The Pacific island Australians are suddenly discovering - and why Qantas is doubling flights

Before you can set foot on one of the Pacific's most pristine, untouched island nations, you have to sign a legally binding environmental pledge in your passport. Now, getting there is about to get twice as easy.

Australian visitation to Palau surged 87 per cent year-on-year from January to May, according to Palau Tourism.

Qantas is responding by doubling its direct "Palau Paradise Express" flights to give travellers access to a quick four-day weekend on the world-class reef.

Palau is a Pacific island nation made up of over 300 islands in the western Pacific Ocean, and is part of the region of Micronesia.

Before Qantas launched its direct service from Brisbane in 2024, getting to Palau was tougher, taking up to 20 or even 30 hours via Philippines or Taiwan, often with lengthy lay-overs.

More than 15,400 passengers have used the 6-hour direct service since it began, quadrupling passenger traffic to Palau from Australian and Oceania from pre-pandemic numbers.

Now, the Australian Government - which co-founded the service - has locked flights in until November 2027, giving Aussies more chances to visit the laid-back destination.

From December, the service will leave Brisbane on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Flight Centre has seen growth in the destination since direct flights between Brisbane and Palau launched.

Global leisure chief executive, James Kavanagh, said getting there "so much faster" and "at a much lower cost" has made "a real difference" to holidaymakers' interest in Palau.

He said Palau was different to other tropical islands in that the government only wants to welcome tourists who have a "deep respect" for the island and its preservation.

"If you're someone who enjoys diving, marine life, and is actually interested in preserving and learning about the island, then absolutely you should go," Kavanagh said.

"What Palau isn't, is a destination dupe for somewhere like Fiji or Bali. It's similar, but inherently different in so many ways."

The Palau Pledge is a mandatory, legally binding agreement that commits tourists to "tread lightly, protect the environment and respect local traditions during their stay", Kavanagh explained.

"You must sign it to be able to enter the country," he said.

"How it works is that travellers watch an inflight video before landing detailing the commitments to the pledge. Once you arrive at the airport in Palau, an immigration officer stamps your passport, which you sign in person before them, before being cleared to enter the country."

Living Blue Travel CEO and founder, Jess Chrimes, said while a passionate few tourists including scuba divers had known about Palau for a while and endured some "weird-ish connections to get there", it had only recently become easily available to the majority of Australians.

Visitors can expect a place that is "as beautiful above the water as it is under it".

"Travellers here can expect a holiday where the pace slows down, where they can see some of the most extraordinarily beautiful marine life on the planet, kayak through beautiful rock islands and experience some really raw war history," Chrimes said.

After signing the Palau Pledge, visitors can obtain their Palau Pledge Passport.

"This part isn't mandatory; it's an initiative to help remind visitors to take the pledge seriously. When travelling around the island learning about Palauan culture and responsible tourism, passengers can earn stamps in their passport," Chrimes explained.

"I am personally so inspired by this. This is a crucial time for our planet's ecosystem, and tourism practices play such a large part in improving our future.

"I can't help but wonder what kind of improvements we would see if other countries around the world adopted similar initiatives and activities to preserve the very thing that makes them special in the first place."