Yasawa Island villages

Yasawa Island Village Visits

The Yasawa Islands are home to 27 remote villages. The villagers live a traditional way of life, and welcome Blue Lagoon guests into their community to introduce you to their captivating and colourful culture. Yasawan villagers still practice traditional culture, dancing, singing, and ceremonies.

Visit remote Fijian villages in the Yasawa Islands to meet the locals and see how these villager’s live day to day. These heart-warming experiences offer a great insight into the lives of the Yasawa people and include a brief overview of the history of the village, followed by a traditional 'Yaqona Ceremony'. After the ceremony is Kava tasting as well as a 'Meke' (dancing and singing performance from the villagers).  You'll also have the chance to purchase exotic souvenirs from the village shell market. On Sunday, visit a village for a church service and hear the beautiful songs from their parishioners. Take part in a traditional welcome from a village chief and a Kava Ceremony with local village elders.

Giving Back to the Villagers

Many of our guests fall in love with the friendly nature of Fijians and are especially taken with the wide-eyed curiosity of the children. The villagers do not expect gifts from our guests, but many of our guests ask us what items they can bring to give away to village children. School supplies (pens, pencils, crayons, drawing/colouring books, notepads, and the like) are always most welcome as are sports items such as rugby and soccer balls. Items of clothing are also well received. We do not suggest school books as the importation of educational material is subject to Ministry of Education approval. 

We work closely with the local villages, helping to support them with our visits, and also through the Vinaka Fiji Trust, an initiative dedicated to improving the provision of basic needs lacking from village life in the Yasawas. Vinaka Fiji runs a fantastic range of volunteering programs in the Yasawa Islands. These programs can be added-on to your cruise, pre or post.

Vinaka Fiji - Yasawa Trust Foundation

Fiji's Yasawa Islands are home to 27 villages living below world standards of health and poverty. Through fundraising and volunteering, Vinaka Fiji aims to improve the provision of basic needs and amenities. The volunteering program has three work streams: Education; Sustainable Communities; and Marine Conservation and volunteers can choose to participate for 1-26 weeks.

Vinaka Fiji provides direct aid and acts as a facilitator, bringing those who can help - companies, Government, aid agencies and volunteers - together with the Yasawa Villages to help achieve an improvement in living conditions.

You can either choose to volunteer through Vinaka Fiji (this can be added on for you pre or post your Blue Lagoon cruise) or choose to donate (add a donation onto your bill at the end of the cruise) to help provide much-needed supplies for this program.  Blue Lagoon Cruises are proud to be a part of this program to give something back to the villages we visit and make a real difference in the lives of Fijians. 

For more information on the Yasawa Trust Foundation and Volunteering with Vinaka Fiji, visit https://vinakafiji.org/