Palau Snorkel Adventure! March 21-29, 2020

PALAU SNORKEL ADVENTURE!  MARCH 21-29, 2020

Palau is a unique oasis, a self-contained, isolated archipelago thriving with biodiversity located 900 miles southwest of Guam and 400 miles south of Yap, at the westernmost edge of Micronesia. Palau is just a 175 square miles but it has enormous marine biodiversity with over 1500 species of fish and 700 corals and anemones.

The iconic Rock Islands are the backdrop for our snorkeling adventure. The dramatic mushroom-shaped limestone formations are covered in rain forest foliage. The islands are surrounded by warm, tropical water with spectacular reefs, walls and shallow wrecks, making Palau a snorkeler’s paradise.

December through March are the ideal months to visit. It’s mating season for Mantas and a great time to encounter schools of jacks, snappers, parrot fish, butterfly fish, moorish idols and unicorn fish. Turtles, sharks, giant napoleon wrasses, eagle rays and barracuda are often seen as well.

Palau also offers some very unique sightings. We’ll check out Clam City, home to giant clams, and Mandarin Fish Lake, located in a breath taking location in the rock islands. Mandarin Fish are gorgeous, intricately patterned fish in the dragonet family.
Jellyfish Lake is another unique ecosystem in Palau. Due to drought conditions the lake is currently closed but hopefully by March 2020 it will reopen.
Expect day time temps to be around 86F and water temp to be between 80-82F. A full body rash guard plus a 3mm shorty wetsuit would be ideal.

ITINERARY:
Saturday March 21  Upon arrival in Palau you’ll be transferred to our group hotel. Dinner at the hotel is included.
Sunday March 22  We’ll board the Rock Island Aggressor live-aboard at 4:00pm. The Rock Island Aggressor is a steel hull catamaran that measures 106 ft. long with a 30 ft. beam. One big advantage of our live-aboard is her shallow draft. Our boat can cruise through the German channel while other boats must take a longer route around.  The Rock Island holds 18 passengers. All cabins have air conditioning, private toilets, showers, sinks, towels and hair dryers. Meals include breakfast (cooked to order), buffet lunch and chef prepared meals at dinner, and fresh mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks. The Aggressor has several very wonderful amenities like fluffy bathrobes in the cabin, coffee delivered to your cabin in the morning and local wine and beer included with dinner.
Snorkels are made from an 18-passenger dive skiff, which is lowered into the water by a hydraulic cradle. How nifty is that!

Sunday March 22-Saturday March 28  Our snorkel adventure by live-aboard will allow us to exploring the inner and outer reefs of Palau. Our day to day itinerary will be weather and tide dependent and may include Ulong Channel, German Channel, Blue Corner, Ngemelis Reef, Mandarin Fish Lake and Jelly Fish Lake (if it has reopened).
During our time in the water we’ll experience a range of underwater habitats including shallow reefs, walls, wrecks and exciting channels where we may encounter pelagics.

During my last group trips to Palau in Jan/Feb 2018 we discovered the magic of bait balls in the German Channel.
During incoming currents tons of nutrients are swept into the channel. This infusion of plankton brings in school after school of fish. These extraordinary aggregations of small fishes are called bait balls—they’re bait for ocean predators.
We found ourselves in the middle of layers of fusiliers, black snappers, jacks and unicorn fish all swirling around us and obscuring our vision in the most wonderful way. Below us swam graceful reefs sharks that were happy to be invited to the dinner party.
And then….cue the Mantas! Soon Mantas swooped in joining the food orgy. At one time there were seven Mantas around us giving us a spectacular underwater ballet performance. It was poetry in motion as they came towards us in formation and then somersaulted (called “barrel rolling”) so close to us we had to be careful not to touch them.

We’ll definitely be checking out German Channel in hopes of being fortunate enough for more bait ball encounters.
Ulong Channel is another vibrant channel with turtles, sharks, schools of jacks and black snappers.
Big Drop off and Blue Corner are other awesome snorkel sites where pelagics can often be seen.

Saturday March 28 The Rock Island Aggressor returns to Koror in the afternoon.
This evening we will have a group dinner on shore.

Sunday March 29  After breakfast disembark the Rock Island Aggressor by 8:00am.  You are confirmed in a day room for March 29th as most flights leave after midnight.
Should you prefer, you may choose to fly onward late night of the 28th since we’ll be in port that evening.

PRICING:
This departure is sold out. Please contact Wendy@SnorkelingEtc.com to be waitlisted.

DELUXE CABIN: $4550.00 per person based on double occupancy. 
$7050.00 for single occupancy. 
En-suite Deluxe cabins with A/C are approx. 12′ x 8’5″ feet with a picture window.
Bedding is a lower queen bed and an upper single bed.

DOUBLE CABIN: $4250.00 per person based on double occupancy.
$6550.00 for single occupancy. 
En-suite Double cabin with A/C is a smaller cabin approx 12’6″ x 6’9″ feet located on the dive deck.
Bedding is a lower and upper double bed. There is a port hole window in the door looking onto the dive deck.

In 2018, I operated two back to back charters on the Rock Island Aggressor. The majority of travelers choose to join both groups. Everyone agreed that the extra time on board and in the water was well worth it. Even a return to the same sites did not feel redundant as the dynamic fish population is ever changing.
If you’d like to join the March 14th sailing you will receive a $200.00 per person discount on the second sailing.  

PRICE INCLUDES:
♦ Airport transfers on group arrival and departure days
♦ March 21 accommodations and dinner at our group hotel
♦ 7 nights aboard the Rock Island Aggressor including snorkel excursions and all meals.
♦ Day room in Koror on March 29
♦ Port fee of $210.00 per person

PRICE EXCLUDES:
♦ International Airfare
♦ Travel Insurance
♦ Personal Expenses
♦ Gratuities
♦ $55.00 “Green Fee” payable at the airport upon departure.

I hope you can join this awesome snorkel adventure and experience the amazing beauty of Palau!
Please contact me with any questions or to request an application.
Wendy Simon/Founder and CEO
Snorkeling Etc. Inc.
831 254-5001
Wendy@SnorkelingEtc.com