Fiji lockdown: Economy struggles to stay afloat with rising COVID-19 cases

It's one of Australia's favourite holiday destinations and it was almost ready to open up to us again but now Fiji is in the grip of a dangerous second wave of COVID-19.

The whole country is in lockdown and tourism operators are barely staying afloat.

"It's like a ghost town," Lara Khan, operator of the luxury Naisoso Island Villas near Nadi, told A Current Affair.

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"It's been very sad and very quiet.

"A lot of people are trying to stay hopeful but it's just very uncertain at the moment."

Fiji has had no international tourists for more than a year but were still getting a few local bookings until this devastating second wave kicked in.

READ MORE: Struggling NZ tourism operators counting down days for travel bubble

People from the capital Suva can no longer travel to other parts of the island.

"Suva has gone into lockdown and we have lost all of our bookings 100 per cent of our bookings," Ms Khan said.

The lockdown was sparked as new COVID-19 cases continue to rise beyond 150 per day.

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"It's overwhelming the hospital system in Fiji," Oxfam's Australian-based Humanitarian Manager Josh Hallwright said.

"The virus has got into even the biggest hospital in Suva so it's affecting medical staff.

"People are tired, people are working long shifts and it's spreading through the medical system as much as it is the rest of society."

An emergency tent hospital has been set up in the grounds of the local football stadium to help deal with the crisis.

With quarantine spaces severely strained, some empty hotels are being used as isolation facilities, sparking protests in those communities.

Nadi is usually the backbone of the economy, with tourism creating almost 40 per cent of the nation's GDP.

But empty bars and desolate beaches reveal the true impact of life without global travel.

With no JobKeeper equivalent to keep food on the table, laid-off workers are draining their retirement funds to find a way to survive.

"People are afraid of the virus but people are also afraid of starving," Ms Khan said.

"They're bartering their clothes in exchange for baby milk and food."

The Australian government is now sending aid along with vaccines to help Fiji deal with its current emergency.

Until this latest outbreak, Fiji had been on track to join a travel bubble with Australia and New Zealand to open up quarantine-free flights once again.

Quentin Long from Australian Traveller Media believes Fiji should be an immediate priority to join the bubble once it controls the current outbreak.

"Fiji should def (sic) be our next travel bubble and not Singapore," Mr Long said.

"They so need our help, it's a great destination, Australians love going there, there's so much to do.

"It's that tropical paradise."

Ms Khan said opening up tourism again is the only sustainable way forward for the country.

"We're relying on aid from different countries but we know aid is not sustainable so the only way to get us back on our feet is to get tourism back," she said.

Vaccination could be Fiji's ticket to opening up once again, with 40 per cent of the nation vaccinated, a faster rollout than Australia.

Oxfam is running an emergency appeal to help a number of countries fighting COVID-19 outbreaks.

You can donate by visiting: https://www.oxfam.org.au/coronavirus