Musket Cove Island Resort mixes lodgings and waterways, making it a popular resort among sailors. Photo \/ Christopher Reive<\/p>\n
\u201cHe liked here because it was a great anchorage for his boat, so he saw that was what everybody else would be into as well. From the get-go, it was always a yachting and boating-centric resort,\u201d current owner and director Will Moffat explains. <\/p>\n
\u201cNone of the other resorts have like what we have here with the waterways and the pontoons and the boats and the moorings and bringing that external element…for us, we\u2019re more water sports orientated.\u201d <\/p>\n
Over the past 41 years, regatta week has evolved. With improvements in technology around navigation, weather forecasting, internet availability and the like, there is no real such end point to the cruising season. Moffat says people now stay right through the cyclone season and are happier to move in smaller groups. Instead, the week in September now acts as an opportunity for sailors to have a bit of fun both on and off the water before making their next moves. The regatta still attracts sailors from around the world, with more than 200 attendees across more than 70 boats taking part in 2025. For the past few years, the Ministry for Primary Industries has had a presence at the regatta to share information with sailors who are looking to head to New Zealand next. This year was the first time Australia\u2019s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry followed suit, with an officer on-site to advise yachties around biosecurity requirements before travelling Downunder. <\/p>\n
Musket Cove Island Resort is a 50-minute ferry ride away from Port Denarau. Photo \/ Christopher Reive<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re able to come up and make sure that people are well educated on protecting New Zealand [and Australia] before they come down, whether it\u2019s a hull scrub here with the divers and things like that, photographs, or whether it\u2019s a haul out at Bunda [Marina] and pressure wash,\u201d Moffat says. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we\u2019ve got 78 boats or whatever [in the regatta], there\u2019s probably 120 boats out in the bay, so both the sponsors but also those government entities are able to hit a large portion of the people. At this time of the year, if you came in June, by the time you get to now they\u2019d have already forgotten about what they were told. At least now people later in the season are starting to think about going home or moving on to New Zealand and Australia so it\u2019s a good time to get it in their minds.\u201d <\/p>\n
The hobie cats are among the highlights during Fiji Regatta Week at Musket Cove Island Resort. Photo \/ Christopher Reive<\/p>\n
Boyd, not sailing in this year\u2019s regatta due to an injury but at the resort in his role as a sponsor with the Opua Business Association and Bay Of Islands Marina, adds: \u201cWe want them to do the circuit, come to New Zealand, see New Zealand, spend a little bit of loot, get a refit, then come back up here and carry on. It\u2019s only a year out of their lives.\u201d <\/p>\n
From a competitive perspective, races around Malolo Lailai Island and Malolo sandbank are the two more serious events, with the race out the Beachcomber Island \u2013 in which crews are encouraged to dress up as pirates with prizes for the best dressed \u2013 is described as a \u2018doesn\u2019t matter how you get there\u2019 type of race. The hobie cats are an event in themselves, with heats throughout the week, while there are plenty of onshore activities such as a fun run, beach clean-up and games organised for kids. <\/p>\n
Fiji Regatta Week at Musket Cove Island Resort has been running for 41 years. Photo \/ Joel Russell, Musket Cove Island Resort<\/p>\n
Though the exact timing of the regatta changes year to year based on tide, school holidays and other variables, it\u2019s little surprise the regatta sees so many returning participants. While the events throughout the week are fun and inclusive, the venue itself is a beautiful slice of paradise. Beyond the turquoise waters of the ocean and the white sand of the coconut tree-lined beach, the resort takes full advantage of the land it is built on, with lodgings being well-spaced and mostly away from the noise of the central areas like the eateries and the lobby. From the front porch of the villa, I can watch the fish and crabs around the rocks below. There\u2019s an all-tide swimming and snorkelling area just off the island bar \u2013 a leisurely 10-minute stroll from my room \u2013 while the resort also offers snorkelling and dolphin-watching trips, as well as charters to the Cloud 9 floating bar and various surf breaks out on the ocean. <\/p>\n
Musket Cove Island Resort. Photo \/ Christopher Reive<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s probably one of the successes of the regatta,\u201d Moffat explains. \u201cIt\u2019s not a hardcore windward-leeward race regatta as such. It\u2019s for cruising boats and cruising families, so we\u2019ve got to make sure that we\u2019ve got activities that cover everybody. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt all seems to sort of complement itself nicely, but ultimately it\u2019s one of those things that people want to do it and, as I say, we just provide the venue. The guests and the participants are the ones that bring the atmosphere to it.\u201d <\/p>\n
Checklist<\/p>\n
FIJI<\/p>\n
GETTING THERE<\/p>\n
Fly from Auckland to Nadi direct with Fiji Airways. <\/p>\n
DETAILS<\/p>\n