Papua New Guinea

Travelling to Papua New Guinea is a worthwhile challenge.  Its tourist infrastructure is not very well developed, and there are few resources for researching your trip, so this may be like stepping into alien territory.  But this is precisely the beauty of the country; it allows for discovery, adventure, and exploration.  It is refreshing to find a place largely untainted by homogenised branding, where every experience is indigenous and authentic.

The country maintains its centuries-old natural beauty and array of cultures as a result.  A land mass nine times smaller than Australia here contains the same number of mammal species and even more birds and frogs.  In terms of nature, it is a parralel dimension to Australia – both started with a similar landscape but while Australia became flat and dry, Papua New Guinea became a mountainous rainforest country.  These highlands provide an insight into Papua New Guinean tribes, which have stamped the area with historic wartime sites as well as a stunning example of conservation.

Despite its remote and underdeveloped image, there are some urban attractions to be found in the capital of Port Moresby.  There is the opportunity to visit parliamentary buildings, botanical gardens and craft markets in the city, as well as the chance to encounter nature in a more controlled environment, through wildlife parks and scuba diving activities.