Fiji Offers New Surfing Decree

Wade Goodall dropping into a remote Fiji break in the Lau group

On the 30th of June the Fijian government passed the Surfing decree 2010 which will be effective as of the 9th of July. Click here for full details

The decree abolishes current regulations that prohibit surfing on Fijian breaks. This means that surf hot spots like Cloud break, Restaurants and others surrounding breaks are no longer owned and are free to access. It’s great news for both the Fijian and International surfing communities.

The Fijian community will gain needed tourism revenue from the Surfers which in turn will generate employment opportunities, encourage up skilling and help build Fiji’s reputation as a marine and water sports hub in the Pacific. Fijian Surfing president Mr Jon Philp is predicting that surfer numbers will more than triple because of the new decree.  

The Fijian legislation also considers environmental and cultural sustainability practices and declares that the new law will serve the best interest of the community and operators must use best practice.

The international surfing community will have unlimited and unregulated access to the regions prime breaks especially those around Namotu and Tavarua which were previously exclusive to guests alone. Even the locals were only allowed limited access, the previous legislation saw many Fijians only being allowed to surf the break for four hours on Saturdays. A heavy regulation saw that surfing outside of allotted times was greeted with harassment and sometime physical violence by “break owners”.

World Surfaris is currently in talks with operators from nearby regions that will run small groups to the once off limit surf breaks.

Stay in touch for further developments and we look forward to getting you into your Unique Surf Adventure in Fiji – Great News