Ship: Odyssey (ZE)
Itinerary: Bridging the Equator: Micronesia
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Clownfish found during a South Pacific snorkeling tour
cabins & deck plans | additional itineraries | cancellation policy | Testimonials
| Day 1 : | Guam / Embark Clipper Odyssey |
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| Day 2 : | Cruising the Pacific Ocean |
| Day 3 : | Yap, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) |
| Day 4 : | Sorol Island |
| Day 5 : | Ifalik Atoll |
| Day 6 : | Lamotrek Atol |
| Day 7 : | Satawal Island |
| Day 8 : | Pulap Atoll |
| Day 9 : | Chuuk (Truk) Island |
| Day 10 : | Oroluk Atoll |
| Day 11 : | Pohnpei |
| Day 12 : | Pohnpei / Homeward |
| Click for full itinerary |
| Days | Dates | Deck + Cabin Type | ||||||
| Category 1/ A-Deck | Category 2/ Main | Category 3/ Main | Category 4/ Lido | Category 5/ Bridge | Category 6/ Balcony Suite | Owners Suite | ||
| 12 | Aug 27, 2010 | $8,980 | $9,480 | $9,980 | $10,680 | $11,480 | $12,380 | $15,380 |
| Destinations : Guam, Micronesia, South Pacific Activities : Cultural Activities, Hiking, Nature Viewing, Paddling, Scuba Diving, Snorkeling |
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- All rates are quoted in USD and are based on double occupancy. Single rates may be available at 1.7 times the share rate.
Tiny islets, mangrove-canopied channels, and emerald lagoons distinguish this Federated States of Micronesia cruise. Your travels through Micronesia begin in Guam, aboard the intimate expedition vessel Clipper Odyssey. Cruise to the nearby Caroline Islands and explore the traditional island group of Yap where villagers welcome you with drums and dances. On uninhabited atolls, naturalist-led walks reveal profuse birdlife and rare botanicals. Snorkel and dive kaleidoscopic coral reefs teeming with fish, and WWII ship wrecks in Truk Island Lagoon. In lush Pohnpei, explore 92 megalithic man-made islands, once the residence of royalty.
Day 1 : Guam / Embark Clipper Odyssey
Arrive via your independent flight to Guam. Meet your group for lunch at a hotel. Have a short tour of this fascinating island before boarding the Clipper Odyssey in the late afternoon.
Day 2 : Cruising the Pacific Ocean
Your lecturers will introduce you to the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), formerly the Caroline Islands, whose long colonial history includes administration by the U.S. after WWII. Many of the islands of Yap State are so remote that the traditional villages are nearly untouched by tourism.
Day 3 : Yap, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)
Today experience the many facets of Yap Island. Explore its villages via motorcoach with lecturers and a local guide. Walk along ancient stone pathways, past fields of taro, and through dense forests to observe stone foundations from previous cultures. Visit a pebai, community house; view wunbey, the flat stone platforms where the elder men of the village hold meetings; and photograph Yap’s famed stone money, the biggest and heaviest money in the world. Or, choose to take a kayaking tour and explore the inner reefs and mangroves of the island, or dive the wondrous reefs of Yap.
In the afternoon hope to snorkel and dive at close range with manta rays. Magnificent leviathans with wingspans 7 – 14 feet across, the mantas are in Yap daily to feed and have their gills groomed by cleaner wrasses.
Day 4 : Sorol Island
This morning watch for green turtles as Zodiacs zigzag through coral reefs and shallow sandbars to land on a white sand beach. On this tiny uninhabited island, groves of coconut palms adorn the lagoon shore as sooty terns and white-tailed tropicbirds soar overhead. Snorkel over a coral drop-off or enjoy a dive in deeper waters populated by large pelagic fish. Spend the afternoon cruising the Pacific Ocean and enjoying the many amenities the Clipper Odyssey has to offer.
Day 5 : Ifalik Atoll
You may spot common bottlenose dolphins playing in your wake as you approach Ifalik. This classic tiny circular atoll, with only three islets, represents the most authentic aspects of Micronesia’s traditional state, Yap. The chiefs are intent upon maintaining cultural integrity—motor-powered boats are banned within the lagoon, as are televisions in the village. Your expedition leader goes ashore to sit in the large A-frame men’s house with the village elders to respectfully request their permission for you visit. Ashore, the islanders show you their thatched-roofed houses set under shady trees. After lyrical dances by grass-skirted women, you are free to wander and admire the island handicrafts, including unique fish hooks fashioned from golden-lipped pearl shells. In the afternoon choose to snorkel, dive, sail in one of the handsome outrigger canoes, or go birding with an ornithologist. Spot a large monitor lizard hiding in the coconut palm fronds, a Micronesian starling or wandering tattler, or come face-to-face underwater with a goldring surgeonfish or the giant green Napoleon wrasse.
Day 6 : Lamotrek Atol
Be on deck as the Odyssey enters the large, stunning lagoon of Lamotrek Atoll. Once ashore local dancers perform a welcome ceremony and share faluvwa, a local coconut wine that is enjoyed widely in Micronesia. In the afternoon snorkel from the beach over stunning coral gardens full of colorful reef fish including lionfish, pipefish, and moray eels. Divers venture via Zodiac to the edges of the reef, keeping an eye out for black-tipped reef sharks and other pelagics.
Day 7 : Satawal Island
The captain expertly guides the ship near the reef and waits as passengers join the historian and ornithologist for walks on shore. The village maidens, adorned in lava-lava skirts, their skin tinted by turmeric, present welcoming dances. Meet the exuberant young boys of the island, whose skills in tropical waters are so fine-tuned that they seem “half-fish.” The men of Satawal, famed for their mastery of ocean navigation without the use of instruments, still voyage between the islands of Micronesia in outrigger canoes, steering by the sun, stars, and swells.
Day 8 : Pulap Atoll
Both Pulap village and Tamatam village are known for their skilled navigators, whose expertise also shines in the construction of long canoes made of breadfruit wood. Older canoes are hand-sewn with traditional sennit, and may feature the silhouette of a black frigatebird on the bow. With the chief’s permission, wander at leisure through this traditional village; locals may be pleased to give us a ride in an outrigger sailing canoe. Snorkel, dive, beachcomb, or sit under a palm tree to enjoy the afternoon on a perfect islet with a shallow aquamarine lagoon to our right and the deep indigo Pacific to your left.
Day 9 : Chuuk (Truk) Island
This spectacular and enormous coral- fringed lagoon shelters 15 high islands of volcanic origin. The dramatic scenery ranges from lush rain forests and waterfalls, to deserted beaches and small villages. Chuuk’s lagoon is a world-renowned paradise for wreck divers. In 1944, American bombers sunk 60 Japanese Imperial Navy vessels and aircraft which sheltered here—the armada visible today in an intriguing and vast museum-like underwater environment of unparalleled mystery. Nature has transformed these wrecks into a wonderland, colonized by a mosaic of corals, sponges, anemones, and sea fans, which are the playground of fish by the thousands and can be explored by both divers and snorkelers. Zodiacs whisk you to idyllic white sandy shores and dazzling coral reefs teeming with life, while birders search the palm-laden islets for seabirds in this lagoon of astonishing variety and extravagant natural beauty.
Day 10 : Oroluk Atoll
This classic atoll’s ring of coral has only a few islets around its perimeter, and is inhabited by a family of eight who show off their gardens of hibiscus, banana, and sweet potato. A short forest walk takes you past taro to a copra processing area. Beachcomb along the lovely shoreline keeping an eye out for hawksbill and Pacific green sea turtle nests, while birders look for ruddy turnstones, black noddies, white-tailed tropicbirds, and Micronesian starlings. Snorkeling and diving are superb, with the chance to spot black-tipped reef sharks and coral trout.
Day 11 : Pohnpei
Pohnpei is a high volcanic island, with dense rain forests filled with towering trees, elegant ferns, tumbling waterfalls, and luxuriant mosses. Choose to visit the extensive WWII ruins on Lenger Island with your historian, with time to snorkel along rich reefs or to spot the Pacific golden-plover and Pacific reef heron. Or, hike along an upland nature trail and glimpse the Pohnpei lory, Micronesian pigeon, and Pohnpei flycatcher. Another option is a full-day tour to Pohnpei’s famed archeological site, Nan Madol, a National Historic Landmark. Explore the 92 megalithic man-made islands, once the residence of the royalty and priests of the Saudeleurs from about the 12th to the 15th centuries.
Day 12 : Pohnpei / Homeward
After breakfast disembark the Clipper Odyssey and transfer to the airport for your independent flights homeward.
Ship Description: Odyssey (ZE)
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Odyssey
The Odyssey was built in 1989 in Tsu, Japan, by Japanese craftsmen to the design of a master Dutch yacht designer, Studio Acht, and is eminently suited for the year-round itineraries in the Pacific. These range from as far south as New Zealand and Australia's Great Barrier Reef, to as far north as Japan, the Kuril Islands, and the Russian Far East, including the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The Odyssey measures 340 feet long, 51 feet wide, and has a draft of 14 feet. Staterooms are all outside and average a generous 186 square feet in size, and are furnished with either twin or queen-size beds and a sitting area with a sofa. Each cabin features a spacious bathroom with tub baths and shower, individually controlled air-conditioning, in-room music system, ample wardrobe space, three-sided mirrors, personal safe, refrigerator, and television.
A fleet of Zodiac landing craft can be launched in minutes to take passengers ashore in places where no infrastructure exists. The vessel is equipped with state-of-the-art satellite navigation and communication equipment including telephone, fax, and email.
An outdoor swimming pool, dedicated jogging track, and two sun decks offer ample opportunities for outdoor recreation. Inside, the spacious public areas of the ship include two lounges, a small library, and a single seating dining room.
An experienced cruise staff, physician, and onboard lecturers accompany all voyages to enhance the passengers’ enjoyment of the places visited.
All meals are prepared to order on board. The ship's chefs, graduates of the finest American culinary schools, combine the highest quality American ingredients with the influences and spices of the places the Odyssey visits. The resulting "fusion cuisine" provides a taste of the destinations visited.
Category 1/ A-DeckA Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area, portholes. Approx. 185 sqft |
Category 2/ MainForward Main Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
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Category 3/ Main Main Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
Category 4/ Lido Lido Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 175 sqft |
Category 5/ BridgeBridge Deck, Outside Double Cabin with sitting area and a window. Approx. 230 sqft |
Category 6/ Balcony SuiteBridge Deck, Outside Suite with private veranda. Approx. 230 sqft |
Owners SuiteBridge Deck, Outside Suite with separate bedroom and private veranda. Approx. 310 sqft |
