Milky Manner & Lengthy Seashore
The Palau Rock Islands have earned UNESCO standing for his or her unbelievable surroundings, and so they’re one of many foremost vacationer sights within the nation of Palau. Whereas many individuals select to see the islands with a scenic flight, one other nice possibility is to go to them with a ship tour.
On a velocity boat tour to the Rock Islands of Palau, you are able to do plenty of enjoyable actions like swimming in a brilliant turquoise lagoon nicknamed the Milky Manner, strolling on a smooth white sandbar referred to as Lengthy Seashore, and even snorkeling in a lake stuffed with stingless jellyfish!
This journey information will clarify all the pieces you might want to learn about visiting the Palau Rock Islands by boat, together with the very best tour firm, present tour costs, a map of the islands, and the very best issues to see and do within the islands on a day journey from the city of Koror.
Greatest Rock Islands Palau Tour
Viator has a high-rated Palau boat tour that visits lots of the high sights of the Rock Islands in a day tour.
This tour contains lunch, snorkel tools, and free resort pickup and drop-off from Koror, plus 5 to eight hours of sightseeing and swimming at locations just like the Milky Manner and Jellyfish Lake.
Bear in mind the itinerary can change from each day due to the tide and different situations, so if there’s a spot you’re actually eager to see, you then would possibly wish to double test about that along with your tour firm earlier than you go.
We’ve used Viator for plenty of excursions and actions world wide, and so they’re nice. Extremely really useful!
E book Now: Rock Islands Palau Tour
The place Are The Rock Islands Situated?
The Rock Islands are situated about 10 kilometers (6 miles) southwest of mainland Koror, Palau, in order that they’re straightforward to achieve by boat.
With a speedboat, you may get to sights just like the Milky Manner in lower than half-hour, and the opposite sights like Lengthy Seashore are solely a bit farther.
Greatest Issues To Do In The Rock Islands Of Palau
Right here’s a listing of a number of the finest sights and issues to do within the Rock Islands of Palau.
That is removed from an entire checklist of all the pieces to do within the islands, however these are simply a number of the foremost highlights that you just’re more likely to expertise on a at some point boat tour.
• Milky Manner
The Milky Manner is a pure lagoon within the Rock Islands with a number of the brightest turquoise water you’ll ever see.
This spot is in style for its mudbath exercise, the place you’ll be able to cowl your face and physique with the white limestone mud, and it supposedly has well being advantages on your pores and skin. The excursions present the mudpack, and it’s a enjoyable exercise for all ages.
We spent about half-hour on the Milky Manner, floating within the creamy coloured water. It’s a very nice lagoon.
• Jellyfish Lake
The Jellyfish Lake is one among Palau’s most well-known sights. Right here, you’ll be able to swim with thousands and thousands of stingless jellyfish!
There are two totally different species of jellyfish residing on this lake — the golden jellyfish and the moon jellyfish — and each are fully innocent to people. They don’t have any capacity to sting.
You’ll be able to simply snorkel with the jellyfish close to the floor of the lake, and Palau is one among only some locations on the planet the place you are able to do this!
Earlier than visiting the Jellyfish Lake, be sure that to test along with your tour firm in regards to the present standing of the lake and whether or not it’s open or not.
Sadly once I visited Palau in 2023, the jellyfish numbers had dwindled due to El Niño and La Niña climate patterns, which induced many of the golden jellyfish to die out for the reason that lake temperature was too heat.
Fortunately the jellyfish numbers are finally anticipated to rebound and return to their regular ranges, and hopefully that occurs earlier than too lengthy!
• Lengthy Seashore
Lengthy Seashore is a pure sandbar within the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon that may solely be seen at low tide. This was one among my favourite spots within the Rock Islands, and I’d’ve preferred to remain there all day.
We hopped off the boat within the shallow water after which walked all the way in which to the top of the sandbar and again, spending about half-hour having fun with the surroundings at Lengthy Seashore. When it’s totally uncovered, the sandbar is sort of 1 kilometer lengthy (1/2 mile).
I’ve seen a number of good sandbars world wide in locations like Indonesia and the Philippines, however I’ve to say this is among the finest sandbars I’ve seen. The water is admittedly calm and delightful, and the sand is sort of blindingly white.
• German Channel
The German Channel is a synthetic waterway that was created by the Germans throughout World Conflict II to permit ships to go by the reef. The channel is now used as a scuba diving website, because it has a depth of as much as 40 meters (130 ft).
Whereas I feel it’s extra fascinating to see the channel from above on a scenic airplane trip, lots of the boat excursions go to this spot briefly as effectively.
The water is extremely blue, and in the event you’re fortunate you would possibly even see sharks or manta rays swimming by the channel!
• Babelomekang Island
After spending just a few hours exploring the Rock Islands, excursions will usually cease someplace to eat lunch.
Some excursions cease for lunch at Carp Island Resort, however in our case, we went ashore at a pleasant little paradise island referred to as Babelomekang, and the tour information handed every of us a Bento field (Japanese set meal) with rice, rooster, spring roll, orange, veggies, and extra.
This was a quiet island with a pleasant white sand seaside, shady bushes, and loads of room to stroll round. We spent about 1 hour right here consuming our lunch after which enjoyable on the seaside.
• Snorkeling Spots
Final, however not least, we spent 1 or 2 hours snorkeling at some locations across the reef, together with a really good spot referred to as the Cemetery.
Palau has plenty of nice snorkeling alternatives unfold out throughout the Rock Islands, so there’s loads of selection within the locations you would possibly go to along with your tour.
I didn’t take footage whereas snorkeling since I didn’t have my underwater digicam with me on the time, however there have been sea turtles, and plenty of good fish and coral in surprisingly good situation!
Map Of The Palau Rock Islands
Right here’s a map of a number of the finest points of interest and issues to do within the Rock Islands of Palau, together with high sights just like the Milky Manner, Jellyfish Lake, and Lengthy Seashore. You’ll be able to click on on the icons to see the identify and extra details about every spot.
Bear in mind every tour follows a unique itinerary, so you might not at all times have the ability to see each one among these locations in a single day journey.
Rock Island Conservation Charges
Palau requires a conservation allow for any vacationer visiting the Rock Islands by boat. That is paid individually from the price of your tour, though most tour corporations can promote you the allow on the day of your tour.
As of 2024, the allow prices are as follows:
- Rock Islands — $50 USD
- Rock Islands + Jellyfish Lake — $100 USD
You solely want to purchase one among these permits, not each. In different phrases, in the event you plan on visiting the Jellyfish Lake, then you must purchase the dearer allow. If not, then you should purchase the cheaper allow. Children beneath 6 years of age don’t want any allow.
The permits are legitimate for 10 days, so in the event you determine to re-visit the Rock Islands throughout that timeframe you don’t have to purchase one other allow. Simply don’t lose your allow!
Can You Fly A Drone In The Palau Rock Islands?
Sure, you’ll be able to fly a drone within the Rock Islands of Palau, however a allow is required. You’ll be able to apply for a drone allow by filling out this kind on the official web site of the Palau Guests Authority.
It’s free and straightforward to fill out the applying. Simply enter your identify, nationality, and different private particulars, and the date and function of your drone flight. If you happen to’re flying for non-commercial causes, simply say it’s pastime pictures.
You’ll wish to look over the drone guidelines on that web page as effectively. They solely enable flights under 120 meters (400 ft) and inside visible line of sight, and naturally you’ll be able to’t fly close to planes or airports.
In my case, they authorized the allow in only one hour, however they advocate making use of not less than 3 days prematurely to verify there’s sufficient time to course of your allow.
If you happen to’re authorized, you’ll wish to clarify this to your Rock Island tour firm as effectively, and save an offline copy of your allow to point out them, that manner there’s no misunderstanding on the day of your boat tour.
There are many good spots to fly a drone within the Rock Islands, however I feel Lengthy Seashore was my favourite. The sandbar seems nice from above!
What To Carry For The Boat Tour
Listed below are some packing solutions on your Rock Islands day journey.
- Waterproof Bag: Important for holding your electronics protected on the boat excursions. I introduced a 30 liter bag and was in a position to match my drone, pill, digicam, cellphone, and a bunch of different stuff inside, and all the pieces was saved dry!
- Waterproof Telephone Pouch: Similar as above, however these are on your cellphone solely. Nice in the event you don’t produce other electronics and simply want one thing small to guard your cellphone.
- Snorkeling Gear: A few of the snorkeling spots have good corals and fish, and also you gained’t wish to miss out on them. Snorkels and masks are sometimes offered free of charge by the tour corporations, but when not, you then’ll wish to carry your personal gear.
- Solar Safety: The solar could be very sturdy in Palau, so that you’ll wish to put on a hat and sunscreen. If you happen to carry sunscreen from house, simply take note some varieties of sunscreen are banned in Palau and could also be confiscated on the airport in Koror.
- Bottled Water: Examine in case your tour firm gives bottled water. If not, you’ll wish to carry a few of your personal, as a result of the snorkeling will make you thirsty, assured.
- Drone: An aerial digicam will be very helpful for capturing good footage of the Rock Islands, however keep in mind to get a allow and comply with the principles, as talked about within the part above.
Different Ideas For The Palau Rock Islands
- Language. Many tour corporations in Palau are Japanese-owned and so they cater primarily to Japanese vacationers, so take note there could also be a little bit of a language barrier, though it’s typically not a lot of an issue. In my case, the information was bilingual and helpfully repeated all the pieces in English for me as we went, so it was no challenge in any respect.
- Crocodiles. In response to the locals, it’s very uncommon to see a saltwater crocodile in Palau, particularly in the event you steer clear of mangrove areas.
- Mosquitoes. I by no means noticed any mosquitoes on this tour, even once we stopped to have our lunch on Babelomekang island. It’s a forested island so I believed there may be some mosquitoes, however there wasn’t a single one! I wouldn’t trouble sporting mosquito repellant for this tour in any respect.
- Bogs. When island hopping in Palau, typically there aren’t any loos on the boats or islands. You could find fundamental bogs at Babelomekang island or Carp Island Resort, however apart from that, your finest wager is to maintain enterprise earlier than beginning your day tour.
- The place To Keep. The one personal island with a resort on this space is the Carp Island Resort, which is situated between Peleliu and the Rock Islands. This resort is technically outdoors of the Rock Islands, but it surely may nonetheless be a very good possibility if you wish to keep in shut proximity to the dive websites.
Greatest Time To Go to The Rock Islands
Palau has loads of rain all 12 months lengthy, however any time is nice to go to. The driest months in Koror and the Rock Islands are January to April, however even these months have loads of rain.
I wouldn’t fear about it an excessive amount of both manner, as a result of the rain tends to return within the night or at evening. You’ll be able to by no means assure you’ll have excellent climate irrespective of whenever you go.
I visited Palau in September, which is meant to be one of many extra wet months of the 12 months, however really the climate was excellent and there was no rain in any respect for a number of days, so it didn’t have an effect on my travels one bit.
Enjoyable Information About The Rock Islands Of Palau
- Why are they referred to as the Rock Islands?
The Rock Islands could not appear like rocks, however they really are in reality limestone rock formations lined with tropical vegetation.
- What number of islands are there?
In response to UNESCO, there are roughly 445 uninhabited islands within the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon, and so they cowl a complete space of 100,200 hectares (about 250,000 acres).
- What sorts of animals dwell there?
The Rock Islands are house to birds, fruit bats, dugongs, sea turtles, saltwater crocodiles, and lots of sorts of coral, fish, and large clams.
Palau Scenic Flight Over The Rock Islands
A scenic flight over the Rock Islands is turning into one of the in style issues for vacationers to do in Palau, and it’s straightforward to see why: this is among the most stunning landscapes within the Pacific!
The flights are supplied by Pacific Mission Aviation, and so they take the doorways off so you may get an overhead view of the city of Koror, adopted by wonderful views of tons of of Palau’s nicest islands, lakes, and lagoons.
As a lot as I loved touring the Rock Islands by boat, it was onerous to high the scenic flight. In case you have the time and funds, it is best to attempt to do each actions. The boat tour and scenic flight are very totally different experiences, however they’re each superior!
Learn Extra: Palau Rock Islands Scenic Flight
Extra Palau Journey Guides
Thanks for trying! I hope you loved this information for visiting the Palau Rock Islands on a ship tour. It was one among my favourite experiences within the little nation of Palau.
Don’t overlook to take a look at my Palau Journey Information earlier than you go!