Fiji Through a Local's Eyes: A Conversation with Mere, Island-Born Fijian
Mere Tuilau grew up in a village on the Coral Coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's main island. She learned to swim before she could walk — or at least that's how her mother tells it. After studying marine biology in Suva, she came back to work at a dive shop in the Mamanuca Islands, where she's spent the last 12 years teaching tourists how to breathe underwater and gently correcting them when they call the country "Fiji" with a hard J.
We talked over kava at her dive shop on Malolo Island, with the late afternoon light turning the lagoon every shade of blue that exists.
What do people get most wrong about Fiji?
"That it's just a beach destination. Don't get me wrong — the beaches are beautiful. But Fiji is a culture before it's a postcard. We have a way of living, the Vanua, that connects people to land and community in ways that most Western visitors don't understand.
People fly in, go to a resort, lie on a beach, fly out. They don't visit a village. They don't do a kava ceremony. They don't sit on a mat in someone's home and eat food cooked in an earth oven. That's Fiji. The beach is just where Fiji happens to be."
Tell me about kava. What should visitors know?
"Kava — we call it yaqona, pronounced 'yang-gona' — is our national drink. It's made from the ground root of the pepper plant, mixed with water. It tastes like muddy water with a slightly numbing aftertaste. I'm not going to pretend it tastes great.
But the ceremony matters. When you visit a village, you bring a sevusevu — a gift of kava root — to present to the chief. You can buy a bundle at Nadi Market for FJD $20-40. When they offer you a bowl, clap once before accepting it, drink the whole thing in one go (don't sip), then clap three times.
The effect is mildly relaxing. Your lips go a bit numb. After a few bowls, you feel calm and connected. It's not alcohol — nobody gets drunk on kava. It's more like drinking a conversation. The bowl goes around and everyone talks and the evening gets slower and quieter.
Tourists who refuse kava miss one of the best parts of Fiji. Those who drink it and say 'hey, this is nice' after their third bowl — those are the ones who understand."
Which islands should someone prioritize?
"It depends on what kind of trip you want.
The Mamanucas are the easiest to reach — 1-2 hours by ferry from Port Denarau. They're where most of the resorts are. Castaway Island (yes, the Tom Hanks movie), Malolo, Mana, Tokoriki. The water is ridiculous. Cloud 9 — the floating bar — is worth a day trip just for the novelty of drinking cocktails on a platform in the middle of the ocean.
The Yasawas are harder to reach (2-5 hours by Yasawa Flyer catamaran) but they're the real Fiji. Less developed, fewer resorts, more village stays. The Blue Lagoon is genuinely that blue. Sawa-i-Lau caves — you swim through an underwater passage into a hidden cave with light streaming through the rock. That's a core memory for most visitors.
For diving, Kadavu and the Great Astrolabe Reef. World's fourth-largest barrier reef, visibility over 30 meters, manta rays from May to October. But it's remote — you need a domestic flight (1 hour from Nadi, from FJD $300 one-way). Kadavu is for serious divers, not casual beach-goers.
Taveuni — the 'Garden Island' — has the best waterfalls. Tavoro Waterfalls are three tiers, each more beautiful than the last (FJD $15 entry). The Lavena Coastal Walk (5 km, 3 hours one way) ends at a waterfall you can swim behind. Taveuni feels like Fiji before tourism arrived."
What customs should visitors be aware of?
"The biggest one: don't touch a Fijian's head. This includes children. The head is sacred in our culture — touching it is deeply disrespectful, even if you mean it affectionately.
When visiting a village, dress modestly. Cover your shoulders and knees. Remove hats and sunglasses — wearing them is considered rude in a village setting. Take off your shoes before entering someone's home.
Sundays are rest days. Fiji is predominantly Christian and many communities observe Sunday strictly. Some shops close, inter-island services may not run, and village activities are limited. Don't plan travel for Sundays if you can avoid it.
And please — learn a few words of Fijian. 'Bula' (hello, welcome, life — it means everything positive), 'Vinaka' (thank you), 'Vinaka vakalevu' (thank you very much). Fijians light up when visitors try. Even badly."
What's the biggest tourist trap in Fiji?
"Overpriced resort dining on the main island. Some Nadi-area resorts charge FJD $80-100 for a dinner that you could get at a local restaurant for FJD $25. If you're on Viti Levu, eat at local restaurants and Indian curry houses — Fiji has a large Indo-Fijian population and the curries are excellent. A proper roti and curry in Nadi costs FJD $8-12.
On remote islands, meal plans are usually mandatory because there are no restaurants. That's different — those prices are justified because everything is shipped in by boat. But on the mainland, you have options. Use them."
What about sustainability and reef protection?
"This one matters to me personally. Fiji's reefs are under pressure from warming oceans and tourist damage. Use reef-safe sunscreen — chemical sunscreens with oxybenzone kill coral. Check the label. If it says 'reef-safe' in the marketing but lists oxybenzone in the ingredients, it's lying.
Don't touch coral. Don't stand on it. Don't take it home. It looks like rock but it's alive, and a single broken branch takes decades to regrow.
Choose operators who practice responsible tourism. Some dive shops still do shark feeding and reef walking — avoid those. The better operators, like the ones certified by the Fiji Tourism Board, follow strict marine guidelines.
And if you want to help, ask about village-based conservation programs. Several communities run turtle monitoring, mangrove planting, and reef restoration projects that accept volunteer divers. An afternoon of planting coral fragments is more meaningful than any resort spa treatment."
What's your favorite thing about living here?
"The water. I know that sounds obvious, but I'm not talking about how it looks — I'm talking about how it feels. I dive three or four times a week, and every time I drop below the surface, the world goes quiet. The reef is alive — fish, coral, manta rays, turtles. It's a different planet down there.
And the light. The way afternoon light comes through the water at 15 meters depth, turning everything blue-gold. I've seen it a thousand times and it still stops me.
Fiji isn't paradise because it's easy. It's paradise because it's real. The sea is real, the community is real, the kava is real. That's what I'd want visitors to understand. Take off your shoes. Sit on the mat. Drink the kava. Be here."
Quick Tips from Mere
Best time to visit: May through October (dry season, 25-28°C, less humidity)
Must-try food: Kokoda — raw fish marinated in lemon juice and coconut cream. The Fijian ceviche.
Best value island: Mantaray Island in the Yasawas — great snorkeling, village visits, and the manta rays (in season) come right to shore
Worst tourist mistake: Not bringing a sevusevu to a village visit
Insider tip: The Bula Pass (from FJD $459 for 5 days) on the Yasawa Flyer gives unlimited island-hopping flexibility
One word for Fiji: Vanua — our land, our people, our way of life. It doesn't translate into English because English doesn't have a concept big enough.
For practical trip planning, read our complete Fiji travel guide. And check our 17 Fiji tips to avoid the mistakes I made. If Fiji's island-hopping appeals to you, Bali and Zanzibar offer similarly stunning tropical experiences.
