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Papua New Guinea trekking holiday

country:Papua New Guinea
trip type:Strenuous walking holidays
departures:2010: 18 Apr, 27 May, 24 Jun, 26 Jun, 5 Aug, 16 Sep
price:From £1995 (10 days) excluding flights. We can arrange flights from the UK
vouchers:Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday

introduction to Papua New Guinea trekking holiday

For those seeking to explore beyond conventional boundaries, visit untouched and pristine virgin rainforests, and discover the history of Australia's 'heroes of Rabaul', this is a remarkable opportunity not to be missed.

A true cultural and wilderness adventure- Follow trails long hidden in the jungles of East New Britain and experience the unrivalled hospitality of remote Baining and Pomio villages along the way, with some well earned beach relaxation at the end! This ecotourism route is being developed in partnership with the local landowners and is an emotive and challenging trek to rival the Kokoda Track.

For war historians, be amongst the first to trek the infamous 'Rabaul Escape' route, taken by members of the 2/22nd Battalion AIF (Lark Force) as they sought escape from the invading Japanese forces in January 1942.
day-by-day itinerary
Day 1:(Wed) Arrive in Rabaul and transfer to beachside resort at Kokopo.
Day 2:Tour of Rabaul and Kokopo, including Tavurvur volcano. In the afternoon, transfer to Vunga village for traditional welcome ceremony.
Day 3-6:Trek the historic Lark Force Wilderness Track, exploring villages and camping alongside pristine waterfalls.
Day 7-8:Relax at Karlai Plantation and visit the memorial for Australian troops at Tol Plantation.
Day 9:Free day for relaxation or optional activities, including snorkelling and diving.
Day 10:Trip ends in Kokopo (Rabaul) this morning (Sun).
highly commended
This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.

Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.
small group adventure holiday
Typically you will be sharing your experiences with between 4-20 like minded travellers (depending on the trip, operator and how many others are booked on the trip) and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends its good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting new people as well as seeing new places.
how this holiday makes a difference
We are involved in assisting a number of projects that have a positive contribution to the welfare of communities, wildlife or environment around the globe. This ecotourism route is being developed in partnership with local landowners in Papua New Guinea. We have worked closely with the collective to build a tour program that maximises the cultural interaction between local people and our clients, whilst delivering the full economic benefit of our business directly to the communities along the Track. The training we have provided has served to complement their existing trekking experience and unique cultural and historical perspective on the Track. This partnership epitomises our ‘closed-loop’ approach to sustainable, environmentally and socially responsible operations.

When you travel with us, you support our Community Trust, which provides funds for local community projects and initiatives that promote responsible and sustainable tourism development in the destinations in which we operate. First and foremost, but not exclusively, the Trust supports projects and initiatives that advance education and employment within the tourism and hospitality industry. The Trust operates on a not-for-profit basis, with every cent of funds donated by us, our staff and our travellers, going to the nominated projects.

As part of our responsible travel policy we also employ local leaders and actively avoid international hotel chains, preferring to give our patronage to authentic, centrally-located and owner-managed establishments whenever possible. Our locally born and raised leaders are highly qualified and will be a great part of your holiday because of their intimate knowledge of the sights, culture and customs, history and language of their homeland.

The maximum group size on all of our adventures is 16 passengers. Travelling in small groups ensures we make significantly less impact on the natural environment, as well as breaking down many of the communication barriers presented by a larger group.

In 2009, we aim to neutralise all major emissions created by most of our trips, so they can be offered as the best green alternative available. We have conducted detailed analysis to assess the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the ground component of our adventure holidays. This means that the greenhouse gases emitted by transport and accommodation during most of our trips will be balanced and reinvested in projects that offer Gold Standard (or similar) Carbon Credits, and are aimed at ‘neutralising’ your contribution to greenhouse gases.

Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people.

We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel.

'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left).

We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays.

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This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards.

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