amount of time recovering the use of my tongue and lips after having drunk the stuff!
Evening Entertainment
Being a tropical island, the evening is often when dramatic storms will make an appearance. Though I didn’t experience any of these personally, there were some other dramatic scenes that I did witness!
Not content with being our gracious hosts by day, and our resident band of serenading troubadours, the congenial folks at Matamanoa can also turn their hand to traditional fire dancing at night! Not to be outdone, one particular evening we also bore witness to nature giving us its own firey display! Fortunately, the plantation blaze on the neighbouring island caused no lasting damage and no one was hurt; rainfall in the early hours certainly helped to bring the blaze under control!
Making New Friends
Just like at Daintree, and as with many other of my Antipodean Adventures, along the way I also made some new friends during my stay at Matamanoa 🤗
For starters, it seems no matter how far around the world you travel, you’re never that far from folks to whom “the roar of the crowd and the smell of the grease paint” is second nature! Just ask the Musical Theatre team of Ted & Janine 😎 Thought, by his own admission, Ted – a trombone player of quite some renown – will confess to being more a fan of the “wine, women and song”…or more specifically the after-show parties and chasing chorus-Queen Janine! 😁
Despite my lovely alliteration, I have to add that Janine was very specific that she’s “Company, darling” not Chorus 😉
As for Kal – who’s ever the entrepreneur – well, if there was some “adventure” to be had then you could be pretty certain that Kal was somewhere in the midst of it! In all probability, closely followed by Ted…and most likely me too! 😂
Fleur shared her amazing story that I’m hoping she won’t mind me adding to my blog; much like staying on Matamanoa, it’s just one of those heartwarming feel-good tales that simply makes you smile 😊
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