Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji Becomes a Culinary Hotspot

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji appoints Australian chef Shaun Thomson as Executive Chef, putting food, local producers and the largely undiscovered island of Vanua Levu at the center of its next chapter

SAVUSAVU, Fiji — Fiji has never had much difficulty convincing travelers to come for its turquoise lagoons, coral reefs and famously warm hospitality. But on the country’s less-traveled second-largest island, one luxury resort is making the argument that visitors should come hungry, too.

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji, overlooking Savusavu Bay on the island of Vanua Levu, has appointed acclaimed Australian chef Shaun Thomson as Executive Chef following a multi-million-dollar resort-wide renewal and reopening in April 2026.

The appointment could help reposition the celebrated eco-luxury retreat as one of Fiji’s most interesting culinary resort destinations — particularly for international travelers increasingly interested in knowing where their dinner comes from rather than simply how many stars their hotel has.

Thomson brings more than 19 years of experience across Australia, Fiji, Bali and the wider Asia-Pacific region. His résumé includes Rockpool Bar & Grill, Flying Fish Fiji, Kokomo Private Island and The Ungasan Clifftop Resort. More importantly for travelers, he already knows Fiji.

Thomson worked with some of the region’s best-known culinary names, including Australian restaurateur and chef Neil Perry at Rockpool Bar & Grill, Peter Kuruvita at Flying Fish Fiji and Cory Campbell at Kokomo Private Island.

Now, instead of importing a generic international fine-dining concept into the South Pacific, Thomson says he wants the destination to determine what appears on the plate.

“My vision is to create dining experiences that are deeply rooted in place,” Thomson said. “Every menu will reflect the rhythms of the seasons and celebrate the produce of Savusavu and the wider Vanua Levu region. From reef to rainforest, sustainability, authenticity and exceptional flavor will be at the heart of everything we do.”

For travelers outside the South Pacific, Fiji can easily be reduced to a postcard image of small islands, white beaches and overwater romance.

The reality is considerably more interesting.

Fiji consists of 333 islands, with most of the population living on Viti Levu, the country’s largest island and home to the capital, Suva, as well as Nadi, the principal gateway for international tourism. Vanua Levu, northeast of Viti Levu, is Fiji’s second-largest island and offers a very different experience.

Savusavu, on Vanua Levu’s southern coast, remains small, green and comparatively removed from Fiji’s busiest tourism corridors. The region is known for diving, reefs, rainforest, waterfalls, volcanic hot springs and a natural harbor that has long attracted yachts.

Getting there also adds to the sense of leaving mainstream Fiji behind. From Nadi, travelers can fly to Savusavu in roughly an hour. For a luxury resort interested in food, that geography is an advantage.

The surrounding sea supplies seafood while Vanua Levu’s tropical landscape produces fruits, vegetables and herbs. Thomson plans to work directly with local farmers, fishermen and artisan producers, building menus around what is available rather than forcing ingredients into a predetermined international menu.

That “reef to rainforest” philosophy could become Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort’s strongest culinary calling card.

Fijian cuisine itself deserves greater international attention.

The country’s food reflects its Indigenous iTaukei traditions alongside the enormous influence of Fiji’s Indo-Fijian population and other Asian and Pacific communities.

A traveler might encounter kokoda — raw fish traditionally prepared with citrus and coconut — alongside food cooked in a lovo earth oven, curries, cassava, dalo, tropical fruit and seafood caught in surrounding Pacific waters.

At its best, contemporary Fijian cooking has an enviable luxury: ingredients that do not need to travel halfway around the world before reaching the kitchen.

That gives Thomson an opportunity to create something increasingly difficult for luxury hotels to manufacture: a genuine sense of place.

Instead of flying in prestige ingredients simply because international guests recognize their names, the resort’s culinary direction is intended to make Savusavu itself the premium ingredient.

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort already has an identity few resorts can replicate.

Set across 17 acres overlooking Savusavu Bay, the property combines thatched-roof bures with diving and marine experiences, Fijian-inspired spa treatments, environmental education and a longstanding emphasis on conservation and community.

Its connection with Jean-Michel Cousteau — ocean explorer, environmentalist and son of legendary French explorer Jacques Cousteau — naturally gives the resort an environmental and marine identity.

Thomson’s appointment makes it possible to carry that philosophy from the reef into the restaurant. Responsible luxury becomes considerably more convincing when conservation, local sourcing, community relationships and the guest’s dinner are part of the same story.

The resort says new dining concepts and immersive culinary experiences will follow as part of its post-renovation evolution. That could prove important in a competitive luxury market.

Fiji welcomed a record 986,367 visitors in 2025, according to the Fiji Bureau of Statistics, with Australia and New Zealand accounting for more than two-thirds of arrivals. For Fiji’s luxury tourism industry, attracting affluent travelers from farther afield — including North America, Europe and Asia — increasingly requires offering more than the conventional sun-and-sea proposition.

Food can be that differentiator.

Calling any hotel “the best” culinary resort is ultimately subjective. But Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort now has an unusually strong combination of ingredients to make a claim for being among Fiji’s most compelling luxury stays for travelers who care seriously about food.

It has an Executive Chef with high-level restaurant and resort experience, an established understanding of Fiji, direct access to exceptional seafood and tropical produce, relationships with local communities and a location sufficiently removed from mass tourism to make destination-driven dining credible rather than cosmetic.

And there is another important distinction.

Luxury here does not have to mean caviar flown across oceans or European ingredients served on a Pacific island. The more interesting definition of luxury may be fish from nearby waters, produce grown on Vanua Levu, an ingredient introduced by the person who cultivated it, and a chef capable of turning those elements into a sophisticated dinner without erasing where they came from.

For international travelers, that may be the most persuasive reason to put Savusavu on the map. Fiji already provides the beach.

Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort increasingly wants to provide a reason to remember what was on the plate.

Getting there: Savusavu is located on Vanua Levu, Fiji’s second-largest island. Domestic flights connect the area with Nadi, Fiji’s main international tourism gateway.

More information: Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji

Reporting originally appeared via eTurboNews. Read the full source for additional context.