Pagan Island Marianas
USA

2 Cruises availables At departure or passage at this port

Silversea Cruises (2 Cruises)


Frequently Asked Questions

By inflatable boat, and only if the sea allows. There is no pier and no road: expedition ships anchor offshore and look for a way in to the black sand beaches. On Pagan, a landing is never guaranteed.
Almost none. The 1981 eruption of Mount Pagan forced the complete evacuation of the small Chamorro community, some fifty people resettled on Saipan. The island has never been permanently repopulated: only scientists, conservation staff and a few temporary residents stay there intermittently.
Guided hikes cross tropical scrub and cooled lava flows towards the heights. The fittest reach a viewpoint over the crater and two lakes, one inland and one lagoon. Otherwise, seabird watching and the black sand beaches fill the outing.
Yes. Mount Pagan remains one of the active volcanoes of the Marianas arc. Ground warm in places, fumaroles and the smell of sulphur are constant reminders during the hike.
In the volcanic arc of the Northern Mariana Islands, some 320 kilometres north of Saipan. Two stratovolcanoes joined by a narrow isthmus make up the island, and a steam plume often marks it long before the shoreline comes into view.
Brown boobies, terns and frigatebirds patrol the cliffs, and the scrub shelters rare landbirds of the archipelago. Offshore, the deep Marianas waters occasionally deliver a pod of dolphins escorting the boats.
Yes. Japan maintained a garrison of roughly two thousand troops here, and the jungle is slowly reclaiming what remains. Naturalist guides place these relics within the wider Pacific war during the hike.
The US dollar is the currency of the Northern Marianas, but the question hardly arises: there are no shops, restaurants or services of any kind on the island. Everything happens from the ship.
The dry season, December to June, offers the best sea conditions for a Zodiac landing. The western Pacific typhoon season, July through November, makes the approach considerably less certain.
Not especially. This is an expedition call: a Zodiac landing on an undeveloped beach, demanding hiking on volcanic ground, and a real chance of cancellation. It suits self-reliant, well-shod travellers.