Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# Trobriands Islands &amp; Alotau Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea / Papua New Guinea
torremans 19:24 UTC 30 Apr 2007 | I've been trying to figure out when exactly the Milamala festival (Yam harvest) will take place at the Trobriands as well as when exactly the annual Hagita School Show takes place. Neither the Milne Bay Tourism Association, nor a reputable hotel in Alotau has send a reply to my questions so far. I will be in Alotau during the weekend of 4 & 5 august and depart for the Trobriands on august 6 till 10. All input is much appreciated. Globetrotters.be |
watsoff 23:28 UTC 30 Apr 2007 | I don't know if the yam festival changes locations or not, but this Ecotourism Melanesia site might have some useful info. | 1
wave2angela 04:35 UTC 01 May 2007 | Don't remember where I gathered these snippets from, and dates don't match yours but the information is out there, somwhere: Cameron Cultural Show, Alotau 28-29 July 2007 - and - November 3-5 2007, Kundu and Canoe Festival , Alotau | 2
yuwi 19:21 UTC 01 May 2007 | Yam festival is always July. | 3
shanna2212 17:44 UTC 02 May 2007 | I am trying to find out infomration myself about the trobriands. This is what I found out from an ecotourism compny that I have been trying to use to arrange a village stay on Vakuta--- "Vakuta is a remote area with no phones etc and is always tricky for us to arrange so it's good that you are contacting us with time to spare. It would be important for you to decide in advance how long you would stay there because the village people at both Vakuta and Kiriwina expect to be paid in advance and once we have paid for 3 nights here and 4 nights there it is difficult to get refunds from the village people if you change your mind. Over the past 3 years the Yam Festival has been held on different dates due to a combination of changing harvest dates and availability of government funds to support the festival. On Kiriwina Island the traditional yam festival has been "hijacked" by the local authorities and politicians and turned into the so-called MilaMala Festival which is designed to attract tourists. The MilaMala Festival features activities traditionally held during the yam harvest such as dancing, competitive tug-of-war and inter-village cricket. However the MilaMala festival may not be held during the actual yam harvest. For example last year MilaMala was held in September because government funds were not available till then and village people expect to be paid to participate in the MilaMala Festival (I don't blame them). The "real" yam harvest festivities still occur in the more remote villages like Vakuta. The villages on Kiriwina that are near the town, airstrip etc have largely stopped staging activities during the "real" yam harvest and they just wait for the MilaMala Festival to come along so they can get paid for it. The "real" yam harvest festivities occur on different dates in different areas of the Trobriands because the yams mature at slightly differing times due to variations in rainfall, planting times, species of yam etc between the villages in different areas. I am told that yam harvest on Vakuta is usually a little earlier than Kiriwina." | 4
travelshrink 11:08 UTC 28 May 2007 | I just got an email from the Milne Bay tourism organization that the dates for the Milamala in the Trobriands have just been set. It begins on July 30th and ends on August 11th. Here is the program. DAY DATE ACTIVITY Monday July 30 Official launching of the Kula Expedition canoes at Luba area encompassing Wawela to Okaiboma Tuesday July 31 Kula Expedition sails for Kitava Island Wed August 1 Canoe Racing elimination Round 1 Thursday August 2 Canoe Racing elimination Round 2 Friday August 3 Kula Exchange Feast on Kitava Island Sat August 4 Kula Expedition departs Kitava Island for Kiriwina Sunday August 5 Rest Monday August 6 Rest Tuesday August 7 Kula Closing Ceremony Wed August 8 Canoe Racing finals Thursday August 9 Trobriand Cricket match Okopukopu vs Kalibabela Friday August 10 Kiriwina Cultural Show Sat August 11 Closing Ceremony of the MilaMala Festival Hope this helps. | 5