does anyone know whether/ how it is possible to get to PNG from Australia without flying?
attempting to make a trip to PNG from Aust. without planes...has anyone had any experience of this/ know how it can be done?
Reply to this Very curious to find out if boats are going around...you could try to hop on sail boats. This is past most of the "pirates"areas from Indonesia...but I'm not 100% sure about it.
if you ever fly, you can go from Port Moresby to Fort Villa, than on to Fiji...and from there I'm sure you could find some boats. There is also a direct flight from Port Moresby to Cairns...
Reply to this yeah, thanks.
all I've heard is that it can be really hard to get a lift with sailboats and there are visa/ legality issues pretty often..
am just interested in seeing if it can be done without flying!
Reply to this It is clearly a great way to do it. Few bloggers on travelblog have hitchhike on boat...but I don't remember any rright know...I mean the exact blogger.
Go on internet and try to google on it...I'm pretty sure there must be some web sites specializing about it...if you get time could be a great opportunity...do some research if the area is not to prone to pirates also...that's a BIG thing to take into account.
Reply to this Only way to do this would be to find a cargo boat from Oz to PNG or somewhere in Asia. Once in Asia you can get a boat to Indonesia from Malaysia. From there get boats through Indonesia and cross overland into PNG from West Papua. You'd have to be pretty lucky to find a cargo boat willing to take you, but I remember seeing a few sites on the web about it
Reply to this Cargo ships these days are around US$100 per day but the TI community go back and forwards from PNG all the time in dry season.Maybe contact Torres Straight Island tourist commision or similar.I have spent a great deal of my life in Broome and the TI pearl divers spoke more about visiting PNG than Cairns.
Reply to this It's illegal for anyone to enter PNG through the Torres Straight islands other than natives of those islands
Reply to this As well as being illegal, its unlikely anyone will let you hitch on a private sail boat...unless they are desperate for crew and you would have to ask why someone is at sea without adequate crew in the first place - I spent quite a few years crewing on yachts and its not an easy thing to break into and you are expected to both pull your weight and pay your way. No way on earth would anyone in their right mind say here, sit there and sunbake while we work the winches and helm and sails and enjoy your free trip. Theres also the hassles of entering foreign ports by sea - boats are boarded by customs before being allowed into port and all documentation for all people is inspected. Australian customs are often up in PNG checking boats as well as the PNG authorities. Piracy is not as prevalent as in the straits of malacca but the solomon islands have sporadic episodes depending on the situation there at the time.
I have hitched on another boat after the boat I was crewing on lost engine and nav systems in a typhoon just out of guam...luckily another boat were a crew member down due to illness and needed to get back to Aus so it worked out well for everyone...but as stated, without sailing experience anyone hitching on a boat is just dead weight and consuming food and food and storing food is a major logistic at sea.
Fly.........its about the only sensible way to do it.
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