Tour Review: Madapai Tours, Rabaul, Papua New Guinea

[Kellyansapansa]

My husband and I visited Rabaul with the Coral Princess cruise ship in February 2023.

 

We did lots of investigation into tours and excursions prior to our cruise and booked a tour with Madapai Tours based on reviews on various platforms. We communicated with Bradley, the owner of Madapai Tours, via email and he was very responsive and helpful. We paid a 50% deposit via Western Union transfer and paid the balance in PNG Kina in person on the day of the tour.

 

The description of the tour was as follows:

 

The Madapai Tours package includes:

- Rabaul Hot Springs

- Volcano Base Walk

- Volcano Hike

- Digging Megapode Eggs

- Beehives Cool Off

- Simpson Harbour Cruise

We will provide:

- Boat

- Experienced Boat Operator

- Trained Tour Guides

- Site Fees

- Fresh Fruits

- Light Snacks

- Packed Lunch

 

It was an overnight port and we booked the tour for our first port day. We were scheduled to disembark at 9:00am but there was a delay with our clearance and we eventually disembarked just after 10.30am.

 

As we've experienced at other ports, the buses for the Princess shore excursions were able to drive into the port and wait for their passengers on the dock, but other tour operators had to wait outside the gate which was no more than a five-minute walk.

 

There were many tour operators hustling for business at the port gates, but they were not aggressive and left us alone as soon as we said we already had a tour booked. 

 

We found Bradley and his team quite easily and discovered that there was only one other couple joining us for the tour, which was wonderful. Bradley explained that he would be escorting a different tour group, and passed us into the very capable hands of Jerry, Alex and Tua. 

 

We were driven in a van to a nearby landing where we were given life jackets and bottles of water. We were then taken in a boat to visit the ash fields at the base of the Mt Tavurvur volcano where we were treated to a performance of the traditional whip dance by local men. We were encouraged to give a small donation directly to the dancers. We were satisfied with walking around the base of the volcano and decided not to go on a hike as well. We also browsed the markets offering a range of very reasonably priced traditional handicrafts and saw the hot springs which are heated to 100 degrees celsius by the volcano. Unfortunately we were unable to dig for Megapode eggs as the incubation period was finished.

 

We jumped back into the boat for a 40-minute cruise across the stunning Simpson Harbour, and arrived at the beautiful Little Pigeon Island. We stayed at the Island for an hour, ample time to wander around the small island and have a swim in the gorgeous clear waters before eating lunch on the beach. A simple lunch of sandwiches and fresh fruit was provided. 

 

We crossed the harbour again and circled the magnificent Beehives a couple of times before cruising past the Coral Princess and back to the port. The tour was brilliant and we were so impressed with the whole Madapai Tours team. It was a very personalised and intimate experience and we would not hesitate to recommend Bradley and the team for anyone visiting Rabaul.