Savusavu, Vanua Levu, Fiji tide times

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived.

Model-derived from a global ocean grid. Useful indication; expect about ±45 minutes on average vs. a local harmonic gauge, individual stations vary widely. See /methodology for per-region detail. Not for navigation.

Conditions as of 16:00 local time. Refreshes daily.

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived. · Not for navigation.

The angler tradition for major/minor fishing windows: major ≈3-hour windows around moon transit and opposition; minor ≈2-hour windows around moonrise and moonset. Times are Pacific/Fiji local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Wed 20 May (range 1.5m). Next neap on Sat 23 May.

Spring tides cluster around new and full moons (biggest swings). Neap tides land on quarter moons (smallest swings). See the spring tide and neap tide glossary entries for the why.

Savusavu sits on the south coast of Vanua Levu, Fiji's second-largest island, in a bay that is the drowned crater of an ancient volcano — the circular geometry that makes it one of the finest deepwater anchorages in the Pacific. Yachts on Pacific crossings have been stopping here for decades; the bay holds a hundred boats without crowding, depth makes anchoring reliable across a wide area, and the town has fuel, water, provisioning, and a Copra Shed Marina with a bar and restaurant that functions as the social centre for the cruising community. For non-sailors Savusavu is quieter and more authentic than the overdeveloped parts of Viti Levu: a single main street with a produce market, Indian shophouses, a municipal dock where the weekly Suva ferry arrives, and the functional evidence of the copra and vanilla economy that drives the rural interior of Vanua Levu. The thermal hot springs on the waterfront are an immediate and genuine curiosity — fissures in the rock beside the road that produce water at 70°C, used by local women to cook rice and dalo by submerging pots directly into the vents. The Savusavu Hot Springs Hotel pipes the water for bathing. The springs are on the shoreline and accessible by anyone walking the waterfront promenade; the cooking use is informal and has been practised for as long as the town has existed. The bay connects to the Koro Sea through the Natewa Bay passage, a deepwater channel between Vanua Levu and Taveuni that produces the tidal exchange driving the offshore diving. The Cousteau diving sites accessible from Savusavu include the wide variety of reef sites in the bay area and the access point to Namena Marine Reserve — a remote island reserve 4 hours south by fast boat, rated consistently among the top five dive destinations in Fiji for hard and soft coral density and pelagic fish life. The passage to Namena requires planning around weather and sea state; the reserve is worth the effort for divers who reach Fiji with the intention of diving rather than just snorkelling. The Pacific tidal regime at Savusavu is semidiurnal, spring range 0.8 to 1.2 m. The bay is deep and sheltered; tidal state matters primarily for reef dive planning and for the current at the Natewa Bay passage entrance, where the ebb runs 0.5 to 1.5 knots and creates the conditions for the stronger current dive sites. The vanilla and copra farms along the road east toward Natewa Bay and the Hibiscus Highway are a practical afternoon drive from town — the vanilla vine plantations on the hillside properties are accessible for guided visits through local arrangements. The weekly Saturday market in Savusavu is the best concentrated view of Vanua Levu's produce, crafts, and community. Predictions on this page come from Open-Meteo Marine (gridded model, ±45 min / ±0.2–0.3 m). The Savusavu waterfront market on Saturday morning is the best concentrated view of Vanua Levu's produce economy: tropical fruit, root crops, fresh fish, and handicrafts from the inland villages. The Copra Shed Marina at the eastern end of the waterfront is the social hub for the cruising community; the bar is open in the evenings and serves as the information exchange for yachts planning passages to Taveuni, the outer islands, or across to Viti Levu. The weekly Wednesday potluck dinner at the marina is open to visitors and is the most reliable way to meet long-haul Pacific sailors. The Natewa Peninsula to the north provides shelter from the southeast trade winds, making Savusavu Bay a year-round anchorage that fills with cruising yachts between April and October. The Copra Shed Marina at the head of the bay handles vessels up to 18 m; the berth depths are sufficient at all tides for vessels drawing up to 2.2 m, but the marina advises a high-water arrival for boats over 1.8 m draft. The hot springs at Savusavu waterfront are visible at low tide when the thermal water bubbling through the coral can be seen clearly; at high water the springs are submerged and less obvious. Kayak touring from Savusavu into the network of mangrove creeks behind the town requires a flood tide for entry into the creek mouths, which are blocked by gravel bars at low water. Fishing from the wharf at Savusavu produces best results on the evening flood when juveniles of several reef species move inshore with the rising water.