Brief Trip Report - Solo Woman Traveller in PNG

Hi. I just returned from a 2 week trip in PNG. Here is a brief trip report, contact me via PM for more info or contact details.

15th September - Lae

16th September - Lae - Madang (via PMV)

17th-19th September - Madang-Simbai for the Kalam Culture Festival. This was awesome, there is enough information about this in the LP and other posts. The Kalam Guest House (built by the community) costs 100 Kina per night for a bed and three meals and also be aware that they charge for the festival (100 kina per day!) so keeping in mind you need to fly there from Madang (340 Kina each way) its not a cheap venture! Also, I attempted to fly from Simbai to Hagan but this flight is sporadic and unreliable so I ended up going back to Madang.

19th & 20th September - Madang (stayed at the Lutheran Guesthouse - very nice and cheap)

21st September - Madang to Goroka via PMV (at least 7 hours, not sure didnt have a watch but it was long!)

22nd-24th September - Kerowagi Village (Simbu), stayed with Phillip KC and his wife Jennie. Excellent village stay in the Simbu area, you can contact me for Phillip's details, he speaks excellent english and has a guest house for people to stay in.

25th-26th Septmber - Goroka

Here are some brief thoughts on:

Travelling alone as a woman in PNG...

I had no safety issues during my 2 week trip which included the Highlands and several remote areas. I think if you take the obvious precautions regarding dress/conduct and you can perfect that 'dont mess with me' attitude in larger towns/cities then you will be fine. It also helps to speak a bit of Tok Pisin (not hard to pick up some basic phrases). I found the majority of men to be very chivalrous and willing to make sure I was okay, there were a few times when I had to be assertive when people wanted to 'show me around' etc. Better to be safe than sorry. I also didn't go out at night in most of the towns/cities (except Madang which felt very safe).

Pacific Time...

Remember to factor this into your itinerary. Its almost impossible to plan a trip to PNG too carefully and its important to keep your plans flexible. I travelled around everywhere by PMV (minivan) and you can generally double to estimated time of any trip (especially if you get on an empty PMV and they have to drive around waiting for it to fill up!). I took a trip from Lae to Madang which was quoted in the LP as being 4 hours but took 9, partially due the the fact that the entire bus insisted that I take photos of every and try everything at the roadside markets! Also if you are taking small planes to remote locations (like Simbai) keep in mind that bad weather means the the planes can be hours late or even not come at all!

Budget...

I travelled on a tight budget, if you stay in the cheapest accommodation (village stays or in Lutheran Guesthouses in the towns) and cook for yourself (get prepared for a lot of two minute noodles!) expect to spend a MINIMUM of 120 Kina per day. That does not include any flights.

I read your post with interest...I was there from September 1-20 and as i mentioned we were in the midst of violence three times and it was very unprovoked by us...especially going to the airport in a vehicle and being shot at...and having the windows blown out of the car...I think there is alot of violence that goes on and you have no control over it...I understand a fight in the market apparently a lovers quarrel we were told...and violence at the Goroka Singsing..but being shot at for me is a first and i hope last..

Madang is pretty safe and the incident mentioned above would have been a rare occurrence. Violence at the Goroka pig market is quite common however.

Shots fired to disperse crowds, although scary, do not usually inflict any harm. Just look at the rugby league game played yesterday in POM.

I had read in the Post that there was another robbery in Madang on Independence Day...the day we were assaulted...and on this robbery the criminals got 5000 dollars and were successful....

The market was not the Goroka Pig Market but rather the Goroka Highland Singsing...and there was stone throwing, fist fighting and tear gas..............

I also heard while i was in png of major violence by Tari and was advised to fly and not drive to mt hagen...which we did....

You could also report that an Australian expat was killed in Moresby recently............but if you read the details you would read that he knew the killers and had invited two men into his house for a drink before hand.

The point is, robberies and violence happen everywhere, and for every bad story that gets blown out of proportion there is a thousand good ones that never get reported. Thats why I wanted to post my positive experiences.

No-one is saying that PNG is a safe country, its developing and the majority of people live in grinding poverty. But if you take obvious precautions then you will more than likely be okay. Personally I found the locals very shy and felt far less likely to be robbed there than I did in most parts of Europe.

I also avoided Hagan on the advice of locals - a wise thing to do in any country. I can only report on my personal experiences, and if there are robberies/violence happening in other parts of PNG then its not for me to report second hand information.

I would not hesitate to recommend PNG to anyone who had common sense and wanted an interesting holiday.

But thats just me...

Kiri-Thanks for the report glad to hear you had a fine time.

Kiri, I could not agree more.

Great post, well-balanced.

MisKiri, Well done! As another reader said, well balanced. Im planning a trip to PNG for 3 weeks in September, solo. I've been getting some advice here on the Thorntree, and also from an expat living there 20 years. One thing I'm having a probelm accepting is the "be flexible" part...how sometimes the plane is late, or doesn't show up. Should make it interesting to confirm accomodations! I'll remember to "look tough", or rather, not look like a victim. Swanlaw

Swanlaw, you might find this thread worth reading, too.