Palau tips

I just got back from a 4 week trip to Philippines that included a 4 day jaunt over to Palau & have the following info/tips on Palau:

Although Palau is paradise, Palau is expensive...about 4 times the price of Philippines on average. In Palau you pay $115 for day tour + $35 eco fee. In Palawan, Philippines you pay about $17 for a day tour and it's just as good with a much better lunch (cooked fish, crab, rice, etc, vs cold bento box in Palau).

I used Sam's Tours for all 4 days...did Rock Islands/Jellyfish twice, Kayaking one day, and tour of big island one day.
* Tour of big island is a rip off at $150. They have now completed the road around the big island so it's very easy to self drive. Since I was solo I did the trip rather than driving myself. The sights on the tour are just OK and the guide wasn't very good...our first stop was at a gas station - we sat in the car as she went to buy energy drinks...that was the first bad sign!
* I loved the rock islands & jellyfish lake...so much that I did it twice! Sam's Tours is very eco friendly & don't hurt the coral and giant clams.
* kayaking was great and I loved disneyland lake...a marine lake where you swin thru a little cave to get to the lake.

I stayed at Antelope Marine Club. I recommend this as the cheapest place for a solo traveler at $25 a night with $10 airport pick-up This included a nice view of the harbor, air conditioning, mini-fridge, and a super clean room - cleaned daily. Only downside is shared bath and you need to be in by midnight (not a big deal for me, but I heard the nightlife in Palau was actually quite fun). I liked the Makati location because I could walk to Sam's Tours and there are some good restaurants around there. All the other people staying there are Japanese. The lonely planet says it's not practical to walk from downtown to Makati but I did the walk once and it wasn't bad, but I used a flashlight/torch.

Thanks for the update on Palau - you managed to do a lot in your short time there. Definitely have to agree with you on how expensive it is but we are glad we did it as the snorkeling(no diving) was outstanding and Sam's Tours were great!

I also only snorkeled but saw alot of stuff...including about 12 sharks at the big drop off, a turtle, and a huge eel!

To compare and contrast the snorkeling in Palau vs Palawan (Philippines)
Palau had clearer water, more sharks, and jellyfish lake
Philippines had more variety in fish & coral and was way cheaper.

How did you fly to Palau. The cheapest flights I see is from Manila at about $550 r/t which is insane considering the short distance. Is there a cheaper alternative?

I don't know where you are coming from but you might have a look at Delta. I was looking at their magazine on a flight today and it showed a flight to Palau out of Tokyo. The other airline that may fly to Palau is Korean out of Seoul. Don't know how viable this information is but may be worth a look. We also were surprised at the cost of Contiental's flight out of Manila - that's what a monoply will do!

I just paid the monopoly price from Manila via Continental. Compare it to a trip from my city on the west coast to Palau costs over $1400.
If flying from Manila, don't forget to factor in the $18 terminal fee in Manila + $35 eco & departure tax in Palau that's not included in the ticket price.

The Marine Club is a great place to stay.

When I was in Palau in 2008 I would take the tourist restaurant bus from the resort up the road to downtown at night. Is it no longer running?

We have been only to El Nido on Palawan, and getting there is neither cheap nor convenient (and the flight to Puerto Princesa and the 7/8-hour bus journey on those roads to El Nido misses the point of enjoying places like this). Still, I found it completely uninteresting snorkeling-wise compared with what could you see in Palawan seas. I do not agree about the fish variety, especially.

I also agree that what you have paid for the Big Island Tour is a rip-off, but there are very few countries in the world where you could enter their parliament and walk into corridors with ministerial cabinets without being escorted by at least three guards. And there are some nice secluded beaches. There is a tour to an island north off the Big Island and we felt sorry that we did not go there.