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| Trans Niugini Tours provides accomodation that is sympathetic to the local ecology and culture |
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T
the forefront in trying to attract more visitors is Trans
Niugini Tours, the leading inbound tour operator for vacations in
Papua New Guinea. The company offers wilderness lodges, scuba diving
resorts, snorkelling holidays, ecotours and birdwatching trips.
Managing
Director Bob Bates says that
tourists come to Papua New Guinea for two reasons: the cultural experience
and its nature. “We have snow-capped mountains, steamy tropical
jungles, and everything in between.”
The largest market for Trans Niugini Tours is the United States,which
counts for 60 percent of visitors, with 30 percent coming from Europe,
chiefly Italy and Germany. The small number of British tourists are
generally those with a specialist interest such as birdwatching.
The company works very much on an in-house basis, operating mainly in rural areas with its own buses, boats, and lodges. This enables it to offer a high standard and consistency of service.
“Our
strategy was based partly on what tourists do in Africa, namely travel
from lodge to lodge, staying in each for a day or two,” says Mr
Bates. “In Africa the main attraction is the animals, in Papua
New Guinea it is the culture.”
The company is always planning new adventure trips, such as a six-day
walk recently pioneered from the Jimi Valley to the Chimbu Valley in
the highlands – a trek never before done in living memory, most
of which is 3,500 metres above sea level.
The Ambua Lodge is the ultimate wilderness accommodation. Situated at 7,000 feet above sea level in lush mountain rainforests overlooking the magnificent Tari Valley, it has been praised as a “superb example of culturally sensitive and ecologically responsible tourism”.
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Mr Bates says, “We have Ambua Lodge in the Highlands, the Karawari Lodge in the Sepik, the MV Sepik Spirit expedition boat, Malolo Plantation Lodge, and Bensbach Wildlife Lodge on the South coast near the Indonesian border.
“We
should be trying to attract tourists to come and see our culture and
nature, practice diving and go on some adventure trips. Papua New Guinea
should develop along the lines of small resorts in selected areas.
He adds, “Papua New Guinea is a destination where mass tourism
has no role to play. A land where the conservation of the Wetland, bird
habitat, rainforest, rich fauna and flora and the traditional cultural
lifestyles of the local people should always be paramount.”
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