An expert expat’s tips for Nadi, Fiji

The expat

Originally from far north Queensland, Barry Dahms lived in Sydney, where he was head of English at a girls’ grammar school. He moved to teach at Suva’s international school in 2003, then tried retirement. “At my first attempt, I got bored, and went back to teaching,” he says. He had a second crack at retirement, then was called to fill in at Nadi’s international school, where he taught until 2018. Barry has remained in Nadi and is now a joint Fijian-Australian citizen.

See

The highlight of Nadi’s sights is the largest Hindu temple in the Southern Hemisphere. It’s ornate, it has a vegetarian restaurant with some of the best Indian food in Fiji and it’s so cheap, it’s almost free. Otherwise, the Sabeto Hot Springs and Mud Pool are genuinely Fijian, the road’s a bit bumpy, but there are guided tours to the pools and the nearby orchid gardens established by the Hollywood actor Raymond Burr, on the Sleeping Giant mountain.

Nadi’s Hindu temple isn’t just big, it also has a very good vegetarian restaurant.Credit: Alamy

Do

Visit any of the local markets for Fijian fruit, which doesn’t looks so good but tastes incredible (the reverse of Australia). I go to the main Nadi market, which opens very early. On Saturdays, women come from the villages close by the river to sell their river prawns, which are sold in a heap for just F$20 ($13). The prawns are so fresh, they’ll wander out of their pile.

Fresh produce all around at a Nadi market.Credit: Alamy

Eat

Australian Lance Seeto serves the best laksa in Fiji, it’s as close to authentic Malaysian as I’ve eaten here, it’s superb. You can eat it at his Kanu restaurant in the Nadi suburb of Martintar. Fijians generally don’t like hot food, but for Indian food that’s less likely to compromise on the chilli, try IndiaGate at the Votualevu shopping centre. I normally have the tandoori chicken because it’s beautifully cooked, and they don’t dumb it down.

Drink

A new coffee chain in Nadi is the Coffee Hub, found on the Nadi Back Road (near the service station). Set up by a local entrepreneur, it has the best range of cakes, beautiful coffee and well-trained staff. He’s also opened one in Suva, Lautoka and in Ba, in the north-west of the main island, though cyclones have damaged the roads badly up there.

Avoid

Wailoualoa is a black-sand beach near the airport and the backpacker accommodation. It’s normally clean, with very little pollution. However, avoid swimming too close to the Hindu cremation site at the southern end of the beach.

Thrive

The good news about Fiji is you are pretty safe to go anywhere at night; I’ve never had a security problem in Fiji. You will get occasionally ppl pestering you to buy authentic Fijian artefacts swords – be aware of the market price before you buy or hire – but it’s an extremely safe town.