Tarawa

Greetings,

I'll be in Kiribati next July/August for 6 days. I'd like to go to the northern part of the atoll.

Does anyone have info about boat transfers to the north (frequency, price, etc)? I've read it depends on the tide, and I'd like to know if it's always possible (if one waits for the right tide). And accommodation (prices) - north and Tarawa? I've been quoted 50 Aust. dollars and I'm curious to know if there are cheaper options. It can be as basic as basic gets. I can handle the 50 AUD, but if I can pay less, I'll have to try (I'm flying from Europe, so, I have to save on everything else).

Did you dive in Kiribati? Is the south part of the lagoon really so polluted one can't swim? Are there many aggressive dogs? Is it a dangerous place for walking about at daylight alone outside Tarawa? I'm a woman and I'll be traveling alone.

I doubt we have been anywhere where we felt less threatened than Tarawa.
But you need to take care of health issues due to water and ocean pollution.

Cheers,
Peter

Boats leave for somewhere up north pretty much daily (except on Sundays I think).

The cheap option up there is the island council's somewhat basic and run-down rest house in the regional center of Aboakoro(?). It costs $30 with food, I think - the standard price for outer island council rest houses in Kiribati.

I felt Kiribati very safe and friendly and encountered no aggressive dogs whatsoever.
During the day, it should be safe for women alone, too - but things may get dicier at night after drinking!

The south of the lagoon is very polluted indeed (it also serves as toilet) so I'd save swimming for the North.

My longer post on Kiribati

Thank you very much for your replies.

I've downloaded the material from their tourism board and I've seen walks of 2h30 and even 6h. I'm mouthwatering! Just thinking of walking about in Kiribati brings tears to my eyes, as I've always dreamed of visiting the country (you know, those child fixations...).

The canoes for North Tarawa used to leave from the dock in Bairiki - down the road from Mary's. They normally left at high tide so the times were determined by that. And, they normally went to Abaokoro or villages further north.

When I was a volunteer there, the single women I knew worked on the outer islands and were part of the local community. They generally felt safe and secure. Yet, they did take precautions about wandering alone at night or even sleeping alone. (Some had female sleep-mates.) There were some incidents. Most likely, nothing will happen, but it's wise to be aware of your surroundings if you're a single female.

I'm just back from Kiribati (currently in Fiji, waiting for the Tonga segment of my vacation).

I had a wonderful time there.

The boats, indeed, leave from right behind Mary's (end of the road), like you said. Unfortunately, I was supposed to take a boat leaving at 14h to go to Abaokoro, where I'd stay for a few days. However, even though I arrived at 13:20 at the wharf, I've lost my boat. It had left at 13:10!!!!

Actually, I was then told that boats are alowed to take 32 passengers (they're really bursting at the seams, with people sitting everywhere on the big canoe-like boats) and whenever they reach this magic number, they leave (and they're right!). Had I known that, I'd have been there much sooner.

Well, since my going by boat didn't work out, I went hiking. Not all the way to Abaokoro.

Swimming in Tarawa is really not easy. It is really shallow (the lagoon and the coral bit before the drop off, ocean side) and, yes, very dirt (South Tarawa). At North Tarawa, I've been soaking in the water. It was quite nice, not cold at all, and I've thoroughly enjoyed it. The snorkeling isn't really worth the "bother". However, just crossing the lagoon-ocean channels at low tide, I was aware of octopi there somewhere. There were small reef fishes, but the visibility wasn't fantastic.

As for really swimming, I swam in quite shallow places, but going nowhere, just against the coming high tide rush. Nice!

The things I've liked the most: the I-Kiribati, friendly and nice to talk to, and the hiking. I love being at atolls, walking around, water on my left, water on my right...

The negative points: the dirt, almost everywhere it stinks like sewage (not when you're hiking North, or on the Dai Nippon causeway (very nice)).

Staying at Mary's is convenient. The food is really good. Besides, it's right by the beginning of the Dai Nippon Causeway, a nice place to jog/walk.

If you're going there, take everything you think you may need. There's very little you can buy there, and everything is very expensive (it's normal, since access to the country is so complicated). If you like sweets, take them with you.

Even being a woman traveling alone, I didn't feel uncomfortable going around on my own. However, I did avoid going out at night (thing I avoid everywhere, anyway).

If you don't have a banking account with the ANZ it's quite complicate to exchange currency. I would have to wait about 20 min (so I was told), for an authorization to exchange currency. So, I've solved it with ATM. ATM worked just fine, and there are several in South Tarawa. If you're trying to exchange, beware that the rates are awful! Better to get your Australian Dollars someplace else.

Edited by: viajar