Palau diving in Dec - but based on shore?

[craracer]

If the place has more than 2 floors, it's large to me

I hear that Bottom Time Bar & Grill has good eats at reasonable prices. Can anyone confirm this, or suggest some places?

Ze_ Hope you don't mind me hitchhiking your thread. Feel free to kick me off the bus at any time, and I'll start another thread.

If if helps, I keep reading that PPR is a really nice place to stay at. Don't ask me what PPR stands for. I haven't been able to figure it out.

 

[Deep Water Dan]

If the place has more than 2 floors, it's large to me

I hear that Bottom Time Bar & Grill has good eats at reasonable prices. Can anyone confirm this, or suggest some places?

Ze_ Hope you don't mind me hitchhiking your thread. Feel free to kick me off the bus at any time, and I'll start another thread.

If if helps, I keep reading that PPR is a really nice place to stay at. Don't ask me what PPR stands for. I haven't been able to figure it out.

Bottom Time is good, Kramers, lots of folks go to the Taj Indian restaurant (not me), and you can get a really good hamburger at the Sea Passion.

PPR=Palau Pacific Resort

 

[craracer]

Thanks DWD:cool2:

 

[tangfish]

Just got back from a week and a half in Palau yesterday. Had a great time despite some challenging weather. Sam's Tours was great. Sea Passion is right next door but I would also look around at other options. Palau Pacific Resort is absolutely tops, but it is a bit of a distance from Sam's and the rest of stuff to do, by car. By boat, it's maybe 5 minutes from Sam's (and they usually pick you up by boat from PPR). If you can swing the cost, I'd go PPR all the way.

Definitely hit the dive sites: Blue Hole, Blue Corner, Ulong and Chandelier Cave.

Eat at Taj and drink at Kramer's (they have good food there too).

 

[craracer]

Any photos from your trip?

 

[farsidefan1]

I eat at Sam's most of the time. Prices are right and the food is good. Best of all is the company. I went there solo and met a bunch of friends. I found the Sea Passion to be way above the usual places found in so called third world countries. And of course a nice breakfast is included (Buffett) . I spoke to some folks staying at the PPR and they were very complimentry of it. I gathered it is much more expensive but very high quality. I am ok with clean quiet rooms when I'm off to some relatively obscure part of the world but I found the Sea Passion to be excellent. Far better than any medium priced hotel stateside. TV fare is limited (I learned to enjoy rugby while I was there) and as I said earlier the internet is super slow and if a storm is going on forget about it. Just keep losing connctivity.
Someday I'll figure out how to post some of my pics. Maybe I'll get my asst. to do it tomorrow. She is my computer guru.

 

[Ze_Abron]

I am interested in the recommendation for peleliu - But how do you get to Peleliu from Palau without losing a day's diving?

It seems that the speedboat only runs in the AM. is there another way to travel? perhaps an aircraft?

 

[joewr]

Hi,
We usually stay at the Palua Pacific Resort. It is a bit more expensive, but the rooms, the meals, and the general ambience make for a wonderful stay. As for diving, we have used both Sam's and Neco Marine. Each has its strong points and weak points.

Sam's DMs tend to be somewhat of the MCP variety and might turn the ladies off. However, once my wife showed them that she could outdo them when it came to air usage, they were impressed. Neco's DM's tend to be somewhat younger and expect folks to have as much stamina as a 20-something diver. For those of us "of an age" this can be disconcerting, but I always let the DM know that I expect him to pace the dive with us in mind...

All that said, Palau is world class diving and worth every cent. Hanging on a reef hook at the Blue Corner when a pelagic shark and a massive tuna whip by whilst on the hunt is a breath-taking experience. On the less envigorating side, the jellyfish lake is an experience worth doing. Most of us dislike being close to jellyfish, but these critters have been rendered harmless to humans due to their environment. So, it is a rare experience.

A not-to-miss experience are the Mandarinfish. These are bright little critters and you need patience to see them. Tell the DM that you want to see the Mandarins and then be prepared to hang around whilst they get the courage up to show themselves. If you are a photographer, here is where your 105mm macro will come in handy.

joewr...travel agent to the sophisiticated diver...or those who don't know any better...and this space is still for rent at a very reasonable price!

 

[Ze_Abron]

Ok, so I just booked my entire stay with Sam's. Going to Peleliu would have meant missing a day's worth of diving.

I'll post pics!

 

[Deep Water Dan]

Ok, so I just booked my entire stay with Sam's. Going to Peleliu would have meant missing a day's worth of diving.

I'll post pics!

Sam's runs dive boats down to Peleliu. The boat ride only takes 45-60 minutes. You can go down for dives, a combination of dives and a short sightseeing trip, or what we did - the all day sightseeing trip to Peleliu on a non-dive day. I highly recommend it, especially if you're a history buff.