Papua New Guinea - shore excursions on your own

[Monkeygirl2]

Hi there, we have 3 ports of call in Papua New Guinea in March 23 - Alotau, Kiriwina Islands and Rabaul (New Britain)

 

Has anyone visited them recently and what was their experience of the ports of call and whether there are any other options than the ships shore excursions 

I have looked at the official visit Papua New Guinea website and there isnt much detail on what you can do on a one day visit if you aren’t getting married or staying in a hut

 

We sail at 6 or 7pm each day so dont want to be “lost” at the other side of the island so happy to stay near port 

 

thanks

Pam

[Fletcher]

PNG is an interesting place to visit on a cruise, to say the least.  Rabaul is incredible, a vast bay of some significance during WWII and now home to a rather active volcano.  Much of the town is covered in thick volcanic dust.  You can wander around the town, even on to the lava fields, and there is a large church to inspect.  The harbour scene just sums up Joseph Conrad.  Be aware that Rabaul can seem rather threatening and this applies to all towns in PNG.   Some cruise companies might run an excursion down to Kokopo and the WWII museum and some caves built by the Japanese.  Alotau is a typical PNG town - very scruffy, dirty, vaguely threatening but, if you are experienced in this sort of tourism, it can be exciting and superb for photos.  There is a great market here.  I've been three times - always on 100 pax expedition ships - and on one occasion passengers were not allowed to explore on their own because of a perceived security threat. 

 

Not sure about the island group you are visiting but we have been to several and some offer outstanding village visits as well as beaches and snorkelling.  

 

You won't be 'lost' on the other side of the island as these places are vast land masses.

 

Pictures are of Rabaul and Alotau harbour.

Edited September 17, 2022 by Fletcher

[Monkeygirl2]

Thanks for taking the time to reply and the valuable information you provided. Very much looking forward to our visit

[debgow]

On 9/7/2022 at 12:45 AM, Monkeygirl2 said:

Hi there, we have 3 ports of call in Papua New Guinea in March 23 - Alotau, Kiriwina Islands and Rabaul (New Britain)

 

Has anyone visited them recently and what was their experience of the ports of call and whether there are any other options than the ships shore excursions 

I have looked at the official visit Papua New Guinea website and there isnt much detail on what you can do on a one day visit if you aren’t getting married or staying in a hut

 

We sail at 6 or 7pm each day so dont want to be “lost” at the other side of the island so happy to stay near port 

 

thanks

Pam

Pam, we are doing a cruise next month visiting Rabaul amongst other places. Did you end up doing anything other than a ships tour? Any advice?