Palau

Farflung Palau lies on the western edge of Micronesia, constituting more than 300 islands of the Caroline archipelago. While the country’s one of the most culturally diverse in the South Pacific, its best-known virtues lie underwater: Here’s one of the world’s premier diving destinations, bar none.

From the Blue Corner and the German Channel to the Big Drop-off and the Peleliu Wall, divers the world over rave about Palau’s alluring, wildlife-thronged submarine landmarks. A grand barrier reef complex dominates the underwater geology, which includes plunging escarpments and surging currents that encourage a profuse mixing of nearshore and pelagic species. From sedate whitetip reef sharks and majestic mantas to parrotfish and shimmering schools of barracuda, it’s hard to pull yourself away from the spectacle below the surface. And it’s not just the oceanic happenings: Palau’s Eil Malk Island is home to the famous Jellyfish Lake, where you can snorkel among surreal flotillas of thousands of harmless, landlocked moon and golden jellies.

There’s yet more to see on the rumpled high islands, atolls, and rock islets of topside Palau. This corner of the Caroline Islands has a human history stretching back thousands of years and encompassing settlers from the Philippines, Malaysia, Melanesia, Polynesia, Japan, and elsewhere. Institutions such as Koror’s Belau National Museum (the oldest in Micronesia) and the Ngarachamayong Cultural Center offer insights into homegrown history and traditions. In situ historical monuments, meanwhile, include the well-known basalt-hewn pillars of northern Babeldaob Island, erected in the vicinity of 2,000 years ago, and many World War II sites, among them the relics of the horrific Battle of Peleliu.

The museums and shops of Koror, the beaches and blue holes of the Rock Islands, the shark-patrolled drop-offs and buzzing coral heads—Palau weaves quite the spell.