Travelling in PNG

Just got back from 5 weeks travelling around PNG and wanted to pass on some advice to other travellers. We took our Lonely Planet guide with us of course but there are some areas in there that are not fully up-to-date. All in all we had a fantastic trip and it is a fascinating country, challenging and expensive, but well worth the effort to explore.

Port Morseby - if you can get a connecting flight that leaves here the same day as you arrive then do so as the city is totally unrepresentative of PNG and the people that you meet along your travels.

Lonely Planet lists the Comfort Inn in Boroka as their Top Pick, but having stayed there, I would not recommend it for the price. The rooms are very basic, but clean, but there was nowhere to get a meal. Breakfast was appalling - toast with vegimite or a banana. The reception staff were also unhelpful. It is better to pay a bit more and you will get a whole lot more. We also stayed at the Holiday Inn which was better value in my opinion.

Make sure you allow plenty of time to travel from one destination to another as Air Niguini flights are totally unreliable, either losing bags, delayed, cancelled or overbooked flights. Travelling by road is slow, particularly along the Highlands Highway as every inch of the road is full of potholes, even making travelling in a 4WD uncomfortable. Fortunately the roads around Wewak and travelling from there to the Sepik are excellent.

If you are going to try to see Wasi Falls then ensure that you booked an escort with the Chevron New Guinea's security beforehand as otherwise, as we found out, it is impossible to get to Wasi Falls. Unfortunately it is not always possible to book this escort. (They will not allow you to travel this road even with a local guide).

Our car was stopped several times by people (or raskols as the locals call them) along the road but with a few kind words and a small donation we were allowed to carry on along our way without any issue.

If you have time to visit one of the islands off Wewak then go to Yuo. It a stunning little island inhabited by an interesting and friendly tribe. Extremely basic but a real castaway experience.

thanks for the feedback.
Im planning on getting to PM in just over 2 weeks, and wanted to travel up to Vanimo.
Do you have any idea how I might do this by land?
Getting stopped by "raskols" sounds concerning. Who were you travelling with?
i.e. did you have local guides to help sort that out for you?

Just had a look at the prices for Holiday inn, around 720PGK a night/person. that's over AU$300!!

Second vote for Yuo island - beautiful place

I stayed at Comfort Inn Boroko for a week at the end of July this year. It's true, the breakfast isn't world class: toast, a little fruit & some weetbix. They do offer dinners, you just have to let them know well in advance (the morning) and they'll home cook you what ever they have for dinner. One night we had lamb, the next night it was chicken and sweet potato. It did come late by an hour each night, but it came. They also have a BBQ area next to the pool that you can use to grill your own meat & veg if you visit the supermarket.

I think it is a great option especially because many other options are very expensive.

I travelled in PNG just for 5 days, because I hated the country and felt very unsave. There are guards and fences everywhere, people are drunk all the time, you can't go out after 6, etc. etc. I like adventure, but as there are no bridges, you have to ford the rivers. If drunk drivers just drive into deep rivers without looking and cars get flipped over and people die in front of your eyes followed by mayhem as the crowds turned to the driver. Drivers are scared to go through villages as they might hit stock and face (severe) punishment. I can go on and on, but point is that I think it's a very disturbed country and not save to travel, especially not on your own. Don't count on meeting fellow travellers either to team up with, because there aren't any. For a reason... Oh and it's ridiculously expensive: it's hard to find a bed under 150 kina (=50 euro). For the picture a only travelled in small villages from Indonesian border to Wewak. I wasn't even in places like Pt Moresby, Lae and Mt Hagen.

Edited by: oeke1969

that sounds unpleasant oeke1969. Our experiences travelling between Jayapura & Wewak were very different. Staying in villages is usually quite safe & cheap compared to towns. It is wise to pick your PMV driver carefully though. Some like to drink. Before getting in maybe give them a good stare in the eyes and see if anything is up. if they are drinking then you will be in danger on the road.