Guam (and surrounding islands)

IMA - There are various activities you can do in Guam. From Guam , you can visit Rota which is called the friendliest island in the Micronesia, Palau which has a jellyfish lake is worth a visit, The Marshall Islands, and Saipan. Philippines not too far from Guam.

https://www.mymarianas.com/rota/

https://www.micronesiatour.com/

How many days are you spending in Guam?

how many day's ---- not sure yet, trying to figure that out.
It all depends on what ELSE is in the area. Like, can I get to x country to visit or should I stay in Guam....

IMA - From Guam there are islands that are nearby that can be done on a day tour. Rota from Guam - 35 minutes, Saipan - 60 Minutes, Tinian - 45 minutes. Palau is the only island a bit far among the others because it's 2 hours fight from Guam. Visit those 3 islands I mentioned that are near to Guam then stay in Guam for the rest of your time.

To start, here's the listing for all the destinations you can fly to nonstop from Guam's airport: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_B._Won_Pat_International_Airport#Passenger

You may be interested in the "island hopper" that flies from Honolulu to Guam via MANY small islands, that otherwise have very limited service. Here's a video with details: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLzQhj2uzOk

Island hopper --- that's exactly what I was looking for. I read about it "many moons ago" and forgot the name.

I've already booked that part of the trip. Who needs a direct flight when you can jump between islands.

I do have another similar question ---
Is there a way to go from Guam to Rota, Tinian, Saipan on the cheap --- maybe a boat.

Thanks for all the help.

@David,

Excellent response. Thank you, I really appreciate the writeup - and setting/re-setting my expectations. Guam has been on my MUST SEE list for-ever. I can't wait to see the place.

Guam is a relatively small island. I spend one night and a day there when traveling from Palau to Okinawa. The main town is a short distance from the airport. Lots of western hotels all heavily populated by Japanese and possibly Korean families or honeymooners. Easy to rent a car and go around the entire island. Lots of secluded coves and deserted beaches and some crowded ones too.

You can get to Saipan and lots of places in Japan easily with United - as well as Manila and Palau. The other islands in Micronesia that are served by the Island Hopper are probably a little further away.

We have been stationed here on Guam for 2.5 years and love it. Yes, you have the touristy spots here but there is also so much more to see and do here. There’s off-roading (to the Tank Farm), snorkeling, diving, tons of cool hikes to hidden gems, waterfalls, massacre memorial sites. A few museums to check out, old WWII sites, a jungle adventure cruise, talofofo falls adventure park, the Korean Air Liner Memorial Site and so much more. I have only been to Saipan for a weekend but there’s historical sites to visit there as well. Beautiful beaches. Only a 55 minute flight if I remember right. We are thankful for our time here on Guam and guarantee you’ll love it. I would recommend staying at least a couple of weeks.
I hear the islands of Rota, Tinian, Yap and Palau are must-sees too.

The Island Hopper mentioned is run by United and stops on several islands between Honolulu and Guam. It caries mail and perishables to the islands along with a few residents. Exactly which islands depends on the day of the week.

The thing is though, most of the stops are US military airfields and you don't even exit the plane. The other stops you go no further than the airport terminal. You do NOT get to do any sight seeing. There are no hotels or even friendly residents to allow you to stay the night. I did it once just so I could mark off those islands on my travel map.

I lived there for 2 1/4 years, 1984-86. Last time back was in 2004, for a brief military deployment. It hadn't changed much in the 20 years between. It's called the hub of the Pacific because it's about the same distance to Japan, Philippines and Australia.

For me the best activity is SCUBA diving and the best islands are Palau (might be called Bellau now?), Ponape (I think now called Pohn-pei?) and Truk.

Guam has some decent wreck dives. Generally there's a main road that runs from top to bottom of the Island. Roughly 16 miles but takes nearly all day to get one way and back. There is a galleria, high-end shopping mall, near the hotels. The nice hotels are all built on Tumon Bay. They're populated primarily by Japanese honeymoon couples. I stayed at the Hilton when I first arrived and fell in with the Australian rock group INXS because we were the only English speakers staying there.

Truk as I recall is considered a memorial park, there are tons of full wrecks (including skeletons) but you're not allowed to take anything.

I realize no one is traveling any time soon, but I just came across this interesting video about Guam: https://youtu.be/5r90DYjZ76g