Basics - Rough Guide to Fiji - page 37

prices include local taxes which are currently 15 percent for VAT and 5 percent for Hotel
Turnover Tax. Once in Fiji, walk-in rates at some resorts are given if requested, although
seldom at the backpacker hostels. To encourage longer stays, many resorts offer a “stay six/
pay five” incentive or similar. Rooms overlooking the beach and ocean are sold at a premium
but note that terminology is often ambiguous - a “beachfront” bure may not be right on the
beach and an “ocean view” room may only have a partial glimpse of the sea through trees or
other buildings.
For the most part, everything from food to activities within a hotel or resort is charged to
your room and paid for at the end of your stay by credit card , though usually only Visa
and MasterCard are accepted, sometimes with a small card-service fee, so check beforehand.
Paying tips to individuals is not encouraged, but communal staff fund boxes are usually left
on reception counters and distributed to staff as a Christmas bonus or used for community
projects.
Hotels and inns
On the main island of Viti Levu, particularly on Denarau Island and along the Coral Coast,
you'll find a dozen or so large hotel complexes . Facilities include air-conditioned rooms with
flat-screen TVs, huge swimming pools with swim-up bars, multiple restaurants with interna-
tional cuisine, souvenir shops, spas, gyms, tennis courts, kids' clubs and jet-skis. Unlike the
huge US all-inclusive resorts, the majority are “pay as you go”, giving you the freedom to eat
where you want and to do as little or as much as you wish. You'll also find smaller, cheaper
hotels and inns around the Coral Coast, some offering self-catering air-conditioned rooms,
others with small restaurants; these usually have few watersports or amenities available ex-
cept for a swimming pool. Apart from two large beach hotels in the Mamanucas, the majority
of places to stay in the outer islands are small, intimate boutique resorts.