Rabaul-Papua New Guinea questions

We'll be in Rabaul next March on the Royal Princess and would appreciate any first hand info on the town and area.

Where does the ship dock relative to town?

Has anyone used Paivu Tours? What was your experience?

What's worthwhile seeing?

Thanks in advance.

We'll be in Rabaul next March on the Royal Princess and would appreciate any first hand info on the town and area.

Where does the ship dock relative to town?

Has anyone used Paivu Tours? What was your experience?

What's worthwhile seeing?

Thanks in advance.

My wife and I will also be on this cruise, sailing from Sydney to Hong Kong. I cannot provide first hand information on the town or area. Having researched via the Lonely Planet Guide, there seem to be three local tour operators, which include Paivu Tours and the Rabaul Hotel.(http://www.rabaulhotel.com.pg/). The hotel is owned and managed by an Australian couple.

I emailed both of these operators and within a few hours, I received the following helpful reply from Rabaul Hotel.

For Rabaul, all of the ship's excursions are wait-listed. In any case, my wife and I prefer to "do our own thing" and we only book ship's excursions, if they offer something "special" and/or there are security problems at the particular destination and/or there is no alternative.

There are local buses at Rabaul, but there are no timetables on the web and I believe the local infrastructure is rather basic. PNGK360 is about GBP95 or CAD176 - and according to Lonely Planet, the additional "site fees" are inexpensive (around PNGK 5 = GBP1.35 or CAD2.5 per site). I was impressed by the speedy response from Rabaul Hotel and having read the Lonely Planet review, I am attracted to the concept of reserving a car with local driver (through the Rabaul Hotel). Consequently, my wife I would be interested in sharing a car or minibus with like-minded travellers.

Unlike Tripadvisor, there seems to be no way of sending private messages via this forum. However, I would like to establish direct contact with you. Please email me at "nospam dot lucas at tesco dot net" (change "dot" to "." and change "at" to "@"). This is a temporary email address, to deter junk mailers.

My wife and I will also be on this cruise, sailing from Sydney to Hong Kong. I............................... I would like to establish direct contact with you. Please email me at "nospam dot lucas at tesco dot net" (change "dot" to "." and change "at" to "@"). This is a temporary email address, to deter junk mailers.

Thanks for the info, Bob, that sounds like a good price from Rabaul Hotel, we're currently booked with Paivu for a 3 1/2 hour tour in an A/C double cab at US$200 for the two of us with driver, guide and all other fees included. We would certainly be interested in sharing, we haven't paid anything yet, so our tour can still be cancelled or alternatively I can enquire about increasing the numbers with Paivu, though it sounds like you'll getting a longer tour for less than $50 pp (each of 4).

Looking forward to meeting you on board.

Regards

IanJ

PS. Most of the discussion on our cruise is at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=16991977&posted=1#post16991977 possibly there may be other interested parties.

There is another option available which is very good you should check out the attachment.

Latest Rabaul Tours.pdf

I have been to Rabaul a few times on cruise ships, though nothing like as big as the one you are on. Our ships were the Orion and Caledonian Sky, both with 100 passengers maximum. However . . . Rabaul is one of the weirdest places on Earth and a lot depends on the mood the volcano is in when you arrive. On our first trip in 2010 it was really belching and smoking and the whole town was covered in a thick layer of black, sooty ash. The air was choking and many of us were ill. The ship was covered in the stuff. The second visit, in 2014, the volcano was quieter, though it is always erupting. Sailing into the harbour is always incredibly dramatic.

Expedition ships like ours always include shore excursions so I can't comment on independent operators. We went out to Kakapo, saw the Japanese tunnels (ho hum) and a museum full of WWII ordnance. The drive was very scenic. You can also hike up the volcano - I've never done that but people said it was exhausting and messy.

We have also walked around the town ourselves, as far as the ropey old Rabaul Hotel. There are a couple of churches en route as well as the ruins from the last major eruption. Be aware there are security issues here and everywhere in PNG. It's quite a lawless place with a lot of violent crime. Madang and Wewak on the mainland are especially unpleasant places to visit.

I've been to Rabaul/Kokopo quite a few times. It is not an easy place to get around by yourself, so you are best to do something organised (either by the ship, or through a local hotel or resort - such as the Rapopo Resort or Kokopo Beach Bungalows).

Having said that, by far the best things to see and do focus on the volcano(s) and the amazing role Rabaul played in WWII. The Japanese submarine tunnels and lookout are a must - as is seeing the Japanese bunker (where there are some amazing hand drawn maps that have been preserved on the walls from the war).

On the volcano side, going to see the hot springs is great, and if you can get up to the lookout over Rabaul town (near the Volcano Observatory) you get an amazing view back down over the town, the harbor and both volcanoes.

Enjoy it! It's an amazing little town :)