419 Dive Log Australasia AUGUST 2026

Off the Grid Finding Solitude—and Extraordinary Diving—at Fiji’s Matava Resort Text and photos by David Fleetham S ome places require a little effort to reach. Matava Resort is one of them. That, I would soon discover, is part of its charm.

Our Pacific Sun Airlines flight held sixteen passengers, a pilot, and a co-pilot. That was the entire manifest. There was no cockpit door separating us from the crew. Looking up the aisle, I could watch every instrument, every adjustment of the controls, and eventually the narrow strip of pavement that served as Kadavu’s runway. From my seat it felt less like commercial travel and more like riding shotgun with two very competent bush pilots. The landing was smooth. Outside, Fiji immediately slowed the pace. Two smiling Fijians greeted us beside the tiny airport terminal and quickly loaded our luggage—including what seemed like an unreasonable amount of camera equipment—into a pair of well-used pickup trucks. Digital SLR bodies, housings, strobes, ports, lenses, laptop computers;

enough electronics to power a small newsroom, all destined for a resort that proudly described itself as off the grid . The drive to the pier lasted only a few minutes. Waiting there was one of Matava’s dive boats. Within moments we were underway. The boat slipped inside

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Dive Log Australasia #419 August’26

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