Nauru
Nauru is a tiny Pacific island nation with a quiet, off-the-beaten-path charm. Visitors find rugged phosphate terraces, a dramatic coastal walk around the island’s rocky rim, and small local communities where traditional customs remain strong. Snorkeling and diving reveal healthy coral and marine life, while inland trails lead to World War II relics and limestone caves. With limited accommodation and services, Nauru suits travelers seeking solitude, cultural encounters, and an uncommercialized island experience. Practical planning and respect for local customs are essential.
If you’re here from my post “How to visit every country in the Pacific,” welcome! This is going to be a little more of an in-depth guide on my trip to the country of Nauru.
How to get to Nauru
Nauru is one of the world’s least-visited countries, so getting here is not easy. There are flights twice per week from Brisbane, which is where I started my journey, and the only airline that flies to Nauru is Nauru Airlines. I flew from Kiribati to Nauru, so I recommend looping these two countries together on your trip. Flights are regularly cancelled or rescheduled, so always leave extra days just in case something happens.
How to get the visa for Nauru
Surprisingly this isn’t an easy visa to get! At the time of writing this post, the main contact to obtain the visa is a man named Cramer Cain, who is based in Brisbane, Australia.
Here is his email: cramer.cain@brisbane.gov.nr
He will send you the visa application to fill out and you also have to provide a copy of your passport, flights, hotel booking, and a document that shows your current employment or source of income. Then you have to send a payment of $50 AUD.
I sent an email about a month prior to departure, but the visa wasn’t ready until the day I flew out of Brisbane. My friend’s visa was ready in just two days, so I naturally followed up weekly via email and was very concerned, but Cramer constantly said they were still working on it and not to worry since everything is fine. When I arrived in Brisbane I decided to pay a visit to the Nauru embassy and met Cramer, and he reiterated that he would follow-up with immigration, but again, everything was fine. I finally got my visa that evening and flew out just a few hours later to Kiribati. Definitely one of my more stressful visa experiences!
Where to stay in Nauru
There aren’t many options for hotels in Nauru, but we stayed at GoodWorks Accommodation. Ignore the photos you see on Booking, it was newly renovated when we went and was clean with great AC. Easy check-in and check-out system too. It was walking distance from two Chinese restaurants and overall a good location. Someone from the hotel was able to do an airport pick-up and drop-off for us.
SEARCH | Alternatively, check out Booking.com for more options in the area.
How to get around Nauru
We had the hotel pick us up from the airport and drop us off, and there were restaurants within walking distance. People are friendly enough that you could easily hitchhike, but if you wanted to rent a car I would recommend asking your hotel to set something up since there aren’t any formal car rentals on the island.
What to do in Nauru
DAY 1: The evening day we arrived, we got settled at our hotel and had dinner at one of the Chinese restaurants just a few minutes walk away. We tried both restaurants and they were terrible. I would’ve liked to try local food but we couldn’t find anything.
DAY 2: We woke up early and decided to walk the perimeter of the country. It’s 20 km around, and how often can you say you walked around an entire country?! We started at 6:30 AM and honestly that was way too late — it was already terribly hot by then. It took us a total of 3.5 hours with stops. Instead of walking, I would recommend renting a bike. It would be a quick, flat sunrise bike ride along the ocean.
During our walk, we stopped at Blue’s Gym to try and meet the “World’s Strongest Man of 2019,” powerlifter Jezza Uepa, but unfortunately he wasn’t there that day. Our next stop was the WWII Memorial Monument, where you can also see some of Nauru’s abandoned phospate sites. My friend also went to Moqua Cave, which is right next to the airport, but said there was a couple in there that was… very loud… to put it appropriately, so she didn’t go in.
After another terrible meal at the Chinese restaurant we headed back to the airport. It was a unique experience — would I ever go back? Probably not, but I thoroughly enjoyed my time in one of the smallest countries in the world.
Budget
VISA: $50 AUD
$50 AUD is about $35 USD.
FLIGHTS: $1009
The whole Nauru flight loop (Brisbane - Kiribati - Nauru - Brisbane) cost $1784 USD, but to just break it down, from Kiribati to Nauru cost $370 USD and from Nauru back to Brisbane cost $639 USD.
HOTEL: $80 USD
FOOD & DRINKS: $20 USD
TOTAL SPENT FOR NAURU: $1144 USD
