New direct flight just made this paradise easily accessible

For the first time in its 53-year history, Nauru Airlines has launched direct flights from Australia to Palau, making this Pacific paradise, which most Australians can’t find on a map, accessible by a six-hour flight from Brisbane.

With more than 300 islands, aqua lagoons, a pristine reef system, overwater bungalows (there are five at the Palau Pacific Resort), glamping tents, resorts, boutique hotels and super yachts, it has been touted as a Maldives right on our doorstep.

But like most high-end accommodation in that Indian Ocean location, food and drinks are expensive, particularly at resorts, with one charging $100 a bottle for an Australian chardonnay which retails for $10 back home, and another serving up a tuna sandwich for $30. A sting heightened by the fact that the accepted currency in Palau is US dollars.

The good news for visitors in this destination – 650 kilometres north-east of Papua New Guinea – is that you can feast on the likes of fresh fish and Japanese fare for relatively reasonable prices outside the resorts. Even better, along with no traffic lights, there are no franchises, lending a certain charm to this Micronesian mystery.

Palau Visitors Authority managing director Kadoi Ruluked says Palau received 41,227 visitors in 2023, of whom 1172 were Australians. Australian tourists rank sixth after China, Taiwan and the United States, but surprisingly Australians are among the top spenders.

Currently, Palau is home to 16 resorts, 21 hotels, 142 restaurants and eight live-aboard boats. More accommodation is planned, Ruluked says, with construction of an Indigo Hotel – part of IHG – set for completion by year’s end.

Four Seasons, which already has the luxury yacht Four Seasons Explorer Palau in its waters, also has plans to build a new resort.

Ruluked believes Australians will be drawn to Palau due to its proximity, direct flights and experiences such as diving and conservation.