Photo Slideshow: Palau

The Republic of Palau may be my new stereotypical tropical paradise. It has beaches, SCUBA, adventure sports, and plenty of trees to tie a hammock to at the end of the day. What more do you need really?

Oh, right, rusty World War II heritage disintegrating back into the jungle and thousands of stingless jellyfish just waiting to be snorkeled through on a bright summer day. Got that, too.

All hyperbole aside, Palau has legitimately been one of the most impressive tropical landscapes I’ve been lucky enough to explore. As (I hope) these photos show, it has a little bit of everything. In the Rock Islands you can kayak for days unsupported, do some really impressive SCUBA Diving (and I say this having trained in the Philippines and made my first big trip to Sipadan, so even in the Pacific I’ve got a bit of experience), or get way out there and explore some of the outer islands of Palau like Kayangel and Anguar.

I spent most of my time in the Rock Islands and Peliliu, with Koror as sort of a home base between adventures to be lazy for a few days and stock up on food. If you’re looking to go on a longer sea kayaking thing, especially, Palau’s Rock Islands might be a really good place for you to visit. I spent 5 or 6 days paddling solo through the area, and it remains the highlight of my time in the country. There were a number of islands open to the public that I could choose from for camping, though know that on many of these you may get some tour boats during the day that stop off to have their lunch on the island. In practical terms, though, this usually just meant bbq to supplement my dinner rations.

If you have any questions about traveling in the area, I’d be happy to answer them where I can!