Amazing Manta Reef
Our Signature Dive Site – Manta Reef is a site where our guests can dive and sometimes snorkel with Manta Rays all year round. The reef is a feeding station but occasionally mantas stop for a clean above the reef. We have a resident population as well as occasional pelagic manta visits.
The site is a submerged reef outside of the Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef and is about a 40 minute boat ride from the Resort.
Manta Reef
The top of the reef is around 15m and the reef itself is covered in healthy hard and soft corals. Divers can explore a fun swim-through, large patches of clown fish and pristine hard corals and fans. Expect to see giant mantas with up to 20ft wingspans as well as schooling fusiliers, surgeon fish, Indian Mackerel, Narrow barred mackerel, Dogtooth tuna as well as occasional sightings of pelagic species such as Pacific Sailfish and the occasional Great Hammerhead Shark.
Our divers and snorkelers head out after breakfast and do two dives on the reef with a one hour surface interval spent anchored up nearby in calm waters inside the barrier reef. The boat the returns to the Resort for lunch. We dive and snorkel Manta Reef at least once a week and try to ensure that all our guests get the opportunity enjoy this amazing encounter with giant manta rays.
Scuba Diving
Mad Fish Dive Centre is Matava’s on site PADI 5 Star Dive Centre. We dive the The Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef extensively and cater for all levels of diver from beginner to experienced. Mad Fish Dive Centre will take you to sites varying in depths, currents and visibility ranging from 20 – 100m where you can expect a kaleidoscope of colourful corals and wonderful marine life – we can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
The crew at Mad Fish Dive Centre are a dedicated team of professionals who look forward to guiding you through some of the best dive sites in the world. As the only dive operation located directly on the world famous The Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef we will zip you within minutes to the abundant coral dive sites of the 4th largest barrier reef in the world.
Combined with simple access to The Manta Dive, Fiji’s only year round manta dive site, Mad Fish Dive Centre truly offers divers easy and comfortable access to some of the best diving Fiji can offer.
With a fully stocked dive centre and access to some of the best scuba diving in the world on the Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef, Mad Fish Dive Centre is the prime diving operation on Kadavu Island.
The Great Astrolabe Reef is the world’s fourth largest barrier reef and is Fiji’s largest living organism. It extends along the entire southern side of Kadavu and stretches for over 120km. It is rated as one of the world’s premier diving locations offering a great diversity and spectacle in coral structures and marine life.
The reef adopted its name in 1827 following French explorer Dumont d’Urville‘s collision with the reef in his vessel “The Astrolabe”.
We dive the reef extensively and escort you through the wonders of this hidden paradise. We cater for all levels of diver from beginner to experienced and take you to sites varying in depths, currents and visibility ranging from 20 – 100 m! You can expect a kaleidoscope of colourful corals and wonderful marine life – we can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
Custom built Dive Boats
Matava has 2 custom built dive boats designed for navigating Kadavu island’s complex lagoons and Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef.
hey will whisk you in comfort to your day’s dive sites and provide a practical and safe dive platform.
Dive Me
This new boat is completely innovative and new to the scuba diving industry in Kadavu, and indeed the Fiji Islands. This dive boat has room for 12 divers on a 2-tank dive as well as 2 PADI Divemasters and a captain.
It has everything on board that a diver needs like rinse buckets, a camera table, a shaded area, and easy entry twin platforms for both going in and coming out of the water.
With this new boat Mad Fish Dive Centre @ Matava will be the first and only resort on Kadavu that is able to dive the entire length of the Great Astrolabe Reef. This opens up never before dived areas and dive sites. We are excited about diving never before seen reefs and offshore pinnacles in the coming years!
In addition we are offer a 3-tank boat dive trip to the Northern Astrolabe Reefs north of Ono and as far as Solo Atoll. This combines with a BBQ lunch on the beach cooked by our very own chef before your 3rd dive!
DIVE ME was custom designed for the specific diving done in Kadavu. Based on a proven hull design by NAIAD Designs from New Zealand, the boat was further developed by Bluewatercraft in Navua, Fiji Islands to allow a dry, safe ride, while allowing easy access to the water from the back twin dive platforms.
DIVE ME is fitted with the newest state-of-the-art twin 4 stroke SUZUKI 140hp Outboard Engines. 4-strokes are the cleanest outboard engines currently available. Suzuki 4-stroke outboards are noted for the low fuel consumption, low exhaust emission, low noise and outstanding reliability.
Name: DIVE ME
Length: 23ft / 7m
Engine: Twin 4 stroke SUZUKI 140hp Outboard Engines
Top Speed: 30 knots
Cruise Speed: 22 knots
Range: 60 n.m.
# Divers: 16 max, normal 12
# Dive Staff: 2 +1
# Scuba Tanks: 40
Year Built: 2009
Below Me
Dive Me’s newest sister ship, Below Me was commissioned in 2011 and is used for smaller exclusive dive groups or complimenting our larger vessel when we have large numbers of divers and wish to simultaneously dive multiple sites.
Name: BELOW ME
Length: 23ft / 7m
Engine: 4 stroke SUZUKI 140hp Outboard Engines
Top Speed: 25 knots
Cruise Speed: 20 knots
Range: 60 n.m.
# Divers: 10 max, normal 8
# Dive Staff: 2 +1
# Scuba Tanks: 24
Year Built: 2011
Learn to dive with our PADI Dive Courses
Mad Fish Dive Centre based at Matava is a full service PADI 5 Star Dive Centre.
We run all dive courses that range from PADI Discover Scuba Diving through to PADI Divemaster.
PADI Discover Scuba Diving
An instructor gives a brief lecture on the Main Bure deck, then he shows you how to use Scuba equipment in the shallow water out front of the resort.It is then out into the ocean for a real scuba dive.
PADI Scuba Diver
2 1/2 day dive course for those of you with limited time. A certificate and license is issued by PADI which is recognised worldwide.
PADI Open Water Diver
This is a four day programme which consists of theory, shallow water training sessions, and ocean diving.
On completion of the course, you will be a certified PADI Open Water scuba diver, which is a world wide recognised qualification and allows you to dive down to 18 metres.
Snorkeling The Reef
The Great Astrolable Barrier reef is the worlds 4th longest Barrier Reef and runs along the South side of Kadavu Island and up to the North Astrolabe Reef. consisting of 75 miles of pristine hard and soft corals, it creates extensive sheltered coral lagoons where guests can enjoy snorkeling over coral gardens filled with countless colorful reef fish, starfish and critters. There are 5 main passageways through the reef, all withing a short boat ride of Matava Resort.
Snorkeling Options
Matava Resort guests have several snorkeling options and all Resort Packages include free use of snorkel gear.
The area directly in front of the Resort, including Waya Island, is a Marine Reserve and has excellent snorkeling areas. Guests can snorkel out, take a resort kayak or we are happy to drop you by skiff. Between the resort and the fringing coral is an area of sea-grass. If you have a good eye and a bit of patience you can find seahorses hiding in the fronds ! The fringing coral hosts all the main species of fish seen out on the Barrier Reef as well as many juvenile species. If you keep an eye on the deep water you may see the occasional eagle ray or manta cruise by.
Snorkelers can also join the divers on one of the large dive boats each morning or we can run dedicated 3 hour boat snorkel trips out to some of our favorite snorkel sites on the Barrier Reef. Sites range from calm coral gardens to more adventurous snorkel sites in Barrier Reef Passageways where you can see White-tip and Grey Reef sharks, schooling jacks, barracuda and surgeon fish and even giant groupers
