Ratu Kini Backpackers & Dive Resort Reviews

The first one on the right side of the Mana Island landing bridge is Ratu Kini Backpacker Resort. The rooms in the resort are big enough, the facilities are average, and there is no WI-FI. China Mobile's Global Communication can be used on the island, with 4G signal, 1 yuan/M, and a maximum of 30 yuan per day. The resort is next to the indigenous village, and there is also a primary school nearby. At night, there are wind, water, and barking dogs. There is no blanket, only a sheet, which feels a bit cold at night. The beaches of Mana Island are all silver fine sand, with nearly a thousand meters of beaches on both sides of the island, and the sea water is clear to the bottom. When I was in Mana, I didn't think it was strange, thinking that all beaches in Fiji were like this. I went back to Wailoaloa Beach near the Blue Water Hotel on Viti Levu (main island) and took a look. Comparing the two, the beach of Mana Island is not a little bit better, but a world of difference.

I have spent two nights here. I was travelling with a group. I stayed in a 2 rooms beach front bungalow. The other people of the group were placed in a dorm and in a double room. All three accommodations were perfect! Clean, comfortable beds, private bathroom, hot water. Wifi is available at the restaurant and at the reception. Food at the restaurant was delicious!!! To consider that you won't find all drinks, just beers and some sodas. Rain water is available to refill your bottle. They offer nice daily excursion at a good price. The real plus are the people! They are all sweet helpful people that really made us feel at home! I recommend this place and I hope to visit Ratu kini again soon.

Very different experience than the Yasawa islands. There was no one around so couldn’t do the tours. You can go down the beach and do the tours with the big resort but they are 2-3x price. No menu for food so you just have to ask for what you want and see if they have it/can make it. No chairs for lounging in the sun. Wi-Fi is very weak. Lots of bugs around / the dogs have flees and ticks. I would stay here if you want the local Fiji experience with nothing fancy.

What a magical experience this was. The locals living on the island are so friendly and welcoming it gives great vibes. The food was excellent and we felt very at home even after 2 days. The snorkelling experience with Paula will forever be the greatest experience and he was the most genuine guy! Thank you to all for making our experience 10/10

Just came back from Ratu Kini after spending there 4 days with my teenage daughter. We had the family cottage- two rooms with shower and toilet in each and a common area. The cottage was very basic but quite clean and perfect for our needs. Overall, Ratu Kini resort is integrated into a small village, the only one on the island, so plenty of dogs and kids running around. The food was ok, limited choice of menu every lunch and dinner. The prices- same as in NZ or Australia which was a shock to me (min wages in Fiji are 4$!) but it seems that all of Fiji is very expensive for tourists. The staff-very friendly and always smiling, real pleasure. The beach- we were there during the Survivor filming so most of the island was off limits. However, we still had about 3-400 meters of beach and could go around the island on a kayak or a paddle board, just couldn't land on the other beaches. The beach in front of the resort is not the cleanest- plenty of bottles, plastic and broken glass. The snorkeling and swimming was quite nice when the weather was calm. Really enjoyed the snorkeling trip to the Sandbar. Castaway Island was ok. Took Ratu Kini boat both ways. Paul the Captain is fun and a great guy. The boat broke down on the return trip, we had to catch the flight home that evening and also getting stuck in the middle of the sea was not really appealing but Paul managed to get it running finally. Bottom line- we enjoyed our stay but doubt I will be back to Fiji- everything is just way too expensive! SE Asia offers much better value for money.

We had a fab time at Ratu Kini, would recommend. Great location with coral reefs surrounding the island. We did our PADI open water dive course with Instructor Tuks which was great and had an amazing time exploring the reefs around the island. Snorkelling is great just off the beach in front of the hostel. We stayed in a beachside cabin which was fab and pleasantly surprised by hot shower and AC. Staff lovely, friendly, and made a real effort. V good value for money. Social evenings with live music every night

Hello ! I travel to Fiji quite often however this is one of the BEST places I have ever stayed at before! For those looking to experience Fiji but on a bit of a budget, I cannot recommend Ratu Kini enough!!!! I travelled with a large group of friends, and the staff were so friendly and accommodating towards our wishes, dietary requirements and overall stay. Though this place is considered a 'hostel' I was amazed at how clean and well kept the private rooms were. We stayed in the beachfront cottages which were spacious and clean! Additionally, the views from the verandah and close access to the beach were spectacular. Brian, Manni, Paul and Mare were all so helpful with organising our daily adventures, food, drinks and activities whilst allowing us to party from time to time haha. The food available was reasonably priced for how large and delicious they were, along with the free breakfast on offer. There is wifi available in the reception area, however, I would recommend buying a sim card so that your connection works well in your rooms as well. Mostly I cannot recommend this place enough due to the amazing hospitality of the staff who work here, I believe that they made our trip so special and something we will look back on with such happy memories. Overall, It was such an amazing experience and I cannot wait to return soon as I am missing this place already. Vinaka !! (miss u brian)

Nice place to stay for snorkeling, diving or just visiting Mamanuca Islands. Of course it need some renovation ( what started this month ), but the staff was amazing and location is the best . Highly recommended.

My wife and I finished our Open Water certification here after completing our theory and confined water dives in California. Couldn't be happier with this choice! Our instructor Tuks and the entire staff were simply amazing. Tuks did a fantastic job of incorporating the skills we had to practice for the course with realistic dives that allowed us to both see things and feel much more comfortable in the water. We did another 4 dives with them afterwards and were able to explore more of the 20+ dive sites around Mana. If you are considering a diving vacation or just want to explore diving and you are on Mana, I'd highly recommend checking out Ratu Kini.

We completed our PADI open water diver course with Tuks, who is a great instructor, and extremely knowledgeable. The diving was so amazing we stayed and did another four dives with them. We want to come back and do more dives here!

Just returned from Ratu Kini. Had an authentic Fijian village experience in basic accommodation. Beautiful stretch of beach, however the rest of Mana island was inaccessible due to filming of US Survivor. Food options limited & unable to access resorts on Island for other options which was disappointing. Out of Ratu Kini's control, just good to be aware of.

We’re already planning to go back! We stayed at Ratu Kini to do our PADI open water course and we absolutely loved it. Our instructor Laura and her Partner in Crime, Ollie looked after us so well and the dive sites were phenomenal. There is so much life in the ocean. The food was amazing and we encourage trying as much local Fijian food as possible especially the kokoda and nama (sea grapes) which were picked literally from the ocean around the island. We stayed in the single beachfront cottage and it was perfect for us - we spent most of our time outside exploring and on the main restaurant deck. Overall the staff were very friendly and there was such a chilled vibe about Ratu Kini. We recommend this place to anyone looking for a complete getaway on such a beautiful island. Vinaka team and we’ll see you very soon.

My daughter and I went with Ratu Kini dive shop today on a “tour” to Monriki (Castaway) island. Because it was just the 2 of us we were charged $120 each. But onboard came 2 other young local men and a local woman. Our first stop was to drop the woman off at an island, then we went on to Castaway. The “captain “ asked how long we’d like to stay. I replied saying I’m not sure how long should we stay. (I was very confused by his question, given we were on his tour) he said 2 hours. So I said ok. They helped us out of the boat, handed us our bags, then drove off waving saying they’ll be back in 2 hours. We were stunned and totally unprepared. I’d only brought 2 small bottles of water, we had nothing else. Almost immediately my daughter became violently ill and was vomiting. I had no way of contacting the crew. Luckily the tour group from Cruisin Fiji were there. I asked if I could buy some water and explained our situation. They were horrified and couldn’t have been more hospitable. They gave us 8 bottles of water and cookies and sat with us until they had to leave. Another boat came in from Tropica island and they were also disgusted that we’d been left alone with nothing. They offered to take us back to Mana island, which I gratefully accepted. Unfortunately just as we we’re taking off, the Ratu Kini boat came around the corner, they’d been fishing!! We had to board their boat again. And once more, despite my daughter’s illness, we went back to, first one side, then the other side of the other island trying to find the woman they’d dropped off earlier and take her back. The captain even asked if we wanted to get and look around!! I’d already told him how sick my daughter was and we needed to get back. To say I was disgusted and appalled by this “company” is an understatement. Money grabbing charlatans is the best way to describe them! DO NOT USE RATU KINI! When other Fijian companies are appalled by their practices, you know it’s a bad thing! It was a $240 taxi service!

We used Ratu Kini for transfers to Mana Island from Nadi when staying at Mana Isaln Resort. Picked up at Fantasy Island jetty (nearby to Denerau Port) on the 18th and dropped back again on the 24th. Well run and good fun - plus nearly 50% saving on the South Sea Cruises price. Best bits - you arrive between the "Big Boats" so there is no queue to check in to Mana Island Resort, no hopping between different resorts so the trip is quicker. Don't wear your good shoes as there is a short calf deep walk from the 16 seat boat to the shore when arriving at Mana Island.