TUFI

View of the Fjord From Tufi Resort

Tufi is renowned throughout Papua New Guinea for its famed Dive Resort. This resort is not only an icon, but reputed to be one of the best dive locations in the world. What many travellers don’t realise is that Tufi is also a peaceful village that offers visitors a wonderful interaction with locals who are intriguing and kind hearted.

Surrounded by striking and diverse habitats, Tufi shows its splendour through its rainforests, plantations, coconut groves, grasslands and coastlines consisting of calm, protected waters. These waters showcase a unique and largely unexplored reef system with biodiverse marine life and WWII wrecks to discover.

Tufi offers you a spectacular marine experience on a platter, offering all year round diving. The fjords are reputed for their macro diving and, with very little current movement, you can spend time examining the sponges and corals while sharing the environment with the gobies, nudibranch, shrimps and clams.

The outer reef experience is unsurpassed with visibility exceeding 30 metres all year round and a water temperature of 26–29 degrees Celsius. Here you’ll unearth an abundance of marine life including the rare white hammerhead shark. If adventure is what you’re looking for, then Tufi has it all. Treks to the twin peaks of Mt Trafalgar and Mt Brittania and safari expeditions will see you discovering virgin rainforests in all their glory.

The butterflies in Tufi are of particular importance. Both the Papilio Ulysses and Queen Alexandra Birdwing, with a wingspan of up to 28 centimetres and spectacular iridescent colouring, reside in Tufi. Not to be outdone, the world’s longest stick insect, largest grasshopper and longest beetle also call this region home.

As a cultural note, the women of Tufi are known for their facial tattoos which are tattooed on when young girls reach around fourteen years of age. These tattoos cover the entire face and although they are not compulsory are seen as a sign of maturity and a rite of passage into womanhood. This experience involves young females undergoing an operation of needles and charcoal over many hours. The charcoal is rubbed into the wounds twice to ensure that it results in permanent markings.

Guests can fly from Port Moresby to Tufi. Tufi also offers a range of accommodation from the luxury Tufi Dive Resort to local guest houses which provide more of a village experience. For more information on the resort, visit www.tufidive.com.