Went there on honeymoon 10 years ago. (Sheesh, 10 already). We stayed on the east side of the main island (Viti Levu?) which seemed to be the wetter side of the island. The better weather was on the west side, back towards the airport.
Flew with Qantas from SYD, then onto LAX. Great. Take a MasterCard as Visa not widely accepted there.
Take a boat trip out to one of the islands for a day or at least try and find your way to Natandola beach - quite hard to find but worth the trek.
Seriously friendly people and blokes in kilts. Pay as much as you can afford for the hotel. Try the Sheraton.
Hope this helps!