Notes from Yap (Federated States of Micronesia) trip

I just returned from Yap (and Palau) and thought I'd post some travel notes.

Yap is like no other place I've been. After 20 hours of flying, we stumbled into the airport, which was in the design of a traditional men's house and was open to the elements. You clear customs outside and are then greeted by a man and woman dressed only in the traditional lava-lava who place a flower wreath around your neck. There is no baggage claim--just a man with a luggage cart that he pushes back and forth. People were so friendly, and by the end of the week we were being greeted by name.

1. The best low-budget place to stay is the one $55/night room at Pathways. The hotel (and website) will claim that the room is only big enough for one person. This is not true! Although the room is small, it has a queen-size bed (which, granted, has seen better days, but is comfortable) and contains a shower. The room was also bug-free, which I was not expecting, and had a small AC unit. The locals who own/are employed by Pathways are very friendly, and we enjoyed many conversations during our week-long stay. I also appreciated the fact that there were non-divers to chat with. Note that if you are planning an extended stay in Yap, you can negotiate for a cheaper weekly rate.

Pathways also has beautiful bungalows to stay in. When our cheap room had a roof issue, we got upgraded. The bungalows all are very spacious with a joined twin bed (so king-size, but with a seam) and plenty of space to walk around. There was a balcony, and the AC was a better model then our little room and kept the whole place cold. (Note that the Yapese pay out the nose for diesel so you should keep your AC off when you aren't in the room!).

Don't miss Pathway's special island dinner. You have to order it at least a day in advance. The $25 platter of local foods was enough for not just the two of us, but also our two friends, so no need to order 2 platters. Pathways also got us several drinking coconuts when we mentioned how much we like them.

Really, I can't say enough nice things about this place. It was just a short walk to restaurants, Yap divers, and the like.

1. Yap Divers (through Manta Ray Bay) was fantastic. We were newly certified and Jan really took care of us. Granted, the diving is expensive ($130 for a two-tank dive, which included our BCD and regulator rentals and a snack on the boat). But the fact that Jan gave us a second divemaster when there were only 4 of us diving without charging us extra really impressed me. And the divemaster really kept a close eye on us and was hanging onto me for large portions of my first dive (yes, newbie buoyancy control issues). Sadly, despite two trips to the cleaning station, we saw no mantas. Some of the locals thought that the foreign fishing boats might be catching the mantas in their nets, given the decrease in the local population. Not sure if this is the case or if we were just unlucky during our 3 days of diving. The water was not quite as clear as Palau, but that isn't saying much. Yap Divers' half-day kayaak tour is a nice way to see the mangroves (plus get a tour of one of the men's house and see stone money). When we asked about using the hotel salt-water pool, Jan said to feel free given that we were guests of the dive shop :).

2. Women are expected to have their thighs covered. Sadly, few divers took notice of this, but try to respect the local custom and bring shorts/dresses that are at the knee.

3. Food: Eat at the Marina Restaurant! They were the only place consistently offering local specialties (including land crab). Don't fall into the trap of eating that Mantra Ray every night. There is tastier food to be had! There is also a place catering to locals on the second floor of the YCA (forgot the name) that has cheap raman and $1.50 drinking coconuts (pricey for the islands, but so good on a hot day). And don't forget to arrange a special dinner at Pathways.

Manta Ray Bay's restaurant has cheap, tasty pizza if you are craving imported food. Their lunch menu is pricey, but dinner is on par with other places (and they always have one veg option).

1. Outer islands: Unfortunately, one week was not long enough for us to arrange travel to any of the outer islands. If you have your heart set on a visit, either have a lot of time for your trip, or get friendly with the missionaries who have a plane.

2. Check the tide and take a cab ride to Village View hotel on Maap. You can swim at there beach (they didn't charge us anything). There is a pretty beach where you can snorkel, in theory, but I think you have to swim all the way out to the reef to see anything (I went maybe 1/2 mile, which wasn't far enough). There is a restaurant that opens at 11am that serves tasty Filipino food (don't miss the delicious local lemonade). Note that I would not stay at Village View hotel, as they currently have no running water and have to rely on cisterns of rain.

There are several villages where you can pay a small fee for beach access and the right to walk around and see the stone money and mens/women's houses (from the outside). We visited a village in Tomil, but I can't remember the name.

Forgot to mention: I met several travelers who had recently came from Chuuk (Truk) and apparently the situation has really degraded there. It is not supposed to be safe to go out at night, because (drunk) locals are known to pick fights with tourists. I don't know anything first-hand, but given the lack of info on the FSM, I wanted to pass this along. Everyone we talked to said to stick with liveaboards or stay with a knowledgeable local.

Also forgot to mention: Bring lots of U.S. travelers checks. Very few places take credit cards here. Trader Ridge claims to take credit cards, but their processing link doesn't work (and their restaurant is mediocre and should probably just be avoided). Pathways took our card, but made an imprint rather than connecting to the phone system. Manta Ray/Yap Divers was the only place that had functional credit card processing software. We were able to cash the checks commission-free at the Bank of FSM.

Edited by: tilos

Sounds great. Is it worth it for non-divers to visit, and if so, how would I get there from Australia?

There is a new airline called Pacificflier that can get you from Brisbane to Palau or Guam. From there, you would have to take the pricey continental micronesia flight to Yap.

As for whether it is worth going as a non-diver, it would certainly be worth it as a snorkeler if you went out on a dive boat. There is also good sea kayaking in the mangroves and all of the interesting culture. But given how pricey the tickets are, if you aren't into snorkeling off of a dive boat, it is probably more expensive than it is worth. If you could find a way to get to the outer islands, I think that would justify a pricey ticket, but you would need to plan in advance.

It is worth it for non-divers flying Continental from the U.S. to Palau to break their stay in Yap. The airline doesn't charge you extra (although it means forgoing breaking your stay in Guam or Honolulu). I should also mention that the flight staff on Continental Micronesia is considerably friendlier than the flight on the U.S. to Hawaii leg.

Forgot to mention: I met several travelers who had recently came from Chuuk (Truk) and apparently the situation has really degraded there. It is not supposed to be safe to go out at night, because (drunk) locals are known to pick fights with tourists. I don't know anything first-hand, but given the lack of info on the FSM, I wanted to pass this along. Everyone we talked to said to stick with liveaboards or stay with a knowledgeable local.

Hard to imagine it degrading much further than it has been. It has not really be safe to go out at night for years and years. Very sad but mostly a great place for wreck diving and stay onboard or in one of the few places where tourists stay (there are a couple of places) and mostly stay put and drink at the hotel bar at night.

5Waldos: That is really too bad. Several of the Yapese told me that the Chuuk government corruption was so out of control that it was leading to unrest.

It is sad but hardly new. Even the very first reports of western connection with Chuuk (hundreds of years ago) described them as the ruffians of the Pacific.

True story of Yap: His Majesty O'Keefe by Lawrence Klingman and Gerald Green. O'Keefe was the King of Yap. Great fun read.

My mother told the story of arriving in her high school geology or geography class on day to a very excited teacher calling out "What and where is Yap?" Apparently it had appeared in a volcanic eruption overnight.
(Mum would have been in high school in the 1920s.