travel news review

28 April '99
Papua New Guinea's Western Province is cleaning up after experiencing the worst floods in the province in more than twenty years. The Lake Murray district, between the Fly and Strickland Rivers, is the worst affected by the floods. As the affected areas are suffering from major food shortages and the risk of water-borne diseases has increased, now is not the time to visit Western Province.

19 April '99
Flight West Airlines will commence direct flights between Brisbane, Queensland and Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea early in July. Flight West will take over the service which is currently operated by Qantas and Air Nuigini. The flights will operate from Port Moresby on Mondays and Fridays.

9 March '99
Air Niugini, Papua New Guinea's national carrier, has resumed flights between Cairns, Australia and Mt. Hagen in central Papua New Guinea. Services between the two cities were suspended last year as financial pressures, both domestically and internationally, forced the airline to rationalise services. The flight will depart Cairns on Tuesday and Saturday and will continue on to Lae from Mt. Hagen. The return flight will depart Mt. Hagen on Monday and Friday, and fly via Lae to Cairns.

1 March '99
Flight West Airlines will commence non-stop flights between Port Moresby and Brisbane, Queensland from 19 July. The flights will operate twice a week from Port Moresby, on Monday and Friday. Flight West Airlines operates as a code-share with Ansett, and travellers on the Port Moresby-Brisbane flight can connect in Brisbane with Ansett Australia for flights to other Australian cities.

20 January '99
Bill Skate, Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, has issued a warning to travellers reminding them that the Kokoda Trail is no Sunday stroll. The warning was issued after an extremely ill-prepared English traveller got himself lost on the trail for three weeks. While not absolutely necessary, a guide - especially one from the area who has some experience - is highly recommended. Although some lone walkers do get from one end of the Kokoda Trail to the other without too much trouble, a group of three is usually regarded as the minimum for a safe walk.

4 January '99
Health officials in Papua New Guinea have advised of an increase in the number of cases of typhoid, particularly in the Western Highlands province. Contaminated food and water is the usual route of transmission for the disease. As officials believe poorly cooked food from roadside markets may be the source for most of the cases of typhoid travellers should be wary about what they eat and drink around markets and bus stations.

23 November 1998
There are only about 90 post offices in the whole of PNG but there are hundreds of Shell service stations, so Shell service stations will now provide postal services, including private post boxes, in regions without post offices. PNG Post, Papua New Guinea's postal service, believes this is the best way of providing postal services in rural areas.

16 November 1998
A combination of a weak local currency and an increase in fuel costs has resulted in an increase in all domestic airfares in Papua New Guinea. All Air Niugini flights increased by 12%, while fares on smaller airlines increased by 9.5%. The new pricing came into effect on 9 November.

21 September 1998
A disease thought to have been eradicated in Papua New Guinea in the 1950s has re-emerged in the country's Western Province. The disease, called yaws, is still found in parts of Africa and the West Indies. The disease is transmitted by direct contact with an infected person and their clothing. Travellers are at minimal risk of contracting the disease.

9 September 1998
Most of Rabaul was destroyed by volcanic eruptions in 1994, but the Papua New Guinea tourism board believes Rabaul will be the country's next tourist destination. Although only three buildings remain standing in the centre of Rabaul, workers are preparing for the anticipated 1000 cruise ship passengers who will visit Rabaul next year. Tourism to Rabaul before 1994 was a major revenue earner for the town, and while the town today lacks the charm (not to mention the shops, markets and services) it once had, authorities are confident the revitalization of the city will again attract tourists to the town and surrounding areas.

8 August 1998
After being officially closed for 8 months, Port MoresbyÆs Ela Beach is now safe for swimming. The beach was closed after high levels of e-coli bacteria were discovered on the water. While beach near the centre of Port Moresby has never been much for swimming, it is the only city beach and is a popular spot on weekends.

22 July '98
Authorities have estimated more than 3000 people may have died as a result of a tsunami on Papua New Guinea's northern coast. The wave was created by an underwater earthquake. Most of the villages on the coast of the West Sepik Province have been destroyed and health officials are warning of disease outbreaks in the region.

10 June '98
The Australian Government has threatened to ban all Air Nuigini flights between Port Moresby and Australia unless the airline improves its safety standards. The airline is currently failing to meet international air safety regulations because of deferred maintenance caused by a lack of spare parts and inadequate procedures for handling dangerous goods. The airline currently operates six services per week to Cairns and four services to Brisbane. Australian authorities have given Air Nuigini until 10 June to resolve all airline safety issues.

6 May '98
An end to a 10-year secessionist war Bougainville may be a reality following the signing last week of a permanent cease-fire on the island. Military and civilian personnel from Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Vanuatu have signed an agreement with Papua New Guinea to oversee the Bougainville cease-fire. Despite the signing, Francis Ona, the Bougainville rebel leader has issued a æshoot to killÆ order against anyone who enters the rebel areas on the island's east and west coasts.

29 April '98
Following recent flooding of the Sepik River in northern Papua New Guinea, the number of reported cases of malaria has increased considerably. Officials in the provincial capital, Wewak, are concerned there may be a serious outbreak of the disease in the region. Mefloquine is the recommended malaria medication for Papua New Guinea.

18 March '98
Papua New Guinea's local beer has just got 15% cheaper. PNG's brewing companies hope the cheaper beer prices will encourage drinkers away from home brews to packaged beer.

18 February '98
Fiji and the Solomon Islands currencies have been devalued by 20% against the US dollar. While the Solomon dollar devalued following a slump in timber exports, Fiji claims its 20% cut was an attempt to compete with popular tourist destinations in South East-Asia such as Indonesia, whose currencies have plunged dramatically. It is speculated that Samoa, Vanuatu and Tonga may follow suit.

4 February '98
The National Cultural Commission has announced Papua New Guinea's events calendar for 1998. Included in the calendar are the Port Moresby Show (6-8 June), Independence Day, the Goroka Show in the Eastern Highland (16 September) and the PNG Arts and Cultural Festival in all provinces on 21 November.