Nan Madol

Nan Madol, on the island of Pohnpei, is one of the most extraordinary and enigmatic archaeological sites in the Pacific, a UNESCO World Heritage Site sometimes called the Venice of the Pacific. Built between roughly the twelfth and seventeenth centuries, it comprises nearly a hundred artificial islets constructed on a coral reef across a shallow lagoon, linked by canals and made from colossal columns of naturally hexagonal basalt, some weighing many tonnes, stacked like giant logs into massive walls and platforms. It was the ceremonial and political capital of the Saudeleur dynasty, and how its builders quarried and moved the immense stones remains a mystery, lending the ruins, now half-reclaimed by mangroves, a haunting, otherworldly power.

What you actually see

• The basalt islets - the artificial islets of stacked basalt columns.
• The canals - the waterways linking the ruined city.
• Nandauwas - the great royal mortuary islet and its walls.
• The mangrove setting - the haunting, jungle-reclaimed ruins.

When to go

December to April tends to be slightly drier, though Pohnpei is one of the wettest places on earth and rain is possible any time; the site is reached by boat across the lagoon and a short walk, best at higher tide, and a local guide is required, both for access and to interpret the history and respect the sacred site.

Honest expectations

Nan Madol is remote, on the far-flung island of Pohnpei reached by long flights, and the ruins are partly overgrown by mangroves and jungle, reached by boat and requiring a local guide and often wet, muddy conditions; it is a sacred and sensitive site with access governed by local custom. For the reward of one of the most extraordinary and mysterious ancient sites in the Pacific, though, a vast basalt city rising from a lagoon, Nan Madol is genuinely awe-inspiring and unforgettable.

Nearby

The island of Pohnpei, its waterfalls and rainforest are within reach.