ainternational

Greetings, folks. I'm looking for recommendations on Palau, already knowing that there don't seem to be many obvious options. Actually, I haven't found one place yet that looks even remotely decent.

I'd be willing to consider hotels of course, but also private villas or home rentals, preferably with staff. Having never been to the island before, I'm not sure the environment is setup to provide these levels of service.

If anyone has any experience or thoughts, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Kagehitokiri

Pausanias

The Palau Pacific Resort is quite old now but I reckon it's the best option in Palau, mainly because of its fantastic location on the best (and only) beach on the main island. The beach is actually man-made but offers perfect swimming and then amazing snorkelling the further out you get. The hotel was popular with Japanese which meant it was very quiet (many guest go out on day-long diving trips) and the restaurant offered Japanese-style buffets. The rooms are not luxury in the terms of this Forum and are more four-star, even upper level three-star.

We went into Koror once, did a hike from the resort and did two fantastic trips to the Rock Islands which are the star attraction here. This is a beautiful chain of tiny islands, limestone outcrops, which shelter beaches and wonderful coral gardens. There is also a famous fresh water lake in the middle of one of these islands which is home to millions of harmless jellyfish which provide an unusual snorkelling experience. I felt I could live without that. There is quite a bit of WWII wreckage lying about, including a Jap plane in shallow water.

An interesting place for a week we thought with arguably the best snorkelling ever.

eyal

Does any one know the status of things in Palau following Super Typhoon Haiyan? Will it be ok to travel there in April '14?

SkyTeam777

How far is the PPR from the airport? I am assuming taxis are quite expensive unless they offer airport transfers. Also, how do hotels handle early morning flights. My flight from ICN would arrive at 4am so am debating choosing that option. Any other respectable hotel options near the airport and on the beach?

Loran

I stayed at the PPR in February. Many flights arrive and depart in the middle of the night, so logistics aren't a problem. It's about a 30 minute drive.

My room was booked through a group, and it included shared airport transport straight to PPR which otherwise would have been about $20. There was a 5-10 minute wait once I was ready to leave before the one other passenger had his luggage.

Going back to airport the shared van left the hotel 3 hours before flight time (way too early), so I took a taxi. I think it was in the $30-40 range. PPR had coffee and pastries out even though I left in the middle of the night.

PPR is probably going to be your best bet. It's not up to the usual standards of hotels discussed on this forum but overall is a nice tropical property. I didn't see any hotels near the airport. I drove by some hotels on Malakal Island; they weren't on the beach, and that area had an industrial feel to it.

Mickidon

We are looking into Palau....looks like PPR is still the best option, correct?
One of our family members is not a diver - will it be too dreary? In the past, it's been fine
in places like Amanpulo, Maldives, and GBR but are the hotel facilities and snorkeling and
any land based sites enough, or should we bag this idea?

Travellin_man

Approx nine individual bungalows on a hillside partly overlooking the PPR. Breakfast and very limited other food options. They have an airport shuttle, but I'd rent a car, which also lets you explore the big island.

Really a lovely place, and sort of the complete opposite of the PPR.

Most of the other hotels are on the downtown strip or near the docks, and are really nothing special.

obscure2k

As the properties being discussed are not in the luxury category, I am moving this thread to the FT Oceania Forum.
Obscure2k
Moderator
Luxury Hotels and Travel

Antonio8069

I visited Palau - based on FT advice - after completing the Island Hopper. It was an inspiring place - protected by environmental requirements, visas, etc. Historically, it was one of the last outposts to surrender following WW II.
Now, Palau is in the news again - defying Chinas one China policy. Hats off to Palau............another recent to visit this tiny, perfect country.

RustyC

Am not sure they're doing it out of principle, but rather because Taiwan offered 'em aid?

Being a small island country with little in the way of resources has got to be a bit wacky as far as finding outside revenue sources when tourism isn't enough by itself. You can print 3-dollar bills like the Cook Islands, or all types of stamps (Princess Di used to be a fave for collectible bait, and I have the ones from the Seychelles with Wills & Kate).

Micronesia sold web domains with the .fm suffix, and I think Tuvalu had the .tv one.

You could host ships with nukes but that tends to get people upset, unless you're bound by treaty to do so.

And the PRC and Taiwan have been fighting the recognition battles. Though back during the Cold War the most clever countries would play coy and try to get aid from BOTH the US and USSR.

rtgta

Since you bought this up, .tv domain saies account for ~40% of Tuvalu's GDP, IIRC.