It depends almost entirely on where you are staying and what you plan to do. Here is how to decide before you pay for something you will leave parked.
If you are at a Denarau resort for a few days, doing organised day trips and eating where you sleep, a car will sit unused. Resort shuttles and taxis cover it, and parking is somebody else’s problem.
The same is true of a short stopover. For one or two nights near the airport, a transfer in and out is simpler than paperwork and a fuel policy.
Staying a week or more, staying outside the resort strip, travelling as a family, or wanting to reach the Coral Coast, Lautoka, the Sabeto valley or the Sleeping Giant on your own schedule — that is when a vehicle stops being a cost and starts being the thing that makes the trip yours.
It also changes the economics of eating. With a car you shop at the market and cook in a self-contained apartment. Without one you eat out three times a day, which is usually the larger number.
Taxis are plentiful and cheap by international standards. Agree the fare first; this is normal and not a sign of anything going wrong. For short hops around Nadi they are genuinely convenient.
Buses are inexpensive and used by everybody, but routes and timings reward local knowledge, and they are impractical with luggage, small children, or after dark. Treat them as a way to travel rather than a way to get somewhere on time.
Fiji drives on the left. Most visitors from Australia, New Zealand and the UK will find that familiar. Speeds are low, roads through town are busy, and rural roads can be rough — potholes and speed humps in unexpected places are the norm rather than the exception.
Sealed main roads between Nadi, Lautoka and the Coral Coast are fine in an ordinary car. If you plan to head inland or up unsealed roads, that is when higher clearance earns its keep.
Bring your home licence. Drive to the conditions rather than the speed limit, and avoid long unfamiliar drives at night.
Match the vehicle to the group, not to the daydream. Two people doing beaches and restaurants need a small car. Five people with luggage need a van, and will regret a sedan within an hour of landing.
Book earlier than feels necessary in peak season. Nadi has a limited fleet overall, and anything that seats more than five goes first.
Not if you are staying at a resort for a few days and doing organised trips. Yes, if you are staying a week or more, travelling as a family, staying outside the resort strip, or want to explore the west of Viti Levu on your own schedule.
The left, as in Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Your home licence is accepted for visitors.
Not for sealed roads between Nadi, Lautoka and the Coral Coast. Higher clearance is worth it if you plan to drive inland or on unsealed roads.
They are inexpensive by international standards. Agree the fare before you set off rather than relying on a meter.