West Side Water Sports, a PADI International member, is a fully outfitted dive centre with a full range of Sea Quest/US Divers rental gear, located on Tavewa Island (10 minutes away by boat). Their two custom made NAIAD dive boats (one 9 meter open boat and one 11.3 meter boat with a cabin) give quick access to the 20 dive sites available within a 10 mile radius of Tavewa and Oarsman's Bay.

These sites offer a wide range of underwater topography to explore walls, bommies, canyons, pinnacles and you can swim through waters decorated by colorful soft corals, sponges and sea fans. Encounters with sea turtles, reef sharks and majestic eagle rays are common. History buffs will enjoy exploring a shipwreck from the early 1900's.

Guided dives depart daily and all dives are staffed by PADI dive masters or instructors. They also offer a wide range of PADI courses from introductory dives through to Assistant Instructor.

If you are interested in booking a dive please enquire at our office. The divers from Westside Water Sports will come and collect you and then return you after the dive is completed. Please book as early in your stay as possible, as Westside can become busy and we would hate for you to miss out on the spectacular experiences offered by the deep sea.

West Side Water Sports Ltd
P.O.Box 7136, Lautoka,
Fiji Islands
PH/Fax (679) 661462
email: westside@connect.com.fj

Dive Sites You Can Enjoy:

There are many dive sites around the richly endowed waters of the Nacula Tikina. Details of five of the best are:

Bonzai Reef
Approximately 6 miles east from Tavewa, an isolated reef that has a spectacular wall with hard corals, sort corals and fan corals. Depth ranges from 6 meters to 40 meters. Reef sharks are a common occurrence. As well there is a resident Maori wrasse, numerous coral cod, groupers and Spanish mackerel. Visibility expected between 15 & 30 meters.

Neptune's Thumb
A pinnacle located 7 miles west of the Tavewa. The top of the pinnacle is 7 meters and drops to 40 plus meters. The pinnacle is covered with hard coral, sponges and fans. The top of the pinnacle has numerous anemone beds with anemone fish. Schools of barracuda, reef sharks, trevally and Spanish mackerel frequent the area. Visibility expected 25 plus meters.

The Zoo
Located about 3 miles east of the Tavewa, this site has a combination of coral bommies, reef wall, overhangs and sand flats. Depth range is 8 to 40 plus meters. This site tends to have plenty of current providing rich nutrients that bring in larger fish. It is common to see numerous reef sharks, schools of barracuda, Spanish mackerel, groupers, coral cod and coral trout. Due to the current, visibility is usually about 15 meters.

Ethel Reef Wreck
Located about 9 miles west of Tavewa. It is an old steam ship that sunk in the early 1900's. Depth range is 4-5 meters from the top of the steam engine to a maximum depth of about 15 meters. The steam engine, condensers, propeller shaft, propellers and anchors are all identifiable (the hull has broken up). The remains of the wreck are well encrusted in hard coral. There are several resident eel, as well as rays which are commonly spotted. Visibility can be expected to be in excess of 30 meters.

Lucky 13
This large sprawling reef is located about 5 miles north of Tavewa. Depth ranges from 10 meters to about 35 meters. This long sloping reef has numerous canyons and reliefs that make for a very interesting reef structure. There is an abundance of hard corals and sponges and some soft coral. At this site it is not uncommon to come across sea turtles, reef sharks and eels, as well as plenty of anemones fish.