PAPUA NEW GUINEA TOURS, CULTURAL FESTIVALS & SING-SINGS
Festivals, Sing-Sings and Cultural Tours – Rates in US Dollars
KOKOPO NATIONAL MASK FESTIVAL – 9 - 13 July 2025 from $880 USD per person
Four nights’ bed and breakfast accommodation at the Rapopo Plantation Resort, Kinavai Ceremony, full day Rabaul and Kokopo land tour or Duke of York Islands tour, Dolphin swim, airport transfers. Double occupancy rates: Double occupancy Bayside Garden room $815 per person sharing. Double or Twin occupancy Poolside Premier room $915pp. Festival passes to be bought on site as the rate is set just prior to the event. 2022 rates were 50 Kina ($18). Extensions for the end of the Warwagira music festival. Extensions for island visits and island stays possible. Rates in USD. Return Port Moresby flights between $360 and $430.
Sepik Crocodile Festival 3 to 9 August, 2025
Start with a flight from Port Moresby to the Sepik and a night in Wewak at the very comfortable In Wewak Boutique Hotel. The next day, with your local guide, you will be driven across the Hunstein range to the mighty Sepik to board your motorised dugout canoe at Pagwi and cruise upstream to Wagu Lagoon, passing villages along the way. Your accommodation for three nights is in Wagu guesthouse, in the Upper Sepik, on foam mattresses with clean linen and mosquito nets. The guesthouse has a generator for battery charging and light at night. On the 5th and 6th, you will attend the Sepik Crocodile Festival, and photograph the varied and fascinating tribal groups from the region. You will also go and look for the Lesser Bird of Paradise on a dawn trip, and visit the villages of Meno and Tongijamb. Wagu Lagoon is an excellent place for bird photography too. On the 7th, you will go into to the Middle Sepik to visit the villages of Palimbei and Kanganamun, the most well-known of the Iatmul language group tribes, who practice the art of extreme scarification, known as the Crocodilemen, where you will spend the night. You will return to Pagwi around lunchtime on the 8th, and then return to Wewak to overnight at In Wewak Boutique Hotel.
Prices vary depending on group size, excluding domestic flights, which we can book and add on. Expect to pay between $390 and $440 USD for a return ticket.
For 2 people it is $3150 per person
For 3 people $2350 per person
For 4 people $2100 per person
For 5 people $1825 per person
There is a single room supplement for the two nights in Wewak of $170
MOUNT HAGEN FOUR-NIGHT SING-SING TOUR HIGHLANDER HOTEL 14 - 18 August 2025 $3190 including flights
Four nights’ full board accommodation at The Highlander Hotel, the bet hotel in town, Paiya mini-show on the 18th with 12 iconic tribes, airport transfers on the 15th and 19th, transfers to the show grounds and back on the 219th and 20th. Includes show pass and return flights from Port Moresby flights. Itinerary here
BASIC MOUNT HAGEN FOUR-NIGHT SING-SING TOUR 14 - 18 August 2025 $2000 including flights
Four nights’ full board accommodation at Traveller's Hut Lodge, Paiya mini-show on the 18th with 12 iconic tribes, airport transfers on the 15th and 19th, transfers to the show grounds and back on the 19th and 20th. Includes show pass and return flights from Port Moresby flights. Itinerary here
THE DISCOVERER TOUR 14 to 22 AUGUST
The Discoverer is an unescorted (local guides will be at each location) 9-day/8-night program, providing a unique opportunity to discover the culture and ecosystems of the world's second largest island New Guinea. Papua New Guinea is a veritable smorgasbord of colour, culture and excitement. The highlight of the Discoverer program is attendance at the famous Mount Hagen Cultural Show, a world-famous cultural gathering of many of the opulently decorated cultural groups of this incredibly diverse land.
Cost including all domestic flights: US$8564 per person (twin share).
US$9559 single except twin share at the Highlander Hotel. More details here
THE PANORAMA TOUR 15 to 27 AUGUST
The Panorama Show is a fully escorted 13 day/12-night program that provides a stunning view of Papua New Guinea. The journey begins with the spectacular Mt Hagen Cultural show, providing an incredible vista of cultures from all over Papua New Guinea. In a land of nearly 800 languages, there is no better place to see so many gathered in one place
Cost including all domestic flights: US$ 13,686 per person (twin share).
US$ 15,006 single except twin share on the Sepik Spirit and Rondon Ridge. More details here
THE VISTA TOUR 7 to 19 AUGUST
The Vista Show, a fully escorted 13-day/12-night program, provides a wide perspective on Papua New Guinea, from a journey through the Sepik Region to shaking hands with a Huli Wigman. The tour culminates with the Mount Hagen Cultural Show. The Hagen Show brings together sing-sing groups from throughout Papua New Guinea, with the variety of cultures and groups represented in turn reflecting the diversity of Papua New Guinea's landscapes. From lowland tropical rainforests to alpine forests and grasslands, Papua New Guinea possesses a huge variety of rugged landscapes, exotic ecosystems and pre-technological cultures.
Cost including all domestic flights: US$13,362 per person (twin share).
US$14,707 single except twin share on the Sepik Spirit and Highlander Hotel. More details here - Tour Full
SHORT GOROKA SHOW PACKAGES
12 - 16 September 2024 - from $1240. Flights included - full
18 - 22 September 2025 - from approx $1270 flights included
Thursday: fly in from Port Moresby
Friday: full-day Asaro Mudmen village visit and Asaro Sing-Sing (the best Asaro visit around) and Chimbu Masalai Skeleton Men
Saturday: VIP passes for Goroka Show
Sunday: VIP Passes for the Goroka Show
Monday: Fly back to Port Moresby
Option 1: Using single room accommodation with shared toilet and shower facilities, right next to the showgrounds $1240, no meals included. Full Itinerary here
Option 2: Using our favourite guesthouse, Klehrt Cove, with ensuite bathrooms and on-site dining, based on two sharing $1450 with breakfasts and dinners included, $1890 single occupancy. Full itinerary here
Bird of Paradise Hotel accommodation options
Four nights' accommodation, includes airport transfers, does not include meals. These can be paid for on site, as there are various options available that are cheaper than the full board package.
Itinerary and images here
Double or Twin Room: Two sharing $2870 per person. Single occupancy: $4830
Two-bedroom apartment: Four sharing $2100 per person. Two sharing (one per bedroom): $3300
Full itinerary here
HIGHLAND TRIBES ESCORTED TOUR including the Goroka Festival
8 nights 09 - 17 September 2024: $3420. Closed Including flights, single supplement: $490.
7 nights 15 - 22 September 2025: $3320 including flights, single supplement: $420.
Escorted by Best of PNG's founder, Christopher Bartlett, we fly to Mount Hagen to meet the Huli Wigmen, the Masalai Skeleton men, anf the Hagen warriors. We have a morning birding walk, and an afternoon birdwatching from the comfort of a lodge, looking for Birds of Paradise and other endemic species. We then travel through the provinces of Jiwaka and Chumbu, stopping to see a Chimbu courtship ceremony, en route to Goroka. You will love our unique Asaro Mudmen Sing-Sing on the Friday, and then it's time for the Goroka two-day festival with four nights' accommodation in a comfortable guest house close to the show grounds. We end with anither cultural day in the Eastern Highlands, visiting two more trines for private sing-sings, and spent the last night at the Asaro Mudmen village in a rustic lodge. Includes meals except lunches in Goroka, internal flights, show entry, activities, transfers, Sing Sings, guiding. interactive itinerary here.
Four nights’ bed and breakfast accommodation at the Rapopo Plantation Resort, Kinavai Ceremony, full day Rabaul and Kokopo land tour or Duke of York Islands tour, Dolphin swim, airport transfers. Double occupancy rates: Double occupancy Bayside Garden room $815 per person sharing. Double or Twin occupancy Poolside Premier room $915pp. Festival passes to be bought on site as the rate is set just prior to the event. 2022 rates were 50 Kina ($18). Extensions for the end of the Warwagira music festival. Extensions for island visits and island stays possible. Rates in USD. Return Port Moresby flights between $360 and $430.
Sepik Crocodile Festival 3 to 9 August, 2025
Start with a flight from Port Moresby to the Sepik and a night in Wewak at the very comfortable In Wewak Boutique Hotel. The next day, with your local guide, you will be driven across the Hunstein range to the mighty Sepik to board your motorised dugout canoe at Pagwi and cruise upstream to Wagu Lagoon, passing villages along the way. Your accommodation for three nights is in Wagu guesthouse, in the Upper Sepik, on foam mattresses with clean linen and mosquito nets. The guesthouse has a generator for battery charging and light at night. On the 5th and 6th, you will attend the Sepik Crocodile Festival, and photograph the varied and fascinating tribal groups from the region. You will also go and look for the Lesser Bird of Paradise on a dawn trip, and visit the villages of Meno and Tongijamb. Wagu Lagoon is an excellent place for bird photography too. On the 7th, you will go into to the Middle Sepik to visit the villages of Palimbei and Kanganamun, the most well-known of the Iatmul language group tribes, who practice the art of extreme scarification, known as the Crocodilemen, where you will spend the night. You will return to Pagwi around lunchtime on the 8th, and then return to Wewak to overnight at In Wewak Boutique Hotel.
Prices vary depending on group size, excluding domestic flights, which we can book and add on. Expect to pay between $390 and $440 USD for a return ticket.
For 2 people it is $3150 per person
For 3 people $2350 per person
For 4 people $2100 per person
For 5 people $1825 per person
There is a single room supplement for the two nights in Wewak of $170
MOUNT HAGEN FOUR-NIGHT SING-SING TOUR HIGHLANDER HOTEL 14 - 18 August 2025 $3190 including flights
Four nights’ full board accommodation at The Highlander Hotel, the bet hotel in town, Paiya mini-show on the 18th with 12 iconic tribes, airport transfers on the 15th and 19th, transfers to the show grounds and back on the 219th and 20th. Includes show pass and return flights from Port Moresby flights. Itinerary here
BASIC MOUNT HAGEN FOUR-NIGHT SING-SING TOUR 14 - 18 August 2025 $2000 including flights
Four nights’ full board accommodation at Traveller's Hut Lodge, Paiya mini-show on the 18th with 12 iconic tribes, airport transfers on the 15th and 19th, transfers to the show grounds and back on the 19th and 20th. Includes show pass and return flights from Port Moresby flights. Itinerary here
THE DISCOVERER TOUR 14 to 22 AUGUST
The Discoverer is an unescorted (local guides will be at each location) 9-day/8-night program, providing a unique opportunity to discover the culture and ecosystems of the world's second largest island New Guinea. Papua New Guinea is a veritable smorgasbord of colour, culture and excitement. The highlight of the Discoverer program is attendance at the famous Mount Hagen Cultural Show, a world-famous cultural gathering of many of the opulently decorated cultural groups of this incredibly diverse land.
Cost including all domestic flights: US$8564 per person (twin share).
US$9559 single except twin share at the Highlander Hotel. More details here
THE PANORAMA TOUR 15 to 27 AUGUST
The Panorama Show is a fully escorted 13 day/12-night program that provides a stunning view of Papua New Guinea. The journey begins with the spectacular Mt Hagen Cultural show, providing an incredible vista of cultures from all over Papua New Guinea. In a land of nearly 800 languages, there is no better place to see so many gathered in one place
Cost including all domestic flights: US$ 13,686 per person (twin share).
US$ 15,006 single except twin share on the Sepik Spirit and Rondon Ridge. More details here
THE VISTA TOUR 7 to 19 AUGUST
The Vista Show, a fully escorted 13-day/12-night program, provides a wide perspective on Papua New Guinea, from a journey through the Sepik Region to shaking hands with a Huli Wigman. The tour culminates with the Mount Hagen Cultural Show. The Hagen Show brings together sing-sing groups from throughout Papua New Guinea, with the variety of cultures and groups represented in turn reflecting the diversity of Papua New Guinea's landscapes. From lowland tropical rainforests to alpine forests and grasslands, Papua New Guinea possesses a huge variety of rugged landscapes, exotic ecosystems and pre-technological cultures.
Cost including all domestic flights: US$13,362 per person (twin share).
US$14,707 single except twin share on the Sepik Spirit and Highlander Hotel. More details here - Tour Full
SHORT GOROKA SHOW PACKAGES
12 - 16 September 2024 - from $1240. Flights included - full
18 - 22 September 2025 - from approx $1270 flights included
Thursday: fly in from Port Moresby
Friday: full-day Asaro Mudmen village visit and Asaro Sing-Sing (the best Asaro visit around) and Chimbu Masalai Skeleton Men
Saturday: VIP passes for Goroka Show
Sunday: VIP Passes for the Goroka Show
Monday: Fly back to Port Moresby
Option 1: Using single room accommodation with shared toilet and shower facilities, right next to the showgrounds $1240, no meals included. Full Itinerary here
Option 2: Using our favourite guesthouse, Klehrt Cove, with ensuite bathrooms and on-site dining, based on two sharing $1450 with breakfasts and dinners included, $1890 single occupancy. Full itinerary here
Bird of Paradise Hotel accommodation options
Four nights' accommodation, includes airport transfers, does not include meals. These can be paid for on site, as there are various options available that are cheaper than the full board package.
Itinerary and images here
Double or Twin Room: Two sharing $2870 per person. Single occupancy: $4830
Two-bedroom apartment: Four sharing $2100 per person. Two sharing (one per bedroom): $3300
Full itinerary here
HIGHLAND TRIBES ESCORTED TOUR including the Goroka Festival
8 nights 09 - 17 September 2024: $3420. Closed Including flights, single supplement: $490.
7 nights 15 - 22 September 2025: $3320 including flights, single supplement: $420.
Escorted by Best of PNG's founder, Christopher Bartlett, we fly to Mount Hagen to meet the Huli Wigmen, the Masalai Skeleton men, anf the Hagen warriors. We have a morning birding walk, and an afternoon birdwatching from the comfort of a lodge, looking for Birds of Paradise and other endemic species. We then travel through the provinces of Jiwaka and Chumbu, stopping to see a Chimbu courtship ceremony, en route to Goroka. You will love our unique Asaro Mudmen Sing-Sing on the Friday, and then it's time for the Goroka two-day festival with four nights' accommodation in a comfortable guest house close to the show grounds. We end with anither cultural day in the Eastern Highlands, visiting two more trines for private sing-sings, and spent the last night at the Asaro Mudmen village in a rustic lodge. Includes meals except lunches in Goroka, internal flights, show entry, activities, transfers, Sing Sings, guiding. interactive itinerary here.
SEPIK ADVENTURE TOUR - Rivers and Spirit Houses of the Middle Sepik
A set date group tour from 22 - 28 September 2025, from $2375 per person including domestic flights.
Designed to fit in with the Highlands Tribes Tour that ends on 22nd September, the Sepik Adventure Tour flies you up to Wewak for a night at In Wewak Boutique hotel where you will meet your guide. The following morning you, are driven through the Prince Alexander range to Pagwi, stopping for lunch at a roadside market along the way. Upon reaching the river at Pagwi, you board a motorised dug out canoe and start your exploration of the river, spending two nights in village guesthouses in the Middle Sepik at beautiful Kamindimbit village with a Sing-Sing greeting. Our third night will be spent in a village in the Chambri Lakes region, famous for birdlife,clay cooking pots, and the incredible Spirit House at Wambom. On this trip you will discover daily village life, soak in the stunning scenery, visit different spirit houses, meet some "crocodile men", and meet the master sculptors and craftsmen of Kamindimbit and Kanganamun, and see the Cassowary Dance.
Full itinerary here.
A set date group tour from 22 - 28 September 2025, from $2375 per person including domestic flights.
Designed to fit in with the Highlands Tribes Tour that ends on 22nd September, the Sepik Adventure Tour flies you up to Wewak for a night at In Wewak Boutique hotel where you will meet your guide. The following morning you, are driven through the Prince Alexander range to Pagwi, stopping for lunch at a roadside market along the way. Upon reaching the river at Pagwi, you board a motorised dug out canoe and start your exploration of the river, spending two nights in village guesthouses in the Middle Sepik at beautiful Kamindimbit village with a Sing-Sing greeting. Our third night will be spent in a village in the Chambri Lakes region, famous for birdlife,clay cooking pots, and the incredible Spirit House at Wambom. On this trip you will discover daily village life, soak in the stunning scenery, visit different spirit houses, meet some "crocodile men", and meet the master sculptors and craftsmen of Kamindimbit and Kanganamun, and see the Cassowary Dance.
Full itinerary here.
September 23 to October 07, 2024 Loloata and Tufi Resorts.
14 nights, 40 dives, half board in Loloata, full board in Tufi, domestic flights included, with 2 nights and 8 dives free included. 4100 USD
Dive the Coral Sea from the comfort of Loloata Island Resort, and the Solomon Sea from the remote beauty of the Cape Nelson peninsula, Oro Province, based at Tufi Dive Resort. Tufi has amazing offshore reefs with 30m/100ft + viz, on reefs that are the epitomy of fish soup. Grey, Oceanic Blacktip, and Scalloped Hammerheads call the Tufi reefs home, there are a couple of manta cleaning stations, and the house reef is a macro photographer's wet dream with critters everywhere, including Mandarinfish. One of Loloata's signature sites, Suzie's Bommy, as well as being more fish soup, is a great spot to find the endemic Lacy scorpionfish, ofter there are two, sometimes three, in a different colour each one. Lolaota also has the ethereal Dibah's Delight, a collection of bommies covered in in gorgonian fans, a reguler place for Wobbegongs. There is also the splendid Pacifc Gas wreck, and WW2 Havoc A20, and very good macro.
Escorted by PNG dive expert and internationally-published UW photojournalist, Christopher Bartlett, free photography coaching is provided.
14 nights, 40 dives, half board in Loloata, full board in Tufi, domestic flights included, with 2 nights and 8 dives free included. 4100 USD
Dive the Coral Sea from the comfort of Loloata Island Resort, and the Solomon Sea from the remote beauty of the Cape Nelson peninsula, Oro Province, based at Tufi Dive Resort. Tufi has amazing offshore reefs with 30m/100ft + viz, on reefs that are the epitomy of fish soup. Grey, Oceanic Blacktip, and Scalloped Hammerheads call the Tufi reefs home, there are a couple of manta cleaning stations, and the house reef is a macro photographer's wet dream with critters everywhere, including Mandarinfish. One of Loloata's signature sites, Suzie's Bommy, as well as being more fish soup, is a great spot to find the endemic Lacy scorpionfish, ofter there are two, sometimes three, in a different colour each one. Lolaota also has the ethereal Dibah's Delight, a collection of bommies covered in in gorgonian fans, a reguler place for Wobbegongs. There is also the splendid Pacifc Gas wreck, and WW2 Havoc A20, and very good macro.
Escorted by PNG dive expert and internationally-published UW photojournalist, Christopher Bartlett, free photography coaching is provided.
SEPIK RIVER MINI-EXPEDITIONS
From $1270 per person in a group of four
Any time of year, for a four-night trip. Flights to Wewak from Port Moresby and back $270 to $450.
One night at In Wewak Boutique Hotel, three days and two nights visiting the Middle Sepik, one night at In Wewak Boutique Hotel. Full board. Highlights: A motorised dug-out canoe trip in the Middle Sepik, visiting Palimbei and Kanganaman villages and their “Crocodilemen” Experience diverse landscapes, enter spirit houses, meet ancient tribes and local artisans. Upper Sepik trips also possible.
Five, six, and seven night trips also available, see here.
From $1270 per person in a group of four
Any time of year, for a four-night trip. Flights to Wewak from Port Moresby and back $270 to $450.
One night at In Wewak Boutique Hotel, three days and two nights visiting the Middle Sepik, one night at In Wewak Boutique Hotel. Full board. Highlights: A motorised dug-out canoe trip in the Middle Sepik, visiting Palimbei and Kanganaman villages and their “Crocodilemen” Experience diverse landscapes, enter spirit houses, meet ancient tribes and local artisans. Upper Sepik trips also possible.
Five, six, and seven night trips also available, see here.