Hello, I think I've fallen in love, with a resort! We are just at the end of spending a week at Malolo Island Resort and I thought I would write everything down incase you find yourself in the position I was 9 months ago, desperate for a family break but backing away from a big brash family holiday in a huge, soulless resort. And I found it, I tell you, I found it!
Who we are - we are a Mum, Dad and 2 year old from Sydney's East. Dad works hard, Mum works part time, and our little one is at daycare 2 days a week. You could easily say a beach holiday would not be our first choice, before kids we loved big cities and road trips. But sometimes, everything just has to stop. So this trip has ticked just about every box for us, at 'this stage of life.'
So I began my search, and it was hard! The Fijian islands are expensive, and many are adults only, worn out, or just way out of our league (a friend suggested Vomo Island, look it up! But not for us...)
And up popped Malolo. When I went to the Travel Agent to book it they had not even heard of it! And the website is terrible, which would put a lot of people off. But now I'm so happy this is the way it is, such a rare and serene part of the world!
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| Just thrilled to be at Malolo! |
- It's small. Only 40 or so bures.
- All bures face the beach. No hidden costs for a view and have their own balcony and outdoor seating. Private and comfy! There are also 3 different TYPES of bure, pick carefully. We didn't realise an upgraded room would have cost only A$50 more a night. Had we known, we would have done it.
- It's Fijian owned, so more of our money is going back into the local economy.
- Kids club (free) and babysitters (approx A$6 an hour).
- The meal plan was very reasonable and this included steak, crab and other seafood (not every single day, but certainly available).
- No TVs or WiFi in room, but available in common areas. This type of enforced technology break is well worth it!
- The island is covered by vodafone Fiji so no worries with that aspect of things.
What were some of the good things about being there?
- Malolo is one of the first islands away from the port of Denarau (the major port, a bus ride from Nadi airport). With a 2 year old it is not too much of a stretch to get there, and at Denarau you can pick up items you forgot from the mini mart and also a few cheap groceries (bottled water, mosquito repellant).
- Fiji is rather famous for its friendly welcome and at Malolo it's genuine. The majority of staff are employed from the local villages and seem genuinely pleased to be of service.
- The guests are spread out. Malolo rarely seems crowded so most of the time it is pretty calm.
- When we went on activities we were the only people there! We went on a snorkeling tour and nobody else joined us, same for our shell village trip. At A$30 per adult both were a bargain! I also went to a Fijian cooking lesson, was the only person there, and got my fill of mackerel cooked in coconut milk, a recipe I have since cooked at home with success!
- 3 restaurants to pick from, and all very decent. When we ate dinner at 'Treetops' on our last night another guest approached the chef while he was speaking to us, saying he has been coming to Fiji annually since 1963, and Malolo's food was the best he has eaten. I've heard island food generally leaves much to be desired, but not here.
- A decent wine list that I could not as a pregnant lady, take too much advantage of!
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| Feeding fish with Dad. |
What would you do differently next time?
- I wouldn't book using a travel agent, it's really simple to book direct.
- I would go back in July, in mid-September it is the shoulder season and the overcast, stormy (read wet season) weather has begun. It wasn't too bad for us but keep it in mind.
What are some things you are really glad you took?
- Sard clothes spray and wondersoap: helped with small quick bundles of handwashing (particularly of kids clothes!)
- Ear drops, Panadol, Imodium (didn't use but glad we had) mozzie repellant, mosquito plug-in (Fiji has same power points at Australia). Mosquitos were no bigger problem there than in Australia, but if it has rained they do come out in numbers. The resort provides repellant in every room and also fumigates the gardens daily.
- A whole bag of nappies for 7 days (leave the spares with the local staff, so many have kids and really appreciate it!) Same goes with the 3 x packs of wipes.
- Chocolate as small thank you gifts for staff. It's true after all that Fijians are wild about chocolate! After giving out a few of these treats (Cadbury blocks, Kit Kats, Tim Tams - basically, if you save up the chocolate you are gifted during the year just take it with you!) to our babysitter and cleaning lady things became even more friendly and efficient, and genuine joy from them in return (if you find out the Fijian average hourly wage you will suddenly understand)!
- Boxes of chalk to give out to kids at the local village - really easy for them to use drawing on concrete around the place, and is also easily shared.
- Library books for my daughter. We took 4 but we should have brought double, it got so repetitive for us to read them to her!
What are some things you wish you didn't take?
- We sincerely only needed one pair of shoes per person, don't need more (Malolo is mainly barefoot).
- Same goes for underwear, most time is spent in a cossie!
- Toiletries. The toiletries provided at Malolo were excellent, the shampoo and conditioner were very good on my hair in particular! Make up? Ha! No.
What are some things you wish you took but didn't?
- When in the kids club I noticed other guests had brought along a story book then donated it to the resort at the end of their stay, with a little message on the inside cover. I really wish we knew about this, would have loved to do the same!!
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| The beautiful beach at Malolo, you can snorkel right off the sand. |
- It's not big and flashy, rather small and elegant.
- Everything is quite new, as the whole resort was destroyed in the last major cyclone (Cyclone Evan, 2012).
- It seems like a particularly great holiday for families with kids up to 10 years old.
- We met mainly Australians (all from Melbourne!) and New Zealanders here. A sprinkling of South Africans and Americans as well.
- It's casual but not slovenly. It's not 'linen shirts and tailored shorts' but I did not see any bogans here during our stay, with not huge amounts of drinking - most guests were polite and considerate of one another.
- Activities and food were not at out of control prices - although I'm not drinking right now a local beer was A$3.50, a cocktail A$10.
- You can easily access the mainland and other islands. A health centre (i.e doctor) is a 15min boat ride away, good if you need one!
We loved Malolo, and can't wait to return.
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| Love you, Malolo! |
