Watercolour Retreat hosted by Paradise Courses
Where Light Teaches Colour - 7 Days in Savusavu, Fiji
Jun 26 - Jul 03, 2027
Where Light Teaches Colour
Savusavu is a place where light behaves differently. Subtle in the morning, generous in the afternoon, elusive at dusk.
Set in the vibrant stillness of one of Fiji’s spectacular islands, this retreat explores how light reveals, conceals and transforms colour. From dawn to dusk, participants will study how atmosphere bends hue, how reflected light softens form and how shadow can sing as vividly as sunlight.
We’ll paint by the sea, among palms and beneath fleeting clouds. The turquoise cliché of the tropics will be replaced with subtler harmonies: blues within greens, violets within shadows, golds that dissolve into crimsons.
“Colour is not what we see, it’s how we are seen by light.”
“As painters, we’re always searching for places that invite us to slow down and truly observe. Savusavu offered exactly that—a peaceful corner of Fiji where dramatic light, colourful landscapes, welcoming people and everyday village life all encouraged us to see more deeply and just be, more fully. It was an unforgettable week of wonder, wander and watercolour, and I can’t wait to do it again next year.”
— Rehann
What You’'ll Learn
Instead of treating watercolour as “one skill,” we break it into distinct, learnable parts. These micro-skills are anchored throughout the Fiji landscape and taught through
Live demonstrations
Plein Air Painting
Guided sessions
Personalised one-on-one feedback.
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Big shapes, placement, horizon, focal point
Simplifying complex scenes
What to leave out
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Organising the painting through light, mid, dark
Learning tonal hierarchies
Painting Fiji’s strong light without losing subtlety
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Learn the foundations of the colour wheel
Explore warm vs. cool temperature relationships
Discover harmonious color combinations
Use limited palettes to create more colours
Practice mixing neutrals for subtlety and softness
Build your core “colour vocabulary” for the rest of the retreat
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Proportion and perspective (light-touch)
Contour and big-shape accuracy
Using drawing as foundation, not detail
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Timing (wet, damp, dry)
Types of washes: flat, graded, variegated
Consistency: tea / milk / cream / butter
Understanding humidity as a collaborator
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Large expressive shapes
Calligraphic lines
Edge control: soft, lost, hard
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Use warm–cool contrast to create radiance and depth
Learn how chromatic grays add atmosphere and mood
Layer colours to create luminous transitions
Combine neutrals and saturated hues for balance
Apply temperature shifts to evoke dawn, dusk and reef hues
Create paintings that GLOW, where colour and light work together, something more than just pigment on paper.
Itinerary
Each day has a 3-hour workshop in the morning.
In the afternoon, we have a mixture of excursions to take you out to see some of the surrounding landscapes and places of beauty, and free time for relaxation or continuing to paint at your own pace.
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6.00 pm Welcome kava ceremony
7.00 pm Dinner
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9.00 am – 12.30 pm Workshop. On this first morning we will be in the yoga platform at Daku resort, a stunning open sided space that also serves as an inspiring art studio with its views over the resort gardens and out into the bay and the mountains beyond.
1.00 pm Lunch
Afternoon: Free time
7.30 pm Dinner
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9.00 am – 12.00 pm Workshop: Under the raintree near JeanMichel Cousteau Resort. This is a 10 minute drive down the coast, a lovely shady spot beside the beach. The views in one direction look over the jetty at the resort, and in the other at the palm-fringed coastline – or there’s the ocean view with the odd boat at anchor and the ever changing tide at your feet. At low tide you can take your easel onto the beach; at high tide you will sit under the raintree. We bring chairs for you.)
1.00 pm Lunch
2.00 Handicraft display and tapa making demonstration: some of the local women will come to display and sell their jewellery. One of them will give a demonstration of making tapa – the decorated Fijian bark cloth.
Afternoon: Trip to Savusavu Town to see local market and shop. Savusavu town is a mileaway – 5 minutes in a taxi. We will send you in by taxi and then leave you to wander round and make your own way back by taxi – it’s FJ$4 (US$2).
7.00 pm Dinner
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9.00 am – 12.00 pm Workshop: Savusavu harbour. We go into town (5 minutes drive) to one of the yacht marinas to paint the boats and the island across the harbor channel. The Copra Shed Marina has pleasant gardens and a nice café where you can buy coffee; the Waitui Marina is nore rustic but has some gorgeous views. We’ll make a decision on the day depending on weather / group interests.
1.00 lunch
4.30 pm Trip to local village and see the traditional meke dance performed with an entrancing energy by the villagers.
7.00 pm Dinner
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9.00 am – 1.00 pm Workshop: We drive up to Urata lookout café (approx. 20 minutes), a notable local feature with unparalleled views over Savusavu Bay. The café has been built as a joint project between the Rotary Club of Savusavu and the landowning mataqali (clan) of Urata village. The views are stunning, the coffe is great – and the painting opportunities are challenging! (but rewarding) After that, we drive on to Vuadomo waterfall, a beautiful natural fall full of painting opportunities –and a place where you can plunge in to swim in the cool waters of the pool beneath the waterfall.
1.00 pm Lunch
Free afternoon
7.00 pm Dinner
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9.00 am Workshop: Picnic Lunch and swimming at Buli Kula beach. This venue is a 20 minute drive down the Hibiscus Highway and has beautiful coastal views. If the tide is high, you’ll be able to swim and snorkel.
Return to Daku approx. 3.00
7.00 pm Dinner
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9.00 am – 12.30 pm Workshop. Final morning which we leave unscheduled: we might go back into town, or find a new spot that has caught your attention – or just stay in Daku finishing off the paintings you have been working on during the week.
Afternoon: Free
5.00 pm Informal group show and critique.
7.00 pm Final Fijian dinner
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Fly from Savusavu back to Nadi International flight home.
Where You’ll Stay
Your home is Daku Resort — cottages and hillside villas overlooking the quiet, luminous bay. Local meals, warm hospitality and a landscape that teaches by simply existing.
Book Your Spot
Dates: Jun 26 - Jul 03, 2027
Location: Savusavu, Fiji
Includes: All meals, accommodation, local transfers
Level: Open to artists at all levels who want to grow their technique and confidence. Beginners will discover watercolour essentials; experienced painters will push into greater boldness and paint more like yourself.
View Accommodation & Booking Details
