Palau

To arrive here by sea is to be drawn in by the call of the unknown and the thrill of exploration. As you approach, the wind carries salty, tropical fragrances, while your eyes lose themselves in the infinity of lagoons with their unreal hues. At the helm, you instinctively slow down, as if to savor every moment of this discovery. Palau is not a place to visit. Palau is an experience...

It’s a sanctuary for sailors in search of raw beauty, an aquatic paradise where the underwater world defies the imagination. To dive here is to enter a silent ballet of sharks, manta rays and unspoiled coral gardens. It’s like swimming through a thousand lakes populated by golden jellyfish, or wandering between islets sculpted by time, where almost every cove conceals a forgotten beach.

Far off the beaten track, Palau offers sailors the promise of adventure and tranquility. The archipelago boasts an infinite number of anchorages where you can drop the hook not only in the fine sands of a magnificent lagoon, but also to enjoy a fleeting moment, lulled by the whisper of the wind and the lazy lapping of the waves.

Palau still bears the scars of one of the bloodiest battles in the Pacific. In 1944, the island of Peleliu became the scene of a terrible confrontation between American and Japanese forces. What was supposed to be a quick conquest turned into an inferno that lasted more than two months. Under a sweltering sun, the American soldiers fought to gain ground, inch by inch, trapped in a labyrinth of caves and bunkers where the Japanese put up fierce resistance.

Almost no Japanese soldiers surrendered, and on the American side, the losses were terrible: more than 10,000 men killed or wounded. Even today, more than 80 years later, the island still reverberates with the silence of those dark days. Rusting tanks, abandoned bunkers, underwater wrecks... everything seems frozen in time, like a timeless reminder of the horrors of war. We even stumbled across a shell during our snorkeling session.

Anchoring

07°16’.3N - 134°33.9’E

There are countless places to anchor in the archipelago. It would be impossible to name them all in this section, so I’ll recommend Mecherchar Island, which is Palau’s main attraction, both for diving and for discovering unusual islets and quiet anchorages. Not far from German Channel, where manta rays and giant clams live side by side, there are plenty of options: pick an anchorage that seems the most protected and enjoy the luxuriant environment that surrounds you and the cockatoos that swoop over your multihull.

Weather

Palau enjoys a warm, humid, tropical climate throughout the year, with pleasant temperatures ranging from 25 to 31°C (77 to 88°F), making sailing easy and always possible. The archipelago is exposed to the trade winds, which blow from the north-east during the wet season and from the south-west during the dry season.

The best time to sail is from November to May, during the dry season, when the winds are moderate and rainfall scarce. During these months, the skies are often brilliant blue, the lagoons offer exceptional underwater visibility, and the anchorages are absolutely calm - perfect conditions for extended stopovers.

From June to October, the wet season takes over with more frequent rainfall, often in the form of intense but brief tropical showers, which cool the atmosphere without totally hampering sailing. The seas can sometimes be rougher and the humidity more marked, with powerful and sometimes unexpected squalls. The famous white squalls are common in this part of the world.

The Mecherchar Islands, as if they were suspended between sea and sky, are renowned for their dive sites.

Remnants of the war are still clearly visible, such as this American cannon and memorial.

It’s impossible to get enough of Palau’s unique landscapes...