Papua New Guinea / Independent State of Papua New Guinea / Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini / Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini- Let’s explore here

Papua New Guinea is the world’s third largest island country, about twice the size of the United Kingdom. It is comprised of the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands in Melanesia. It shares its only land border with Indonesia to the west.

The mainland consists of a ridge of mountains, tropical rainforests and wetlands. There are several active volcanoes, and eruptions are frequent. Earthquakes are also relatively common, sometimes accompanied by tsunamis.

The highest point in Papua New Guinea is Mount Wilhelm at 14,793 ft (4,509 metres) above sea level.

What currency do they use in Papua New Guinea?

In Papua New Guinea they use the Kina. The use of credit / debit cards is not widespread, you should take cash in more remote areas. Traveller’s cheques are only accepted in very touristy areas. There are ATMs in major tourist areas. 

You should make yourself aware of the amount that your bank charges you for using credit and debit cards abroad. Often credit cards are cheaper for purchasing items directly, and for withdrawing cash from ATMs.

What language do they speak in Papua New Guinea?

They speak English, Tok, sign language, and Hiri Motu in Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea is the most linguistically diverse country in the world, with 856 languages, accounting for 12% of the world’s total languages.

What time zone is Papua New Guinea in?

Remember, when you’re planning your next trip to take a look at what time zone it’s in. 

Do I need a visa to visit Papua New Guinea?

We’ve created a dedicated, more comprehensive page on visas, which you should find helpful. Check it out!

What’s it like to drive in Papua New Guinea?

We’ve also created a dedicated page to driving abroad, which you might find helpful 🙂

Current travels

We haven’t finished our planning for driving though Papua New Guinea yet. When we do though, we’ll post it here, and in the blog. 

Hopefully our journey will improve our knowledge of this intriguing and beautiful country, and enable us to meet some interesting people. We’ll be updating this page at that time – don’t forget to check back 🙂

Is wild camping legal in Papua New Guinea?

No, wild camping is illegal in Papua New Guinea.

If you’ve got some awesome pictures, or some useful info that you’d like to share, let us know! 

And don’t forget to check out all the other pictures!