Hamilton man lands dream job

Some times dreams do come true. Just ask Travis Donoghue.

The 22-year-old Hamilton man is packing his bags and heading to Fiji tomorrow to start his dream job.

The former Hamilton Boys' High School student is off to take up a position managing the new spin-off of a tribal living tourism venture called Tribewanted: Vorovoro.

The venture, which focuses on tribal living, was set up on Vorovoro island by English duo Ben Keene and Mark James three years ago.

Their plan was that tourists not only pay to holiday on Vorovoro but make a contribution to the eco-friendly island and the community in northern Fiji. People are also able to become part of an on-line community and thousands of members from 35 countries have joined the Tribewanted social network.

As a boy Mr Donoghue said he had dreamed of doing this sort of thing. At the time the Waikato Times reported Mr Donoghue dreamed of creating an island where people could hunt for buried treasure. The island life project he envisaged as a 15-year-old never eventuated but his passion for a different kind of tourism experience never went away.

And it still hasn't.

When he heard about the project being set up he contacted the pair and begged to be involved. Three years ago he was there at the launch.

He has been back once since then for a visit and has kept in touch with Mr Keene and Mr James. When this job came up, he jumped at it.

He hopes to attract more Kiwis to visit as at the moment the tribal living island tends to attract largely Britons and Americans.

Vorovoro is a 81-hectare castaway island, surrounded by reefs, lined with golden sand, and covered in jungle.

The two Englishmen lease 8ha from the local chief and sell it as timeshare with a difference. Over the last three years it has been developed as an evolving island community and now boasts basic but comfortable facilities now even including internet connection.

Over that time it has attracted international media attention including in National Geographic Adventure and in a six-part BBC documentary.

As for the current political situation in Fiji, Mr Donoghue said he was not concerned as he would be tucked away in the northeast of Vanua Levu, Fiji's second largest island, where life went on as normal.

To get to Vorovoro he has to fly in to Nadi International Airport from Auckland, catch a smaller plane to Labasa, the largest town on Vanua Levu and the closest to Vorovoro. From there it is a 40-minute bus and boat ride to get to the island.

Mr Donoghue, who helped organise the Waikato student-led car rally the Hori 440, has just finished a season guiding on the Milford Track.

"I haven't been to uni yet but I will get there ... even if it's just studying part-time." But he said at the moment he was doing what he wanted to and having a blast. The initial six-month stint will see Mr Donoghue setting up and marketing Vitika, an eight-day adventure around northeast Fiji. Vitika takes the Vorovoro experience to the road on a slow, traditional journey using local transport and on foot with equal emphasis on culture and the environments that the group pass through.

He said he would access how things were going at the end of the six months. At the moment he has more important things on his mind, such as how many pairs of shorts he should pack.

For more information check out www.tribewanted.com

- © Fairfax NZ News