How Dangerous Is It REALLY?

I have read all the warnings about traveling to PNG as a single, young woman but I was wondering what the current situation is like? Ever since I was about 6, I have always wanted to go there, Kiribati and Hong Kong. I made it to Hong Kong last year (loved it!) and now I want to go to PNG.

I will be traveling as a single, mid 20's, white Canadian girl. How dangerous do you think a couple days in PM would be? I googled private security guards in PNG but found no credible links. I would consider hiring one. I just want to get there to fulfill my childhood wish.

Not to be rude, but I am looking for advice from experienced PNG travelers. Not lurkers who want to offer an opinion based on what they "heard" from a "friend". I just want credible information.

Thanks!

a couple of days in PM ? is that your childhood wish or do you wanna travel around in PNG ?
so I havent been to PM but in the regions around vanimo, wewak, middle and upper sepik. and I was amazed by the great friendliness and hospitality of the people. sure there are stories everywhere about thefts, robberies etc.. but I didnt experience any bad things. I would compare it a bit with travelling in brazil - use common sense, follow local advise, be open to the locals. my impression was that they really appreciate when people travel independently as a backpacker. I would guess travelling around with a security guard would just cause attention and even attract some "raskols".
and remote areas like upper sepik / wagu lagoon or off shore islands near wewak were places where I couldnt even imagine any crime.. so try to avoid the bigger cities and head for the real newguinea, its great.

Get out of Port Moresby! The real PNG is nowhere near there! I honestly wouldn't even bother going just to POM....

You could always join a group- most likely not your style but rather than feeling ill at ease the entire time I'm sure that there are interesting groups going to the places you want to go anyway.

As a woman, you really do need to be careful, and that may include being able to quickly make friends, or at the least, being able to quickly start up a friendly conversation with people you feel you can trust. Being or traveling with locals is an almost foolproof way - with a few exceptions, of course, most notably highway robbers - of keeping safe. As a rule, anyone who attacks a tourist is likely to be pursued and attacked themselves by nearby crowds; I found PNG people, no matter where I was, to be very protective toward me. I had two close-calls (I'm male), and it was only because onlookers came in time to my "rescue" that nothing serious happened (they spotted what was about to happen before I did).
Highway robbery is a real danger, and as everyone knows there are quite a few very rough places in Moresby, Lae and Hagen where you simply cannot go without asking for trouble. But really, beyond that, it's hard to emphasize how helpful and genuinely nice 99.99% of the population is. I met some absolutely wonderful people there.

Edited by: tpmtpm56

You may be interested in a book titled "Four Corners" by Kira Salak about a single American girls journey into the heart of Papua New Guinea. She is an ultra hard core traveller and I would not expect you to attempt much of what she did but it is an excellent read and may help in planning your trip. Going by her experience in Port Moresby I think you may want to get out of there at the first opportunity. Sorry I cannot help much with the current situation as I spent 6 months there back in 1968 so my experiences are a little out of date. Good luck. Napper

Thanks everyone for your replies. I really appreciate it. I'm really debating going or not. I really want to but am concerned about the consequences. Maybe if I could find a travel buddy that I get along (last travel partner was drunk the whole trip) with I could go soon!

Read this!

It has exactly the type of info you are looking for - lots by women who travelled in PNG on their own.
Mind you, few would choose Moresby as the focus of their visit to the country.

i think laszlo described it well ,by saying 'the smaller the better'in png,if you choose pom as your only port of call you will be dissapointed,and the risks of trouble are greater!it is a desperate type of town,as is mendi,lae,hagen.take your childhood dream and see the real png....kimbe,goroka,vanimo,kokopo...etc..

I will have three weeks (Nov 28 - Dec 18ish) in that general area before I meet up with my brother, and would be keen to go trekking with someone in PNG if that's your thing, PM me!

I just returned from 2 weeks in PNG, a very short time for the country and compared to the time allowance of fellow travelers I met on the road. I agree that there is more safety in numbers. Traveling alone makes one an easier target. I basically enjoyed the rides with locals in PMVs, but felt uneasy on my ride from Goroka in the Highlands to Madang on the north coast, but that was maybe due to the fact that I was robbed of my camera at gunpoint by two raskols on a short morning trip to the first lookout point of Mount Kis (a popular hill above Goroka). I had received no prior warning, only later some people confirmed that one should not go there without a local escort and that Goroka also experiences daytime robberies. So, the highland towns apart from POM and Lae all pose potential risks for travelers. But the more rural and smaller a place gets the more safe it is, especially along the coast and on the islands, as people are really friendly and want to make you feel welcome. I have rarely met so many friendly, warm-hearted people as in PNG. In Vanimo, a small town near the Indonesian border where I was stuck for a few days due to the consulate being closed for holidays, I nearly greeted everyone in the street and they greeted me, some including handshake. It is such a beautiful country, it is a pity one has to worry about safety so much...

Don't bother too much with Port Moresby - there's not much here for travellers.

You could consider flying in to POM, then heading up to Wewak to do a Sepik trip (I've heard good things about PNG Frontier Adventures, including that it would be safe for a sole female traveller - as safe as anything can be. I'm currently talking with them about doing a trip, possibly on my own. And staying at In-Wewak Boutique Hotel would be fine too).Then you could organise your flights so that you spent a night or 2 in Madang on the way back - good if you're a diver.

I'm also planning a long weekend up at Ambua Lodge in the Highlands (near Tari) and a few days at Tawali Dive Resort near Alotau - both trips will be on my own and I'm quite comfortable with that.

Cost may be a factor to consider - clearly the lower your budget, the dodgier the accommodation, the higher the risk.

I'd just like to stick up for Port Moresby for a couple of days if I may.

If you dive, there is definitely something for you there - The Gas & the Pai II are a couple of beautiful wrecks & I'm very glad I stopped over to dive them

Contact John Miller at the Dive Centre based at Airways