Not to miss

Tinian

This sleepy one-village island, just 2km (3mi) south of Saipan, has escaped major tourism development and makes a good getaway if Saipan's bustle gets to be too much. It's hard to imagine that such a peaceful place could have been involved in one of the most violent events in history.

Tinian is infamous for being the take-off site for the aircraft that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

San Jose, home to the island's 2100 residents, is the site of an ancient Chamorro village. Those early settlers left the village's best sight: Taga House, a large collection of latte stones said to be the foundations of the home of Taga the Great, legendary king of the ancient Chamorros.

There are some good beaches on Tinian, including Kammer Beach in San Jose, and Taga Beach, just south of the village. Chulu Beach, on Tinian's northwestern shore, is the site of a WWII landing by US forces and a massive ongoing archaeological dig.

Rota

Rota, about halfway between Saipan and Guam, is just beginning to get an overflow of tourists from those larger islands, but it's still a slow-moving place. The main village, Songsong, still gets by without traffic lights or shopping centres.

Located on the southwestern coast, Songsong stretches along a narrow peninsula that rises at its tip to the 143m (470ft) Mt Taipingot. Songsong is littered with latte stones and the San Francisco de Borja Church boasts a turn-of-the-century bell. You can hike or 4WD to a good view of the village from a lookout just to the northeast, or make your way along the white-coral sands of Tweksberry Beach and up the trail to the top of Mt Paipingot - watch out for the bees - for excellent views of the village, surrounding harbours and Sasanhaya Bay. Rota's airport is on the northeastern half of the island, about 14km (9mi) from Songsong Village.

Tinian

This sleepy one-village island has escaped major tourism and makes a good getaway if Saipan's bustle is too much. It's hard to imagine that such a peaceful place could have been involved in one of the most violent events in history: Tinian is infamous for being the take-off site for the aircraft that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

San Jose, home to the island's 2100 residents, is the site of an ancient Chamorro village. Those early settlers left the village's best sight: Taga House, a large collection of latte stones said to be the foundations of the home of Taga the Great, legendary king of the ancient Chamorros.

There are some good beaches on Tinian, including Kammer Beach in San Jose, and Taga Beach, just south of the village. Both have good swimming, turquoise waters and white sand.

Chulu Beach, on Tinian's northwestern shore, is the site of a WWII landing by US forces and a massive ongoing archaeological dig. As you wander about the small island (which you can do in less than a day), be sure to look out for several Japanese shrines.

Mañagaha Island

Mañagaha is an old patch reef that geological forces lifted above sea level 10,000 years ago. It's now covered with a fringing white-sand beach and has Saipan's best snorkelling. The clear surrounding waters have lots of colourful tropical fish and abundant coral, although much of the near-shore coral shows signs of being trampled on.

Obyan Beach

Obyan Beach is a pretty white-sand beach with calm waters protected by Naftan Point. The expansive beach is good for snorkelling. At the head of the parking area is a large WWII concrete bunker and just inland from a grove of coconut trees are the remains of eight latte stones dating back to 1500 BC.