Local airline,immigration,tourist office,hotel,embassy ... all have what in common?

And the answer is...

They don't respond to e-mails! I realize this diary is redundant, given what others have written, but I can't resist expressing my bemusement (I don't want to say annoyance) at the zero acknowledgment when I try to get in touch about organizing a stay in Nauru. If a visa weren't needed before arrival, I would just book a flight and sort the rest out later, but things being as they are, I don't really want to book a flight if I can't get the visa sorted beforehand. It's always so awkward to be left standing in an airport after being denied boarding.
PS: If no one responds to this post, that's OK; maybe it's best to keep things consistent. :-)
PPS: Yes I realize not everyone in the world has e-mail, but there are plenty of e-addresses on various Nauru-related websites (as enumerated in my subject line)...

Nauru isn't known for having desirable attributes for a tourist, given they strip-mined most of the island. I'm guessing it doesn't occur to anyone on the island that a tourist may want to visit, beyond those just checking every country off their bucket list. Granted, I do realize there is supposed to be a nice beach on one part of the island as well as some diving, and that the government did put up a tourist site. But this government isn't known for being particularly intelligent.

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It is getting much harder to get to Nauru because the Australian government, to the horror of many Australians, has set up a camp there for Asylum seekers who try to get to Australia by boat. Basically, in view of the fact that Nauru is not a tourist Mecca, they are suspicious of anyone wanting to go there.

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Thanks ozziegiraffe. I wondered if that had something to do with it. I gather from what others have written that might also affect (reduce) the availability of accommodation, due to people coming for work related to the camps. It's a shame that a country could effectively be off limits due to this kind of thing, not to mention what it's like for the internees. I guess I'll continue to make other plans with some buffer time built in, just in case a Nauru visit can be worked out somehow as the time gets closer...

There should be a diplomatic mission for Nauru somewhere in Australia who should be able to help.

Yes, I phoned the Nauru "mission" in the US a week or so ago, and spoke to a real live human being, who told me they don't do visas here but that I could contact their embassy/consulate in Australia (Brisbane as I recall). She gave me a name with email and phone, and I tried the email first. Ha! Bad idea, given the perfect no-response history I started this thread to chronicle. So probably in the next week or so I'll try the phone option. I expect they'll just tell me I need to get myself a room and a flight before we can talk visa, i.e. back to square one, but if I'm lucky maybe someone will actually be helpful.

I'm sure you have also checked out Our Airline.

Yes, per the thread title, I've tried and failed to get any reply from them... :-)

hello there, your posts bring back memories of my own efforts to visit the island a year and a half ago. i had a long struggle to get the ticket and mostly, the visa which they would only issue if i had a confirmed hotel booking (and a confirmation through email was not sufficient). i visited just after the australians re-established the refugee camp on the island. BUT, in the end it all came together; i received a letter through email from the consulate in brisbane, was allowed on the flight with that letter, and got the visa upon arrival. (even though two days before i was supposed to fly down to nauru from kiribati, the flight was cancelled; it took a very cooperative employee of our airline to re-arrange flights so i could still visit nauru).

the most useful contact was with fabiana from our airline - she usually replies to emails and is very helpful. charisma capelle works at the consulate and also replies to emails.

fabiana.harris@ourairline.com.au
charisma.capelle@brisbane.gov.nr

i can give you the emails of the hotels, but none ever replied to me, apart from this address: menhotreservation@yahoo.com. even calling them never had any result. since they were fully booked, the menem even made a reservation on my behalf at the odn'aiwo. when i finally stayed at their hotel, which turned out to be a quite serious place, i double-checked the email address i had used; it was correct. but they could not explain why they never replied to any of my many emails.

only thing i can tell you: be persistent - it will work out, in the end. and: it is worth the effort, too: nauru is a very special place, both landscape-wise, as people-wise. make sure you walk around the island/country: a special feeling for sure. if you have any more questions, don't hesitate to pm me.

good luck!

Thanks bkester... that's really informative!
One thing that kind of concerns me though, is this business of canceled flights. If this works out, I'll be taking Our Airline to Nauru from/to Majuro, Marshall Islands. According to the flight schedules, I'd have five days on Nauru then have two days back in Majuro before my flight home from there. I start a big new job just days after that. So if that Nauru-Majuro flight gets canceled, I could be in a heap o' trouble. Hmmm.. I assume that's unlikely, but still...

Is the main reason for canceling flights a lack of passengers? If so, I might wait until I'm in Majuro, talk directly to Our Airline people there about how full the flights are looking, and try to sort everything if seats are available but not so many that they're likely to cancel. Otherwise I'll probably just take the extra days in/around Majuro...

the flight was canceled because the aircraft had a technical problem. their fleet is so small, they can't just use another plane, which is understandable. unfortunately, they did not operate the flight as soon as possible; it was just canceled, and the next flight was 2 weeks later. i don't think they ever cancel flights because of low passenger numbers.

for you, i guess it will be a matter of willing to risk it. there is always a small risk involved; you are on a small island and there is no alternative transportation out of it (or, only if you had all the time of the world, and willing to wait for the occasional boat to pass by). where do you live?

good luck! and in case you have more practical questions, don't hesitate to pm me.

Thanks again bkester. Probably I'll just go for it on the assumption that these things usually work out. If it didn't though, I'd miss my already-booked flights from Majuro to Honolulu and from there to home = West Coast USA. From home I'm supposed to fly to my new job in the Middle East just a few days after that last flight. So things are a bit less flexible than if it were in the middle of a longer vacation or if I were returning to "normal life" with minimal consequences in the event of a delay.

I love visiting Pacific islands and spent two months in the South Pacific ten years ago, but there were quite a few places I wasn't able to see and Nauru was one of them. I guess I should have done it then when I had more time... but life has been good overall; can't complain in any event...