West Papua Or Papua New Guinea

Hi guys,

Really appreciate some views on this one.

Planning a trip at the start of next month but still undecided whether to head direct to PNG from London and then move east towards the Solomon Islands or start the trip in West Papua and then head across the border to PNG before moving onto the before Solomons.

The question is whether a West Papua start is justified by a Baliem Valley trek ( the main activity we would do if beginning there ) or whether we would be better just oncentrating on PNG with all its challenges before moving eastwards.

Have a complete blank sheet of paper and eight weeks available so would really appreciate any views and thoughts.

If anyone has done a similar trip would also appreciate a view on how to roughly split the time between options one and two and what areas to visit. Any tips on guides, dangers etc would also be great.

Many thanks in advance.

Happy travels,

John R

I dont think you can go wrong here.

PNG is very different from Indonesia and Solomon Islands in that it is not made for independent travellers. It has a very "raw" "wild west" feeling. In one month of travel I only met one other traveller (on the last day of my trip). It was challenging but one of my most favorite travel experiences. In a way it was a big adventure. I wish I had spent more time there, I could only scratch the surface in one month.

One thing to keep in mind, travelling in PNG (and Solomons to a lesser extent) is very expensive, especially when travelling alone. I spent 100 USD a day on average. I did not stay in fancy hotels but I did take a couple of domestic flights which are expensive.

Solomons is more normal, and everything works like you expect for a developing country. I had some incredible snorkeling experiences and nice relaxing time on the beach. But especially after PNG, Solomons did not hold my interest and I left early.

I havent been to Baliem valley, hopefully someone else can chime in. It sounds to me like a way to experience the Papuan highlands culture without the challenges (& adventure) of the PNG highlands. It definitely gets lots of tourists with all the pros and cons this entails. Is it different enough to justify doing both in the same trip? I am not sure.

I think your answer depends on your budget and what you are looking for when travelling. In my view you should start in PNG and find out if you love/hate it there. Depending on that and you budget you can then decide what to do next.

go to the indonesia forum and search baliem - lots of advice on the region and trip reports

i havent been there but i have friends who have - it is very different to PNG although there are similarities in geography and traditional culture - in PNG there are large areas with no roads and people still living a traditional life with traditional beliefs and culture - the government is by largely people of the same background and recognises tribal land titles (largely) - in indonesia there is largely no tribal land title and traditional people have been dispossessed and marginalised by the indonesians who have built roads etc to exploit logging, industrial farming, minerals etc far and wide - this means there are more facilites for travellers including tourists but traditional people are far more used to visitors and have much easier access to modern lifestyles and goods

Hi mknoke,

Many thanks for the advise. Much appreciated.

Have you got any suggestions on how to get around the problem of having to show on onward ticket when entering PNG. Want to keep the trip as flexible as possible so really don't want to be locked on a date for an expensive ticket towards the Solomon Islands. Is there an alternative that you can suggest.

Thanks again,

John R

Many thanks majordom,

As mentioned in my response to mknoke have you got any suggestions on how to get around the problem of having to show a ticket for onward travel when entering PNG if you want to keep exit/plans dates flexible.

Thanks again,

John R

if you are entering by land then you need a visa before entry - i am not sure you need an onward ticket when you enter with a visa if you have proof of funds - if you were planning to leave by the same route back into indonesia by land then you would have no onward ticket anyway

otherwise you just have to strain your credit card with a fully refundable ticket - probably POM to cairns or brisbane

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