Guided Touring on Nauru
Nauru has no tour agencies, no hop-on buses and no ticketed attractions. Guided touring here means asking a local driver or guide to take you around, and the arrangement is made face to face once you arrive. That suits a 21 square kilometre island well, because the main sights are close together and a driver who knows the tracks saves a lot of wandering.
How a guided half-day works
Ask the front desk at Menen Hotel, or contact Capelle & Partner in Ewa, who run the island’s car hire and department store. A local driver with a four-wheel-drive vehicle can take you through the interior and along the coast. A typical route covers the Japanese gun positions and the communications bunker on Command Ridge, the phosphate hoppers and rail tracks, Buada Lagoon and the caves near Moqua Well in Yaren. Agree the route, the length and the price before you set off, and pay in Australian dollars cash.
Why a driver helps on Topside
Topside is the mined plateau at the centre of the island. It is a maze of active quarry ground, conveyor lines and unmarked dirt tracks, and loose phosphate gravel can bog down a rental car. A guide keeps you on solid ground and out of the quarries. Bring closed shoes, a hat, sun protection and plenty of water, because there is no shade and the UV is very high.
War relics with a local historian
Japanese forces held Nauru from August 1942 until the surrender in September 1945, and gun emplacements, pillboxes and bunkers remain in the undergrowth in Anetan, Ijuw and Aiwo districts. Some can be reached on foot with a local contact. Wear long trousers against thorny scrub, sturdy shoes, and carry a torch for the underground rooms. The sites are war relics, so keep voices low and leave everything where you find it.
What not to expect
Standard tour portals carry no Nauru products, so there is nothing to compare or reserve in advance. There are no ticket offices and no set departure times. The ring road and the road around Buada Lagoon are public, so a driver is a convenience rather than a requirement for them.
Planning notes
You need a visa arranged before travel, since there is none on arrival, and your passport should be valid for at least three months after you arrive. Nauru Airlines is the only passenger carrier and flies a few times a week, so build your stay around its schedule. Cards are not accepted and the single ATM, at Menen Hotel, is often empty, so bring enough Australian dollars for the whole trip. Accommodation is also booked directly with the hotel by email or phone.
Booking
Search Viator for any new Nauru listings, though most arrangements are made on the island. Entry rules are on the UK government page for Nauru , and the wartime guns are described at Pacific Wrecks .
Read more: Sightseeing on Nauru and Day trips on Nauru .