PAPUA NEW GUINEA TOURISM TIMELINE

O ver a Cent ur y of Travel and Discover y

1884

NEW GUINEA EXCURSION TRIP

T he 1800’s began the great industrial age, and the invention of the steam engine ships helped charter courses to new frontiers, expanding travel and trade to Papua New Guinea from all over the world, especially the governing colonial powers of Germany, Britain and Australiaincluding China and the Indo-Pacific region.

When the New Guinea mainland became a British protectorate in 1884, the Burns Philp & Company Limited began promoting travel to New Guinea in the ‘New Guinea Excursion Trip’ editorial in The Argus - an Australian daily newspaper in Melbourne

1912

The Chee Jour Ngee Hotel in German-occupied Rabaul was built by Ah Chee - the father of Chin Hoi Meen, founder of the CHM & Sons. The hotel was sold to a European plantation owner and renamed the Cosmopolitan Hotel in the 1920s.

1900-1914

GERMAN NEW GUINEA FLOURISHES

German settlers and travelers flourish in Herbertshohe, Neu-Pommoern (now Kokopo, East New Britain Province) - staying at the hotels: “Furst-Bismark”/”Deutscher Hof”/”Ralum-Hotel”. The famous Kokopo Beach Bungalows now occupies the site of the Kokopo Hotel (previously known as Hotel Deutscher Hof before the territory of Kaiser-Wilhelmsland - German New Guinea, was taken over by the British empire in 1914).

When gold was discovered in the interior of New Guinea in the 1920’s - gold prospectors flew into the remote areas, avoiding the hundreds of hostile native tribes that occupied the territory’s mainland.

1927

The Aviation Pioneer

A year after the Gold Rush began in Bulolo (Morobe Province), Australian aviator Ray Parer was the first person to navigate the airpaths of New guinea in search of gold. His planes helped transport prospectors and all manner of passengers across the territory.

1942

A POCKET GUIDE TO PAPUA NEW GUINEA

World War Two split the world into the allied and axis powers. The US entered the Battle of New Guinea in support of Australia when Japanese forces began encroaching on the territory. ‘A Pocket Guide to New Guinea’ was a 60-page publication for US WWII naval officersone of the first visitors guide book containing useful information about destination New Guinea.

1942-1945

HOTELS SERVE THE ALLIED FORCES

During World War Two, Port Moresby’s only two hotes at the time“Papua Hotel” and “Hotel Moresby”, were closed and became officers’ living quarters and clubs for Allied troops until the end of the war.

1937 Amelia Earhart

On July 2nd, world famous aviator Amelia Earhart took off from Lae en route to Howland island nar Hawaii. Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean, and has since been presumed dead. A Monument commemorating her acheivement is being built in Lae.

The oldest and longest running festivals in Papua New Guinea continue to celebrate three important provincial centers of the country - Goroka, Mount Hagen, and Lae. Experience these historical festivals in 2023:

GOROKA SHOW: September 15th-17th

LAE SHOW/MOROBE SHOW: November 4th-5th

HAGEN SHOW: August 19th-20th

1957

A Show To End Tribal Conflicts

The Goroka Show first debuted in 1957 to encourage peace and unity among warring tribes. It was an initiative of the colonial law enforcement made up of Australian patrol officers known as ‘kiaps’. The Show is over six-decades old, and remains one of PNG’s world-famous cultural events.

1959 The Morobe Community Celebrates

Beginning in 1959, the Morobe Show showcased the commercial, agricultural successes of the residents of Lae and its surrounding areas. It was also an occasion for pageantry and entertainment involving school parades and marching bands.

1961

The Mount Hagen Show Begins

Tribal warfare raged across the Western Highlands during the 1950’s and 60’s. The Hagen Show followed the successful peace-inspiring and community engaging events of the Goroka and Morobe Shows. Tribal groups from across the Highlands would come together to celebrate their differences.

In the 1950’s films in technicolor were becoming a novelty across theatres in Australia and other parts of the Western world. The 1957 film: “Port Moresby, Gem of the Pacific - Australian Colour Diary”, presented a beautiful montage of attractions, sites, and wonders of life in the thriving urban center of Port Moresby in the late 1950s.

1973

VARIRATA NATIONAL PARK OPENS

The first and largest national park in the Territory opens in 1973. Varirata, is located in the Sogeri Hinterlands – an hour ’s drive from Port Moresby

1973

AIR NIUGINI

In 1973 Air Niugini is established, connecting domestic routes across the territory. In its first year of operation, Air Niugini exceeds forecasts with a record 350,000 passengers.

AN ICONIC DIVE RESORT

The Loloata Dive Resort opens, introducing divers and holiday makers to some of the country’s finest dive sites in Bootless Bay, Central Province.

1975

Independence Day

On the 16th of September, 1975, Papua New Guinea achieves Indepdendence. The Independence Day anniversary celebrations take place throughout the country - a thousand tribes coming together to commemorate the birth of their nation.

1979

CAPTAIN MINSON PENI

Papua New Guinea’s first native pilot joined the ranks of Air Niugini in 1979. The late Captain Minson L. Peni hails from Djaul Island in the New Ireland Province. .

Following Papua New Guinea’s Independence, aviator and tourism pioneer Bob Bates established Trans Niugini Tours (TNT). The company remains one of PNG’s most successful inbound tour operators, bringing in visitors from all over the globe who often stay at the boutique lodges: Rondon Ridge, Ambua, Kerowari, Murray River and Bensbach. The same year, the late Sir Peter Barter and his family opened the Madang Resort and tour company Melanesian Tourist Services (MTS).

1976 THE TOURISM PIONEERS: BOB BATES AND PETER BARTER 1977

1987

Now known as PNG Air, this is one of the nation’s most successful commercia airlines, providing,international, domestic and charter flights.

1993

The Tourism Promotion Authority was established under an Act of Parliament as a special purpose authority to help market and promote Papua New Guinea as a desirable tourist destination.