PNG questions

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K

kgbeaton

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Location
canada
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Hi all,

My wife and I will be leaving in three weeks for a trip that will take us to PNG on Peter Hughes Star Dancer. We will be spending 5 days in Australia before flying to Port Moresby, and then spending 16 days in Bali after the liveaboard, travelling and diving around the island. I have read on this board that getting through the airport in Port Moresby can be a little stressful. We will be applying for our visas at he airport, and have about 2 hours to transfer to the flight to Hoskins assuming our flights are on time. Does anybody have any tips on making the connections any easier? Thanks in advance for any info.

Glen
 
The easiest thing would be to get your visas in advance if you can. I had a little over an hour and half between my international flight and the flight to Hoskins and barely made it. Spent most of my time in line waiting for my visa. Another tip would be to have Kina to pay for your visa on arrival if you don't get it in advance. Otherwise you have to stand in another line to get Kina. It was definitely stressful going thru the airport there everything runs in slow motion and there seems to be a line for everything.
 
I looked in to applying for our visas in advance, but I believe the closest place is in Washington DC, and we would have to mail our passports. We live in Western Canada, and I don't want to risk that so close to our departure. The Peter Hughes rep. said we can apply for it there. I tried buying Kina here, but the currency exchange place here said it is not on their list of currencies that they can order. I guess I should be able to buy some when we arrive in Australia. Thanks for your reply.
 
When I was in OZ Kina was hard to come by look early and look often. Don't wait until you get to the airport before your flight. I did and they didn't have any.
 
I lifted this from a 2009 Trip Advisor forum:

"Visa on arrival still costs 100 kina cash. This can usually be readily obtained at travelex at Brisbane or Cairns airports. If you don't have kina cash they will send or escort you to the ATM - which takes MC, Visa and I think Amex - which is located in the baggage hall immediately behind the customs desks.

Just for the record, if one is handy to the PNG High Commission in CBR or the consulate in BNE you can obtain a visa in advance for $35 - see Visitor Category

I don't think getting off first makes much difference unless you don't have checked luggage - my experience of POM (more than I desire!!) is that you have to check in early to get a good forward seat, I always do this but my bags tend to arrive last as a result."

I would add it has always been my experience if you have a forward seat on the plane you can get in the front of the immigration line, which would be quicker for the visa, but you will still have to wait for baggage to get thru the customs line. So it would still be better to have a forward seat and have Kina on arrival. -best of luck, Don
 
Thanks for your input. We are flying in to Cairns, and spending our time in Cairns, and north of the city, so getting our visas in Australia won't be an option. We will definitely try to get a forward seat on the plane, and we will look for Kina while we are there. We will be glad when we arrive in Hoskins. We are flying to Hong Kong from Port Moresby after the liveaboard, and will have about 8 hours to kill at the airport before our connection. We are not looking forward to that, but it doesn't sound like we would want to spend much time in Port Moresby. Thanks again....
 
If you have an 8 hour layover in POM take the shuttle to the Airways Hotel. They have an area there for people who are laying over. Nice resturant and pool and it doesn't cost anything to take the shuttle back and forth. It's much much nicer then hanging out in the airport. Ask the crew on the Star Dancer as they were the ones that told me about the Airways Hotel.
 
Alternatively, you can use a visa service to obtain your PNG visa before you leave home. Dive buddy and I did that for our trip next month using VisaHq.com, and it was quick, easy and painless. Think it was roughly $50 each... more expensive than doing it at the airport in PNG for sure, but will save some hassle.

ETS for Australia is super easy...

-B
 
I had no trouble getting Kina at Cairns airport before flying to PNG but as a previous poster suggested it might also be worth trying to get it in Cairns just in case the airport doesn't have it - or if you are driving past the airport on your way North drop in and see if you can pick some up. And don't stress, it will be worth it once you get on the boat!

Alison
 
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