Suva

The cosmopolitan capital of the South Pacific is set on a hilly peninsula at the southeastern end of Viti Levu. Its residents are a mix of Fijians, Indo-Fijians, and expats from Australia, New Zealand, and Asia who are drawn to the capital by government jobs, business opportunities, and institutions such as the Fiji Institute of Technology and the largest branch of the University of the South Pacific. The constant influx of jovial tourists and imposing cargo ships gives the capital a sense of motion and self-involvement not found elsewhere in Fiji. Pleasant views across Suva Harbour back to the curved green peaks of the mainland underscore it being set apart. Suva is a great place to formally discover the local culture through its museum and government buildings, and to alternately experience and escape urban Fijian life through its many restaurants, stores, calm waterfront, and verdant rain-forest park.