The high-rise hotels of Guam's Tumon Bay seemed surreal after nearly three months island hopping through Oceania
Island Hopping through Oceania - Six Nights in Guam
Guam is the largest island in the Pacific region of Micronesia and serves as a transport hub for the North Pacific. It is a US territory, has a massive US military presence, and caters to a mass-tourism market from countries such as Japan and South Korea.
Guam is much more developed than anywhere else we visited in the Pacific, and caters to mass tourism from Asia
As such, it wouldn’t be our usual first-choice destination. Originally, we had planned two nights in Guam, a necessary stopover between Chuuk and Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) – there are no direct flights between the two states. However, during our time in Pohnpei, we had decided to get out of FSM early and spend some extra time in more developed Guam.
In the end, we made even more changes to our plans, and I scheduled a quick return journey to the UK for my sister’s wedding, skipping Yap and Palau and saving them for a later date.
Guam, with its flight connections to the world outside the watery continent, was the ideal place from which to launch this impromptu side trip. It helped that the Island Hopper flights with United Airlines were fully refundable. So, with plans changed, we strapped in for six nights in this little slice of America in the Pacific.
Camping in Guam
We had read before our arrival in Guam that you could camp in some public parks, and an enquiry with Parks and Rec Guam confirmed it was possible. We just needed to go to their office on arrival to get a permit. Unfortunately, we arrived late in the evening, so we rocked up at Nimitz Beach Park after dark on our first night, pitched our tent, and intended to pay for the permit the following day.
Nimitz is a small park of mown grass and concrete pagodas sandwiched between the island’s ring road and the coast. When we arrived, the toilets were locked, and looked like they had been for some time, and we pitched our mesh inner tent in the dark inside one of the pagodas.
This is how we spent our first two nights in Guam, arriving after dark and waking up at sunrise as the park-walkers arrived for their morning stroll. As they began their loops of the park’s short track, we would bundle our camping equipment into the back seat of the rental car before trundling into nearby Hagatna, the island’s capital, for iced lattes to start the day.
The pagodas in Nimitz Beach Park were an ideal place to pitch our tent
Sights in Guam are limited
After so much off-the-beaten-track travel, we spent much of our time in Guam enjoying the western comforts on offer. When we weren’t sipping iced lattes in the foyer of The Westin Resort, though, we did do some exploration.
The Talo’fo’fo’ Falls were the top attraction according to our guidebook. The cable car down to the falls was enjoyable; the falls were relatively unimpressive, but refreshing for a dip. The dated attempts to commercialise the falls with fairground rides and other tatt left it feeling tacky and damaged.
Talo'fo'fo' Falls make for a refreshing dip
Continuing around the southern tip of Guam, we briefly stopped at the Inarajan Natural Pool, where the dated pagodas surrounding the shallow natural ocean pool left it feeling grubby and unappealing. We didn’t swim.
On the way back up towards Hagatna, we stopped at the clifftop Fort Nuestra Señora de la Soledad, a few walls and a small tower leftover from a Spanish fort, with an ocean view up and down the west coast.
Fort Nuestra Senora de la Soledad has views of Guam's coastline
On Wednesday, we went to the Chamorro Village weekly night market. Packed with food vans and handicrafts, we feasted on BBQ and grilled corn while watching locals dance to live music.
Sleepy Hagatna is the capital of Guam
The following morning, we followed the 2006 Lonely Planet Guide to the South Pacific and Micronesia’s walking tour of Hagatna: the remains of the old Spanish fort, destroyed in WWII; ancient latte stones in a park; the cathedral; an old bridge.
Originally built to support raised structures, latte stones are a symbol of local Chamorro culture
We also visited the impressive museum, built since our guidebook was published, a highlight of Guam, which covers the island’s history from its many owners and occupiers to the present day.
Guam Museum is an excellent place to learn about the history of the island
After two nights as homeless campers in the park, we opted for the cheapest hotel we could find for the remaining four, ditched the rental car, and hung out in Tumon Bay. Home to myriad high-rise hotels (many of which had seen better days, some completely derelict), Tumon Bay is a far cry from the rest of Micronesia.
Tumon Bay is like nowhere else in Oceania
It was surreal to think only a few nights before we’d been lounging in Chuuk lagoon, seemingly as far from civilisation as you could get. Guam really is like nowhere else in Oceania.
This Leg
Days: 6
Flights: 0
Boats: 0
Islands: 1
Countries & Territories: 1
Total
Days: 88
Flights: 20
Boats: 32
Islands: 34
Countries & Territories: 11