Mr & Mrs Smith

Namale Resort & Spa

Fiji Islands, Fiji

Luxurious coast-hugging Namale Resort & Spa boutique hotel in Fiji's tropical north-east likes to play Cupid, with romantic boudoirs bound to make everyone feel like they're on honeymoon. Each room is unique, private outdoor dining is de rigueur and the opulent Fiji-inspired spa is a must for hydrotherapy hounds. Set on the country's second largest island Vanua Levu, Namale offers a raft of activities, from golf to village visits, but we reckon it's the perfect place to bask by your plunge pool and just ogle ocean views. Past guests Ed Norton, Anthony Hopkins and Russell Crowe can't be wrong...

Need to know

• Rooms 19, including one two-bedroom villa.
• Rates Double rooms from AU$992.99 ($975), excluding tax at 20 per cent.
  The price shown represents the lowest nightly rate for a double room available at this hotel over the next 21 days. Any price conversions from the hotel's local currency ($975) have been conducted using today's exchange rates from xe.com.
• More details Rates include all à la carte meals, alcoholic, minibar and soft drinks, transfers, laundry, turndown service, access to fitness centre, entertainment and hydrotherapy rooms, WiFi, and most activities (such as motorised sports, golf and snorkelling).
• Facilities Spa, gym, nine-hole golf course with 18 tee boxes, golf driving range, indoor basketball court, entertainment room (with virtual golf simulator, billiards table,Fussball, table hockey, projector screen and two 10-pin bowling alleys), DVD/CD library, free WiFi throughout, gardens. In room: CD player, minibar, iPod dock, drop-down screen and Apple Entertainment System (including projector, 600 movies and 13,000 songs; in villas only), Pure Fiji toiletries, decks. Some rooms have double showers, others Jacuzzi spa tubs, and upper-tier rooms boast private plunge pools.
• Poolside Namale has two spacious main pools, lined with lush vegetation and loungers, but it's the offshore inflatable water trampoline that caught our eye. Kayak out to it then bounce to your heart's content. Honeymoon Bures, Villas and the Dream House all sport private plunge pools, too, so you may not even need to venture out to take to the water.
• Check-out 10am, but flexible subject to availability. Check-in, 11am.
• Children Couples-retreat Namale only caters for children aged 12 or above, unless you hire out the whole resort for an exclusive event, so leave the smalls at home.
• Also Smoking is allowed at the hotel, but pets are not permitted. Rates include return transfers between Namale and nearby Savusavu Airport on Vanua Levu. Spa treatments cost extra.

Food and drink at Namale Resort & Spa

• Hotel restaurant

  Bure Levu, Namale's restaurant, is set in a grand, traditional thatched bure, with soaring ceilings, ornate decoration and an alfresco deck dotted with trees. An eclectic menu of local and international dishes draws heavily on local produce, from fish to tropical fruit. Typical treats include oven-baked grouper fish with wilted greens and salsa or grilled scallops with sauteed vegetables and curry sauce. Generous breakfasts, three-course lunches and five-course dinners are all included in rates, as is all alcohol, from American whisky to French champagne.

• Dress code Elegant beachwear by day, but glam up at night as the trad vibe here creates quite a sophisticated feel.
• Top table Snaffle a table by the windows or out on the terrace where views out to sea are sure to seduce. Namale prides itself on its private outdoor dining, too, with the chance to eat à deux on a romantic terrace, by the beach or beside a waterfall.
• Last orders The dining bure is open from 7am to 11pm, with no set dinner time; the bar is in business from 7am to 11pm, although peak time is around 7pm.
• Room service Anything you fancy from the daily-changing menus is up for grabs during restaurant hours. If you have any minibar drink preferences let the team know in advance, so they can source your preferred wine type or tipple for you.
• Hotel bar

  Nestled in the corner of the main dining bure, Bure Levu Bar is a seductive little affair with a curvy, cocktail-toting bar and comfy lounge chairs circling coffee-tables. Make sure you order signature sip the Namale Special, a totally tropical mix of dark and light Fijian rum, coconut cream and liqueur, and hand-picked fruits from the hotel's orchards. For drinking experiences of a more unexpected nature, attend a kava ceremony in the Bure, when guests gather with staff around the kava bowl to share this lip-numbing liquor.

Also worth knowing

• Weddings This property is suitable for weddings. More...

Namale Resort & Spa Hibiscus Highway, Savusavu, Vanua Levu, Savusavu, Fiji