Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course — Local services in Western

I played there yesterday. My expectations were apparently far too high for what some bill as the “best course in the South Pacific.” As for the positives, the views were grand and the greens were in good shape. The layout was interesting with most of the course running along the coast and a few holes cutting through the mountains with drastic elevation drops from tee to fairway. Pace of play was average, but there was no organization from a starter. On the downside, the facilities were nowhere close to those of other fine resort courses I have played (El Cameleon in Mexico and the Four Seasons course in Guanacaste, Costa Rica are both distinctly nicer courses in all aspects). Most disappointing were the rental clubs we paid to use. They were an older Srixon set with a rusty shafted Cleveland putter, and they were all beat up and in desperate need of new grips. It’s worth mentioning the golf bags were completely tattered and looked worse than anything you would find at a thrift store because, although it didn’t impact my play, it did contribute to overall dilapidated conditions throughout the entire course. An on-course toilet building sans door also comes to mind. The electric cart lacked a GPS system that has become standard at most upscale resort courses. There were some sprinkler heads marked with distances, but we were often left guessing. This did not help us as we struggled to play the challenging course with hard-to-hit greens and unforgiving fairways lines with thick ball devouring tropical brush. In case you do choose to play this course, there are families of locals positioned along the cart paths who will sell you found balls for $2 each. Overall, for about $110, this course was not a bad value, but for golfers of average ability, it is probably worth checking out Denarau instead. If you are staying at the IHG Intercontinental and this course is convenient for you to play, just adjust your expectations and try to focus more on the views...

The golf itself was spectacular, and the course was the finest I’ve played, challenging and expertly maintained. However, the service and lack of help from the staff was dismal to say the least. No one had any clue about the rates, either the ones listed on their website or the rate sheet in front of them. When asked about the course record, I was confronted with a blank stare. It was as if no one had any clue about the game of golf. The real problem was the hour and 15 minutes it took to handle a simple check in for the tee time I’d booked by phone. Finally I asked to speak to a manager, and was met with indifference and a passing of blame to the local staff. I was told that it was difficult to train staff, which is strange because I’ve always experienced great service at all the top end facilities anywhere I’ve gone in Fiji. I suspect that it’s easy to get away with poor service when you have little competition. This review won’t stop anyone from playing the course and maybe it shouldn’t, it’s such a beautiful place to play golf, but I believe that it was sad that no one cared or offered any apology for a lack of pride or basic service. What could have been a perfect morning has been sullied by what appear to be an utter lack of care and appears to be about collecting money at whatever cost. Glad I played, but would think twice about...

Wow what an experience.

Amazing price as well. Play it multiple times!

Breathtaking views (ocean views on 15/18 holes), tons of elevation change, awesome challenging design as I was also told was mostly/ originally from the mind of the legend Vijay Singh, and really nice service by the staff.

Unless you are a scratch golfer (and maybe still if you play tips) I’d definitely say you will need to make sure you are stocked up on balls, luckily some locals will sell you some recycles on the course! They already know you’re going OB.

6700yds from the blues was plenty of a challenge for me at a 8-10 handicap.

Unforgettable rounds. The wind was certainly a challenge on certain holes.

Rented some nice callaways, one year old.

Tee boxes were good, fairways in good shape (8.5/10) and greens were the only thing I wish was better. Very very very slow. But being an island course you have to keep grass a bit longer.

Cliff notes: one of a kind views, great price, course in good shape, greens could be a lot better.

I’ve played over 80 courses in my 32 years of life and this is top 3! Up there with a couple TPC...