Palau, land or sea

[ronski101]

4 of us are thinking of doing Palau next yr and are considering a liveaboard to avoid the long boat rides. Any suggestions out there? any of them got a jacuzzi? is it all just big stuff in big current? how is the value compared to philippines, indonesia, PNG?

 

[Kevrumbo]

Only six divers on Liveaboard Ocean Hunter I, the best small boat that can actually moor/anchor at or near the famous Palau dive-sites overnight:

Ocean Hunter I - General

 

[tomfcrist]

For what it's worth, a jacuzzi/hot tub is a really bad idea for divers under considerable decompression stress. I'm not just talking about tech divers, but also those who are just diving a lot every day. Personally I don't care to get bent in a freaking hot tub.

 

[Damselfish]

That said, the Ocean Hunter III had 2 small hot tubs, really more like pretty warm tubs. But they worked, which is more than I can say for many hot tubs I've seen on liveaboards. OH3 was an all around great trip. (The dining area is annoyingly awkward and cramped, but that's my only complaint and not so important in the grand scheme of things. Food itself was good.)

Current in Palau is variable. Our first trip there we had very little current, and our second trip generally moderate current. Of course you see lots more of the big stuff and schools the more current there is, but there's plenty to see otherwise. There almost always is if you're looking. But if you're really into macro and don't like blowing past stuff a lot, there might be better choices.

One advantage I realized for Palau liveaboards, besides not having long rides every day and getting in more dives and all the other liveaboard stuff, is that you can get to dive the popular sites without so many people on them. Midday dives there can be a lot of dive boats around and a lot of divers in the water places like Blue Corner.

We did the Palau Aggressor like 10 years ago and it was also a good trip, but that was too many years ago to be a meaningful data point.

 

[nudisusie]

I enjoyed Palau Siren - spacious boat, loads of amenities, free nitrox and a fabulous crew. The rides to the sites were much shorter than from land based operation we used (Sams Tours) 10-20 minutes rather than 45-60 mins. No jacuzzi but i have always found they are a waste of space on dive boats.

The trip was mostly big stuff - reef sharks, mantas, schools of fish but we did find some critters too like leaf fish and mandarin fish, and there are wreck dives and a couple of caverns to explore so enough variety for a 7-10 night trip. Currents were not too hairy when I was there, but have a look at the moon phase for the time you plan to go as this affects the currents and can mean you see some big aggregations and fish spawning action which my group missed out on.

Cost wise for hotels, dinners on shore, drinks etc I thought it was much more than Philippines or Indonesia, but its US so food and drinks are more like US prices and portions than Asian. That said on a liveaboard you are fully catered so the price for trips is comparable to that paid for trips with the same company in Indo and Phils.

 

[Scubagolf]

+1 Palau Siren. Great boat, crew (personnel changes of course), excellent food, all the time nitrox, and great diving from chase boat with short rides.

 

[drbill]

I was there in March (and going back next April and possibly this November). I chose Palau Dive Adventures, a land-based operator that runs a single boat but gives valet service. I really enjoyed the opportunity to do three dives a day and return back to Koror for a sampling of the local culture. We went everywhere the liveaboards do and a few places they don't since PDA can customize its itinerary to the desires of its guests. I didn't find the boat rides to be all that "long" since there was such beautiful scenery to be experienced on the way.

 

[Worldwide Dive and Sail]

Hi Ronsky 101,

Palau is mainly about big stuff: sharks, mantas, napeoleons, bumphead parrotfish, dogtooth tuna, groupers, turtles, cuttlefish, big schools of jacks, barracudas. However, there are still some small critters to discover: leaf fish, some great nudibranch, ghost pipe fish, mandarin fish.

If you would like to know how is a liveaboard experience in Palau, read our weekly trip blogs in Palau.

Regarding the current, you will mainly find currents at Blue Corner, Ulong Channel, and Peleliu which is the best time to dive those sites since you will find big aggregations of sharks. The currents are usually easy to handle so you shouldn't be worried.

As nudisusie says on land prices are similar to the USA since the local money is the US dollar however, on a liveaboard everything is included so you won't have to worry too much about the cost of living in Palau.