Survivor: David vs. Goliath is back on the small screens and as the weather is cooling down in the United States with winter approaching, viewers may be dreaming their way to the warm location where Survivor is filmed. But where is this magical place, where the cast members are fighting it out for immunity?
Survivor: David vs. Goliath is filmed on the Mamanuca Islands, which are part of Fiji. The islands are a volcanic cluster located west of Nadi and south to the Yasawa Islands. The entire cluster of islands is located west of Fiji.
As seen on Survivor, the islands have white sandy beaches, warm turquoise water, and coconut palm trees. Other than Survivor, the Mamanuca Islands have also been the backdrop for Tom Hanks’ film, Cast Away.
In case you aren’t sure where the Mamanuca Islands are, we have provided two maps below. The islands are located west of Fiji, the land seen on the map below.
And if you aren’t sure where Fiji is, it’s located east of Australia, appearing like a tiny island compared to Australia.
There are three languages on the Mamanuca Islands islands. The locals of the islands and Fiji speak Fiji Hindi, Fijian, and English. However, there are several minority languages spoken by small sections of the Fijian population, including Rotuman, the Austronesian language, and different Indian languages, including, Gujarati, Punjabi, Tamil, and Telugu. You may also be able to find small groups of people speaking Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese Chinese, and Polynesian languages.
While there is no record of how many people actually live on the Mamanuca Islands islands, the entire population of Fiji, including the islands, is roughly 850,000 and you will find people living on 100 of the current 332 islands.
The islands are often used for tourism, which is also one of the primary industries. The islands are also known for sugar planting as well.
The capital of Fiji is Suva, which is also the largest city located on the eastern part of Fiji. The currency is the Fijian dollar, and currently, the Fijian dollar is about 0.47 cents USD.
If you want to visit the Mamanuca Islands, you can fly to the Nadi airport located in Fiji and you can see the islands from the mainland. You can then head out to the islands via a boat, seaplane or helicopter. Tourists enjoy water sports, including snorkeling and diving while visiting the Fijian paradise.
This season of Survivor isn’t the first that has been filmed on the Mamanuca Islands. In fact, the show began filming there for the 33rd season and continued for the 34th, 35th, and the 36th season.
Host Jeff Probst told Entertainment Weekly that he loves the location and he finds the Mamanuca Islands is the optimal location for the show and he would like to stay there permanently.
Survivor: David vs. Goliath airs on Wednesdays at 8/7c on CBS.