Is Palau Worth It?

We're thinking of heading to the Philippines for two weeks in December for a beach break. We're a couple with a three year old. It's long been a dream of mine to go to Palau (since seeing it on Survivor years ago!). We'll be flying into Manila so I'm considering adding on a week in Palau. The flights are pretty pricey $700 return from Manila and the accommodation isn't that cheap either.

Is Palau worth the expense? Is it so much nicer and more special than any of the islands in the Philippines? Jellyfish lake is a big drawcard so obviously that's only available in Palau but in terms of beaches, boat trips etc.

Also, would it be worth having a couple days in Guam? The flight back to Manila connects through Guam for pretty much the whole day so I thought about throwing in an extra night here to make things more interesting.

"Jellyfish lake is a big drawcard so obviously that's only available in Palau"

Not really.
Also "available" in neighboring Indonesia for a fraction of the cost:

http://indonesialiveaboards.com/dive_sites_country_Indonesia_Kalimantan_Kakaban.html
http://totravelling.com/2012/11/29/kakaban-jellyfish-lake-east-kalimantan/

Palau is VERY special, although i have never been to the Philippines. Koror will not impress you initially, but once you settle in the natural beauty---even in Koror---is astonishing.

Not sure of your budget but aside from the obvious (Rock Islands) you should include Peleliu and Angaur islands for consideration, as well as the main island of Babeldoab. We took the community shuttle boat to Peleliu and it was worth it. Also rented a car for a two-day trip into Babeldoab and stayed at "North Beach Cottages"---well worth it.

Palau was a bit of a disapointment for me , because of costs,and restrictions on islands. It can be a busy place, even on those outer islands.Lots of tour boats, cookouts. I wanted to rent a kayak and camp on islands,,did not because it was expensive, restricted camp sites that were too busy. You could do better on the Philippines at a lower cost

If you will be scuba diving, then it will definitely be worth it.

If you don't dive but plan to embark on a multiday camping safari/expedition with kayaks, that would be worth it too.

However, if you plan to stay in a hotel or resort and just do day trips on boat and maybe drive around the island, then I'd say it's not really worth it.