The archipelago in a nutshell
The small, paradisiacal islands of Micronesia, just north of the equator and east of the Philippines, are like green emeralds in a turquoise sea. We’ve been there twice but definitely want to go again.
Palau
The first time was in early spring, flying directly from Manila in the Philippines to Koror in Palau, an island that strictly speaking is not part of Micronesia but belongs to the Caroline Islands group. Palau consists of more than 340 heavily forested islands. Most of these are uninhabited.
The largest island is Babeldaob, which is of volcanic origin. Here, besides jungle, you’ll find a large waterfall that makes the long hike along wildly swirling streams more than worth the effort. Many other islands consist largely of limestone and coral. In our experience, Palau is not the idyllic bounty island with large, pearly white sandy beaches and coconut palms, but it is a tropical surprise that should definitely not be missing from your itinerary when visiting the islands of Micronesia/the Carolines.
The second time we travelled to Micronesia was in winter. We then used an air pass where we first flew from Guam to Kosrae, and from there on to Chuuk, Pohnpei and back to Guam.
Kosrae
Kosrae is a not too large, beautifully green, mountainous island where you can dive well. The island features white sandy beaches, palm trees, mangroves, many bird species and butterflies, tropical rainforest and lush riverbeds. If you’re there around Christmas at the right moment, don’t miss the Christmas celebration. From far and wide, most people return to their native land once every four years to participate in marches, dressed up in the colours of their village, starting as early as 1 November. After the mass, roast pigs, glistening with fat, await you.
Chuuk
Chuuk, formerly known as Truk, is the most populous country within Micronesia. We stayed on the largest island, namely Weno. The islands of Chuuk lie in a circle around a sort of inland sea measuring 80 by 50 kilometres. During World War II, Chuuk was an important base for the Japanese fleet. Many Japanese naval and merchant ships often lay in the inland sea. In February 1944, the Americans carried out a three-day attack, which ultimately left ‘only’ 60 ships lying on the seabed, with their cargo still on board. It is these wrecks that form the highlight of Chuuk for divers.
Pohnpei
Pohnpei, formerly called Ponape, consists of 163 islands and has a fully forested, volcanic and rugged landscape. The islands are particularly known for the archaeological site Nan Madol, which is on UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage list. Nan Madol is a ruined city consisting of a number of small, artificial islands connected by canals. On the islands, you’ll find stacked basalt blocks weighing more than a tonne. The origin of the blocks has not yet been determined.
We visited the city by kayak. After the visit, you can snorkel there to cool off from the hot sun! Even if visiting such world heritage sites isn’t entirely your thing, a visit to Pohnpei should not be missing from your tour of Micronesia thanks to the beauty of the island. Divers among us will also get their fill here.
Yap
Next time, we would very much like to visit the island of Yap, an island known for its ‘rai’: large stone coins up to three metres in diameter. The coins were so large and heavy that no one could steal them and thus remained in the same place. They did change owners during a transaction. Just like with bitcoins, there were witnesses to confirm the transaction. The island is particularly known among divers for its many manta rays.
We want to combine a visit to Yap with beautiful Palau, perhaps also out of nostalgia because my wife and I said ‘I do’ to each other underwater there a long time ago. This page will then of course be supplemented with more information about the island, the highlights and practical information.
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Accommodation
Staying on the islands is not cheap. But by searching carefully on booking sites like Booking.com or Airbnb, you often find decent offers. Expect to pay about 30 to 120 euros per night.
Travel advice for Micronesia and Palau
Check the current travel advice on gov.uk for Micronesia and Palau. Our addition: when we were on Chuuk, it was fairly unsettled. Due to the high crime rate on the main island, our hotel was guarded 24 hours a day at the gate. Even on New Year’s Eve, the evening when everyone (including the hotel staff) goes home to toast to the new year.
Healthcare in Micronesia and Palau
More information about which vaccinations are mandatory or recommended, and whether malaria occurs, can be found on the CDC website.
Best travel time
On most islands of Micronesia, there is hardly any good or bad season. The temperatures are virtually the same every month. The islands are particularly green and for good reason: the average rainfall is extremely high at 3000 to over 8000 mm per year. Generally, you have slightly less rain and slightly more sun in the months of January to March than in the other months of the year.
Visa
If you hold a European passport, you don’t need a visa. If you’re travelling on to another country, you may need a visa for that country. You can easily check this on the ivisa.com website. The experts can help you quickly with applying for the necessary visas if needed.
Food and drinks
Micronesian cuisine mainly consists of chicken, pork and fish. In restaurants, especially at resorts, you’ll usually find international cuisine as well. The national drink of Micronesia is Kava (also known as Sakau). It is often drunk in social settings due to its calming and aphrodisiac properties. The Jellinek website strongly advises against consumption. In the Netherlands, it is even prohibited. The only alcoholic refreshment we consumed in that region was beer.
Getting around in Micronesia and Palau
As the distances between the islands are large, we advise buying an air pass that allows you to take a number of one-way flights at a reasonable rate. For Micronesia, an air pass can be purchased through Star Alliance. But also check the rates of the individual coupons of this air pass because booking separate one-way flights with Nauru Airlines or the smaller Caroline Islands Air might be cheaper! By the way, if you have all the time in the world, sailing is a beautiful but pricey alternative.
Once at your destination, the boat is often the best means of travel. The way to travel to the famous Rock Islands in Palau, for example, is to book an excursion with a water sports centre, such as a diving centre or a kayak rental company. This also applies to most other islands of Micronesia. On most islands, you can also rent a car, take a taxi, or – even better – rent a bike!
Elektricity
The mains voltage is 120 V with a frequency of 60 Hz. In Micronesia, the sockets are type A and B. You need a power plug adapter when living in the UK or Ireland.
Money matters
In Micronesia, payments are made in US dollars.
Do’s and Don’ts
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Highlights
Active
The islands offer plenty of active opportunities, such as diving, kayaking, hiking, swimming and snorkelling. Below are some of the active highlights. We dedicate a short blog to a few of them.
Pohnpei
Kayaking at Nan Madol
There are many locations on Pohnpei where you can kayak well. The ruined city of Nan Madol (UNESCO World Heritage site) is perhaps the most special location. Wherever you go on the water, you need a permit for most locations!
Hiking
Almost the entire population lives close to the coast. As a result, the interior is rugged and little to undeveloped. Despite the many hikes you can undertake there, they are not easy and usually difficult to find and follow. It’s best to take a guide. Or download a (free) GPS hiking map and then go for a walk with your mobile.
Perhaps one of the most interesting hikes is the one to the six waterfalls. Take plenty of food and drink with you here as you’ll be out for a long time. And wear shoes that won’t easily slip on the sometimes slippery stones.
Diving with manta rays
Pohnpei is little known as a diving destination. Unjustly, in our opinion. The island offers many beautiful dive sites. And the 11 protected marine nature parks ensure quality and preservation of the underwater world. Like Yap, Pohnpei also has dive sites where you are almost guaranteed to see manta rays.
Mountain biking
Many cycling routes have been set out on the islands of Pohnpei, ranging from easy to very strenuous. Something for everyone. You don’t really have bike rental companies here like we have on the Wadden Islands, for example. However, many ex-pats in the capital Kolonia offer their bikes for rent. Another option is to buy a bike for around 100 to 150 dollars and sell it again at the end of your cycling adventures on Pohnpei.
Palau
Snorkelling
You’ll find the most popular snorkelling spots at the Rock Islands. They can only be reached by boat. The small limestone islands are on the World Heritage list and are covered with jungle and surrounded by shallow coral reefs. In addition to the many beautiful snorkelling opportunities at these small islands, there are two more snorkelling spots that are more than worth it if you’re in Palau, namely Clam City and Jellyfish Lake. At the first, you can encounter particularly large giant clams sometimes weighing more than 100 kilos! The jellyfish lake is also a special spot. The jellyfish don’t sting (or hardly at all). According to many travel blogs, it’s a real highlight; however, we didn’t do this.
Scuba diving
Most people who visit Palau come to dive. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Palau’s rich flora and fauna contains about 400 species of hard corals, 300 species of soft corals, 1400 species of reef fish, 7 of the 9 species of giant clams, thousands of other invertebrate species, dugongs (a type of sea cow) and the only saltwater crocodiles in Micronesia.
The following dive sites are consistently mentioned by avid divers as the most beautiful in Palau: Blue Corner, Blue Holes, German Channel, Chandelier Cave and Peleliu Wall. You’ll also find a number of World War II wrecks that are certainly worth visiting.
Kayaking
We didn’t do this ourselves but heard good stories about it from others (50+). You can participate in kayak excursions that you do with a (large) group but also rent a kayak for a few days and set out on your own with a tent and all. If you want to visit the really special places with your kayak, the advice is to hire a guide.
Chuuk
Diving in Truk Lagoon
This was the main reason for us to go to Chuuk, and also one of the destinations that had been on our bucket list for a long time. Reason? Sixty beautifully preserved wrecks from World War II where virtually everything is still on board. Think of tanks, cars, fighter planes, trucks, gas masks, etc. We also found an operating room on one of the wrecks where the table showed not a bit of rust. Diving on the wrecks exceeded all our expectations!
To be able to dive on the wrecks, extensive (deep) diving experience is not a luxury. The wrecks are quite deep but are quite accessible. However, the dive centres are not very strict with the certification requirements. Fortunately, the decompression stops are well arranged and during the second dive of the day, you can dive with enriched air.
Snorkelling
Some wrecks, including that of a Japanese fighter plane, can also be reached by snorkelling or freediving. Some resorts offer snorkelling trips to these wrecks.
Kosrae
Diving
Kosrae has some beautiful dive sites. The nice thing about the island is that you’re almost the only one there. It’s not as spectacular as Chuuk or Palau but definitely worth it thanks to the quality of the coral reefs.
Sailing with an outrigger canoe
What we unfortunately didn’t do when we were on Kosrae is a boat trip with an outrigger canoe through the mangroves of the Utwe/Walung Marine Reserve, the first reserve in Oceania to be listed by UNESCO. The trip is organised by various providers.
Culture
Cultural elements that the islands of Micronesia have in common are sailing with an outrigger canoe, climbing a coconut palm, and preparing pigs and eating pork fat. But also utilising everything a coconut palm has to offer, such as the leaves as roofing for a hut, the fibres around the nut to weave a mat and of course eating and drinking from the coconut.
Chuuk
We didn’t really soak up culture on Chuuk. However, we did attend a traditional wedding on the grounds of our hotel. It was special that we were specifically asked for this. First the ceremony, then the feast. For this, many pigs rotate on the spit that the bride and groom were allowed to receive alive from the family just before the wedding.
According to tradition, the fat is particularly consumed because you can live on this fat for a long time in times when there is little meat available. Now that we’re talking about culture and weddings: on Chuuk, it also seems to be tradition that as a young man you make two identical wooden sticks and shape them. He puts the shortest stick in his own hair, he must try to put the longest in the hair of the woman he likes. If the woman accepts the stick, it’s a celebration, if not then she is not interested in that man.
Kosrae
For us, the most special cultural event on Kosrae was the celebration of Christmas. We’ve dedicated a separate blog to it. See below.
Pohnpei
On the east coast of Pohnpei lies the ancient city of Nan Madol. The city is considered one of the greatest archaeological wonders of the world. That’s why we’ve dedicated a separate blog to it.
Nature
All islands are true gems when it comes to nature. This applies both underwater and above water. In summary, you’ll find turquoise waters, pearly white sandy beaches and – in the interior – jungle with waterfalls.
On the largest island of Palau, hiking is excellent. The jungle is beautiful, as is the waterfall where one of the hikes ends. But what Palau is most famous for in terms of nature are the Rock Islands. In most travel brochures and blogs, you see an aerial photo of these small, round, particularly green islands.
The islands of Pohnpei and Kosrae are somewhat similar. Both have mountains with steep, particularly green mountain ridges. Personally, I think this is the Pacific at its best. If you’re on Kosrae, be sure to visit the Utwe/Walung Marine Reserve. For Pohnpei, the tip is to stay at the Silent eco resort, or at least come and have a look. This resort is located higher up on the hill, treating you to an incredibly beautiful view of the lagoon.
