Backpacking in Nauru: Top 11 Sights in Anibare

Nauru as an island and country is split into 14 provinces but is not as remote and isolated as you might have been told – in fact it’s the hub for some Pacific Island hopping. Anibare is the largest province in area, and as well as being the name of the province is also the name of the village and the harbour here. We spent 8 cumulative days on Nauru (5 full days) and were able to explore and visit all 14 of the provinces. It’s pretty easy to do that even in a 24 hour stint. We walked the whole island in 8 hours, at a leisurely pace which also included 2 rain delay stops, lunch, dinner and a sneaky afternoon beer. Anibare was just a 10 minute walk from our Hotel, the Menen Hotel and the bar here, the Bay Restaurant acted as my local for 3 nights of the trip.

I doubt I’ll have time to write about the top sights in all 14 of the provinces in Nauru, but here are Anibare’s highlights, a top 11. I’ve also written about Anetan, Yaren, Boe, Aiwo, Ronave and Ewa.

1.Anibare Harbour
Anibare has probably the prettiest harbour in all of Nauru. It is a man made harbour, with an outer wall. At dusk, kids, teenagers and adults alike mingle here to swim, go boating and play AFL (Australian Rules Football). There’s a car park and play area by the harbour.

2.(Anibare) Nauru Fish Market
Just beside the harbour is a huge concrete structure known as simply “Fish Market”. In the glory days of Nauru, people came here to buy and sell fish, just caught from the nearby waters of the Pacific Ocean. On our visit (we passed by 3 times), it looked like it had closed and hadn’t been open for years. Although it’s in Anibare, it’s actually the national fish market and is known as Nauru Fish Market.

3.War Shelters and Gun Platforms
All around Nauru there is a history of World War II still present. The Japanese came here and controlled the island from 1940 – 1945. In Anibare there are a few reminders of those days, including these shelters by the harbour and on the walk by the Pacific Ocean.

4.Japanese War Memorial
A Christian cross pays tribute to those killed by the Japanese during the Japanese war and invasion here on Nauru. This memorial is in Anibare harbour near the Fish Market.

5.Anibare Beach (by the Pacific Ocean)
We watched sunset twice from the beaches at Anibare. It’s stunning!

6.Recycling Garden
Waste, rubbish, trash, garbage is all a big issue on dirty Nauru. Some initiatives have been set up to try and prevent this. Here in Anibare, a tidy garden tries to encourage everyone to recycle more and not to litter their garbage all over the island.

7.The Bay Restaurant
Put simply, The Bay Restaurant is the best restaurant on the island, and therefore the best in the country. Whilst most “restaurants” serve only basic Taiwanese / Chinese dishes such as chicken fried rice and sweet and sour pork, The Bay restaurant offers the most international cuisine in Nauru.

You can get Aussie style burgers, Italian style pizzas and Indian curries. This restaurant also has the best beer selection in the whole of Nauru, with over 10 beers available from over 3 different countries (when I visited Fiji, Australia, Netherlands, Germany). As well as this it’s the only bar with any kind of Wi-Fi and they do cocktails, daily specials and good desserts. It’s a place you must try to eat at when backpacking in Nauru.

8.Refugee Camp
Nauru is a place where thousands of refugees were sent from Australia. The country has a few of these refugee camps, one of them in on the main road through Anibare. Photos are not officially allowed and so I didn’t take any, but here is one from an Australian News Website.

9.Anibare Church
Nauru is a Christian country and there is a church here in Anibare. It doesn’t really look like a church from the outside.

10.Anibare Boat Harbour Restaurant
I didn’t eat in this place, I simply popped in for a quick beer ($5 AUD). The restaurant also dishes up great CHinese food and overlooks the main road by the harbour.

11.ICM Restaurant
Another place we ate in (on our first night) was the ICM Restaurant, also in Anibare, so in essence this district has a hat-trick of eating places, a novelty for the island!

I was in Nauru on the Least Visited Countries Tour with Young Pioneer Tours, which can be booked here.

Here are some videos I made in Anibare: