NCRD'S MICRONESIA 2014: Week #2
One week onboard Tropic Dancer
Truly a diver's paradise, Palau is an archipelago of over 586 mushroom-shaped islands, nestled in the westernmost corner of beautiful Micronesia, 900 miles southwest of Guam. These biodiverse, warm tropical waters boast an astonishing 1,500 species of fish and 500 species of coral, including cuttlefish, mandarinfish, eels, invertebrates such as nudibranchs, crabs, and shrimps, giant clams that weigh a quarter of a ton, even the rarely seen chambered nautilus and a lake with 21 million softly pulsating stingless jellyfish! Recently inscribed onto UNESCO's World Heritage List, Palau has been dubbed the "Eighth Natural Wonder of the World".
Palau's unspoiled reefs, blue holes, hidden caves and walls are spectacular and host the world's first official Shark Sanctuary, where water currents bring in large pelagics like grey reef sharks, white-tip sharks and manta rays. Even better, Northern California Rainbow Divers has scheduled this trip to coincide with the mantas' and sharks' mating season! While we may not observe actual mating, these animals should be present in greater numbers than usual.
This area of Micronesia is also rich in World War II history, both on land and underwater. Remnants of gun emplacements can still be seen in hidden caves on the rock islands, and downed planes, ships and tanks dot the marine landscape. Our itinerary will focus on the exhilarating dive sites that Palau is best known for: Big Drop-off, Blue Corner, Blue Holes, Chandelier Caves, Peleliu walls, Ulong and German Channels among others, as well as the chance to dive the Iro Maru WWII wreck and a hike/snorkel trip to the magnificent Jellyfish Lake.
THE BOAT
Our one-week, full-boat charter aboard the Tropic Dancer will be exclusive to Northern California Rainbow Divers. We have room for 18 lucky LGBT divers and our friends. More information about our boat can be found here.
DIVING CONDITIONS
The tropical waters of Palau are consistently warm year-round in the range of 80-82ºF. Divers may make as many as 4-5 dives a day, and most find a 3mm wetsuit comfortable. Night diving is planned for 3 nights during our week, conditions permitting. Many dives in Palau are drift dives, so divers should be comfortable in currents, at times strong current. On our boat, use of a dive computer is mandatory on all dives. Divers should have a minimum of 25 logged dives in order to participate in this trip and be comfortable drift diving and diving in currents.
All diving will done from a 35' outboard skiff, using an easy backward roll for entering the water and a sturdy, well-crafted ladder for exiting the water. All dives will be guided. Between dives, you are welcome to snorkel, enjoy secluded beaches or simply relax onboard with a drink and a snack.
EXTENDING YOUR TRIP
If you might like to join us for a pre-cruise shore-based dive resort in Yap from March 8-15 (7 nights) or March 11-15 (4 nights), 2014, you'd have the opportunity to dive two distinctly spectacular regions of Micronesia, as well as use our time in Yap to help get over jet lag and adjust to our new time zone prior to boarding the Tropic Dancer in Palau. 8 nights in Truk Lagoon, aka Chuuk, is also available from March 23-31, 2014, following our cruise week in Palau.
INCLUDED:
- 7 nights aboard the Tropic Dancer liveaboard
- 1 night at Palau Royal Resort on arrival day of March 15 for participants in our Yap package in the prior week
- transfers between the boat and airport or Koror hotels
- air-conditioned, double-occupancy cabin with ensuite bath
- all meals and between-meal snacks, except for the final Saturday night dinner at a restaurant in Koror town
- fruit juice, coffee, tea and sodas, plus local wines and beers
- 4 guided dives a day, plus 3 additional night dives, conditions permitting, over five and a half dive days
- air fills and use of tanks, weights and weight belt
- divemaster and dive guide services as provided by the boat
- hiking and snorkeling excursion to Jellyfish Lake
NOT INCLUDED:
- optional dive gear rental
- optional 32% Nitrox fills (USD $100/week)
- USD $210 port fees, payable onboard
- final Saturday night dinner at a restaurant in Koror town
- international or Micronesia domestic flights to/from Palau (airport code: ROR)
- USD $50 departure tax and Green Fee, paid at Koror airport
- you may wish to bring your own liquor due to high duty/tax
- optional dive courses onboard
- discretionary tips and crew gratuities
- optional boutique purchases onboard
- any items of a personal nature
- travel or dive accident insurance, or medical evacuation
FLIGHTS:
Participants in NCRD's Yap trip should plan to arrive in Koror, Palau, late Saturday evening on March 15, 2014. An overnight room will be waiting for you at Palau Royal Resort and is included in your Yap package.
Divers not participating in our Yap trip should plan to be in Palau no later than the morning of Sunday, March 16.
Divers may board the boat on Sunday, March 16, starting at 4:00 p.m. We recommend arriving a day or two prior to help get acclimated to the time change.
Because we will cross the international date line on our transoceanic flights to/from Micronesia, U.S. residents may need to begin travel as early as March 13 to arrive in Palau no later than the morning of March 16.
After our liveaboard cruise ends, we will disembark the boat no later than 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 23, 2014. You may plan to depart Koror anytime that Sunday or in the late evening before on Saturday night. The boat will be back in port by early evening Saturday, March 22, giving us a few hours to explore Koror and have dinner in town before catching an outbound flight late that evening. Divers continuing on our Chuuk trip will need to leave for the airport late Saturday evening in order to catch our flight in the wee hours of Sunday morning, March 23.
Multiple air carriers fly into Koror, Palau (airport code: ROR), but none of the flights are direct from the United States. These include United Airlines, China Airlines, Korean Air, Delta Airlines and Japan Airlines. Within Micronesia, United Airlines has a monopoly on flights between the islands. If you might like to use frequent flyer miles, the best way to get to Palau from the U.S. may be to fly into Guam, Manila or Tokyo using your preferred U.S. carrier, then switch to United Airlines for the Micronesia portion of your trip. Star Alliance also offers a special Micronesia AirPass for island hopping within Micronesia on United Airlines.
CAVEATS:
Please do not commit to air flights or other logistical arrangements until you have received confirmation of your space from the Trip Leader once your initial deposit has been received.
All divers on this trip should be comfortable diving in currents and have good buoyancy skills. Divers are required to carry valid, in-force dive accident insurance, such as may be obtained from Divers' Alert Network (DAN).
Divers must agree to NCRD's Event Terms and Conditions to participate in this trip.
PRICE:
$2,500 per diver, Deluxe Cabin, Double Occupancy (ensuite bath)
$2,300 per diver, Double Cabin, Double-Occupancy(ensuite bath)
This a specially discounted price for members of Northern California Rainbow Divers. If you are not a paid member of this safety-minded, fun-loving club, please consider joining in order to sign up for this trip.
PAYMENT PLAN:
| |
|
DELUXE CABIN
|
DOUBLE CABIN
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| 1st: |
At registration
|
USD $1,000
|
USD $1,000
|
| 2nd: |
July 15, 2013
|
USD $ 500
|
USD $ 500 |
| 3rd: |
Sep.15, 2013
|
USD $ 500
|
USD $ 500 |
| 4th: |
Nov. 15, 2013
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USD $ 500
|
USD $ 300
|
PAYMENTS:
Trip payments may be made by PayPal or by personal check. The price is the same regardless of payment method. Please consider using PayPal, as electronic payment greatly simplifies the work of our volunteers. Please send PayPal payments to this address: paypal@rainbowdivers.org
If you wish to pay by check, please make payable to NCRD and send to:
NCRD
3600 Forest Avenue
South Lake Tahoe CA 96150
