Art galleries exhibition spaces foundations and cultural centers Fiji

This great cultural and commercial centre includes restaurants, a bakery, souvenir shops, an automatic laundry, a beauty salon, a cinema… and a handicraft market with constant demonstrations of the artists who sell their creations. The centre does not end up launching recreational and cultural projects to promote the discovery of national culture and mass tourism in this region still not visited. There are Fijians wearing loincloth and traditional dances and songs. Arts Village offers a very complete day tour at the heart of Fijian life, a kind of spectacle living through the water. We embark on a canoe and stop at the various bure, where characters are waiting for us to talk about wood, fishing, fire…

A demonstration of the men of Beqa, the famous «firewalkers», those who walk on fire, is also offered by the real inhabitants of the island. Although these tourist attractions, if they lack authenticity, allow us to learn a lot about Fijian culture. The reconstructed village is very beautiful and situated in an extremely pleasant setting. But Arts Village is also the Tiki Pool, its swimming pool that makes everyone happy. A compromise between a swimming pool and a sculpture, the Tiki Pool has a slide, a waterfall that escapes from Tiki's mouth, a Jacuzzi and a water bar to which we are dressed in a bikini, the behind in the water! At the same time, the Centre offers activities throughout the day: fishing, cooking courses, volleyball game, botany…

There are two pottery villages, and since it is useless to make the same visit twice, choose one of them. Between Lawai Village and Nakabuta Village, we recommend the second one. It is bigger and you will see more clay items. They are generally small handmade clay objects with irregular curves and shapes. We also discover, and especially, a small Fijian village and its particularly friendly and smiling inhabitants, a nice detour! It is also possible to attend pottery demonstrations.

Samoan-born artist Sonny Sofe previously ran an art gallery on the island of Taveuni. His works were based on traditional Fijian crafts, in particular woodcarving and Tapas prints. He has since moved to Nadi and now specializes in his other passion: Fijian and Samoan-inspired tattoos. This can be an opportunity for honeymooners or anyone traveling to Fiji to leave a lasting impression of their stay.