We recently asked some of the Daku team what guests say when they first arrive.
The answers were wonderfully inconsistent.
“This is beautiful.”
“What a lush tropical landscape.”
“Is my room ready?”
And, of course, “Bula.”
After years of welcoming people to Savusavu, we shouldn’t have expected one answer. People arrive for all sorts of reasons and notice different things. Some immediately gaze across the bay to the mountains, others are taking photographs before their bags have made it to their room, and a few are (understandably) more interested in finding their bure and having a rest.
What is more interesting, though, is what people talk about when they leave.
Yes, they remember the snorkelling, the diving, the waterfalls and the sunsets. But after years of conversations with guests at Daku Resort, we’ve noticed that people rarely talk about just one thing.
They simply say they liked the way Savusavu felt.
And we know that people return to Savusavu for its slower pace, the friendliness of the people and the feeling that there is always a little more left to discover.
Savusavu Is a Little Different
Savusavu can come as something of a surprise, not least because it is smaller and less developed than some people expect.
There are no large resorts here and almost no crowds. You don’t feel as though someone is trying to entertain you every minute of the day. Instead, you can spend a morning snorkelling, have lunch in town and then head up the Hibiscus Highway simply because someone told you the drive was worth doing.
Savusavu still has a slight sense of adventure about it. Roads become gravel, signs can be easy to miss, and a waterfall walk after a spell of tropical weather may involve a guide clearing back the undergrowth.
These are never inconveniences, they just become part of the story guests tell when they return to Daku.
The Best Parts of a Day Are Not Always Planned
We often ask guests over breakfast what they did the day before. A couple of people might have spent the day diving, while those at the next table drove towards Natewa Bay. Another guest may have gone into town for half an hour and somehow spent most of the afternoon there after visiting the market, stopping for an ice cream and getting into conversation with someone they had just met.
The thing that surprises visitors most is how easily you can meet someone, start chatting and find yourself invited in for a drink or even a meal. There’s no great ceremony and no expectation attached. It’s simply part of the friendliness people encounter in Savusavu.
The Fijian “Bula!” helps. One member of staff said the thing they hope never changes is the way a simple “Bula!” can turn strangers into friends.
Somewhere Along the Way, People Learn Your Name
When we asked what visitors often don’t notice until their third day, one answer stood out: by then, the staff know them by their first name.
The resort is relaxed and informal, and the team naturally gets to know people. For us, that’s the best description of Fijian hospitality we could hope for.
People Slow Down Without Really Meaning To
Most guests arrive with plans. They know which days they want to snorkel, when they’re going to visit the hot springs and which direction they want to explore. We’re always happy to help, although we’ve also learnt that those plans tend to become a little more flexible after a few days as new ideas crop up, or people decide to just do less.
Even the photographs are flexible. Twenty-five years ago, guests arrived with cameras. Now everyone has a smartphone and, judging by the number of photos we see being taken, cocktails remain an extremely important subject.
Then there are the sunsets. At around six o’clock, depending on the time of year, people suddenly start appearing with phones in hand. Everyone becomes a photographer and the sky puts on a magnificent performance.
You Start Noticing the Little Things
There are the obvious Savusavu views, particularly the mountains across the bay from Daku. Guests photograph them constantly.
After a few days, though, people start noticing other things.
The geckos, for example. Tiny little creatures which chirp extraordinarily loudly just like a bird – and are brilliant at catching mosquitoes. They become part of the memory of being here.
Daku Is Part of Savusavu, Not Separate From It
Guests often mention Daku’s relaxed and informal nature.
The resort overlooks Savusavu Bay and is close enough to town that guests can head in for coffee, visit the market or spend an afternoon exploring, then return when they’re ready.
Guests joining the art and yoga retreats hosted through Paradise Courses often settle into the same rhythm. They come to paint, learn or practise yoga, but the experience inevitably becomes mixed with the wider life of Savusavu.
That’s how we think it should be. Daku has never been about arriving at a resort and shutting the rest of Fiji outside the gate. Savusavu is too interesting for that.
Why Do People Return to Savusavu?
We asked our team what they hope never changes about Savusavu.
One said the easy access to the ocean. Another said the way “Bula!” instantly turns strangers into friends. Someone else simply said, “The people.”
That’s the real answer.
People may first arrive noticing the lush landscape, the mountains across the bay or the view from the front deck of the main bure. By the time they leave, they are saying goodbye to the person who served their breakfast, asking the receptionist to pass on a message to someone they met during the week, or promising the Daku team that they’ll be back.
That’s what changes during a stay in Savusavu. You arrive noticing the view, but by the time you leave, it’s usually the people you’re saying goodbye to.