Palau Explorer

No - we are a tour operator, not a travel agency. Everything you book with us is something we run ourselves: our own boats, our own guides, our own itineraries. Alongside the tours we offer a small, hand-picked collection of places to stay, chosen because we know they work beautifully with the trips we run. We arranged it this way on purpose. When one team is responsible for the boat, the guide, the permits, the pickup and the room, there is no gap between one supplier and the next, and nobody to chase when plans shift. One hand organizing everything simply makes for a calmer, better trip.

Yes. Your card details go straight to Authorize.net and are never stored by us. All card payments are handled by Authorize.net, one of the longest-established payment gateways in the world, and your card details travel straight to them over an encrypted connection. They never pass through our website and we never store them. What we receive is simply a confirmation that a payment has gone through - never your card number. You will also see the charge on your statement as an ordinary card transaction, so every protection that comes with your card still applies. If anything on your statement ever looks unfamiliar, write to us and we will trace it with Authorize.net the same day.

No. Nothing is charged today; payment is taken 14 days before you travel. You can reserve your trip now and pay nothing until 14 days before you travel, and until that date you can cancel free of charge. The exact amount and the date it will be taken are shown on the offer before you confirm, so nothing arrives as a surprise. One thing we would gently ask you to read: cancellation terms can differ from tour to tour and from hotel to hotel, because each of our partners sets their own conditions. Every offer page sets out its policy in full. If you are weighing up two trips, that is the line to compare first.

Yes — and you pick your beef, chicken, vegetarian or vegan dishes when you book. Food is one of the things people remember about a Palau trip, so we do not treat it as an afterthought. Where meals are included - and every offer lists them under “What's included” - you choose your dishes from our menu when you book. There is beef, there is chicken, and there are vegetarian and vegan dishes made with the same care as everything else on the menu. Choosing at booking is what makes it work: your selection goes straight to the kitchen and to the boat crew, so the right meal reaches the right person on the right day, even on outer-island trips where everything is packed before dawn. If your plans change after you book, tell us and we will adjust where we can. And if you have an allergy - shellfish, nuts, gluten - please put it in writing so we can brief the kitchen properly.

For most visitors, no - a 30-day visitor visa is issued on arrival. Palau issues a 30-day visitor visa on arrival to UK, Australian, Japanese and most other passport holders, and it can be extended twice, 30 days at a time. EU and Schengen passports receive 90 days, and US citizens may stay for up to a year. Whatever your passport, three things apply to everyone: a passport valid for at least six months beyond your arrival date, a return or onward ticket, and the free Palau Entry Form, completed at palautravel.pw within 72 hours of departure. Do check the address before you type anything - lookalike sites charge for the same form. On arrival you will sign the Palau Pledge, which is stamped into your passport as a rather lovely keepsake. Rules do change, and they are applied by Palau Immigration rather than by us, so please confirm with your airline before booking flights.

Only mineral, reef-safe sunscreen — anything else is collected at the airport. Since 1 January 2020 Palau has banned sunscreens containing oxybenzone, octinoxate, octocrylene, parabens, triclosan and a long list of related chemicals, because of the damage they do to the reef. This is not a formality: there are disposal bins before customs, and reef-toxic sunscreen is collected. What is fine are products whose only active ingredients are zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide, with no parabens or phenoxyethanol. “Reef-safe” is not a regulated phrase, so it is worth reading the ingredient list rather than the front of the bottle. One more small thing - vapes and e-cigarettes are illegal in Palau, so they are best left at home.

We strongly recommend it, and for diving itineraries we treat it as essential. Palau's medical care is good but small. Belau National Hospital in Koror has a hyperbaric chamber for dive accidents and the team there is excellent, but anything serious is usually evacuated to Guam or Manila, which is expensive and is not covered by most ordinary health policies. When you choose a policy, look for emergency medical evacuation and repatriation, a 24/7 assistance line, and, if you will be diving, specific scuba cover that includes decompression treatment. And buy it when you book rather than the week before you fly: cancellation cover only helps you if it is already in place when you need it.

Almost none of it - no fresh produce, and no vapes at all. Far less than most people expect, and it is worth knowing before you pack. Palau guards its border closely, because a single pest or disease could undo an island ecosystem that has no defenses against it. Fresh fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts, plants, cuttings and soil - and any meat, dairy, eggs or home-cooked food - need an import permit issued before you fly, which in practice means they stay in your fridge at home. If you are unsure about something, declare it on the Palau Entry Form or drop it into the amnesty bins before the inspection desk. Undeclared food is the most common way visitors begin a holiday with a fine. Vapes and e-cigarettes are illegal here outright, possession included; if you arrive with one, surrender it at the point of entry, because the law protects you from prosecution if you do. What you may bring - two liters of alcohol and one opened pack of cigarettes per adult aged 21 or over. Declare cash of US10,000 or more, register drones with the Palau National Aviation Administration at least three days ahead, and please buy no coral, shell or turtle-shell souvenirs - they cannot leave the country, and the reef they came from is the reason you came.