Papua New Guinea Travel Forum

I am heading to Papua New Guinea to collect freshwater fishes for science, and one of the places we need to go is the middle and lower Fly River. Can anyone offer advice about traveling in this region? Where would be the best place to fly? Is it easy to hire boats? Any information would be great.

Dear Sir,
Noted your email for fish research trip to Lower & Upper fly river.
I would recommend you contact Serah Toiet on this email: pilucas@online.net.pg to assist you to organise your trip. There two entry ports either fly into Kiunga from Port Moresby and arrive into Kiunga and travel by boat or take an small aircraft MAF flight from Kiunga to Suki and Obo area to reach Fly Rivers or fly into Balimo and travel by out boat dinghies from Aramera river up to fly. Also you may need a reasearch paper work to be lodge with National Fisheries Authorites and Department of Environment & Conservation to get to to do fish research. Please contact Serah Toiet to assist your trip plan and arrangements and nominate locations of places you intend to visit so she can work out itinerary and coordinate locitics from you.
Its a rich place but bring in sun lotion and mosquitoe repelents.
Keep me posted. best regards Lucas Kawage

I suggest contacting MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship)unless you are going to a major town that is served by Airlines PNG, Air Niugini, or MBA (Commercial airlines). The mission aircraft go more places than the commercial airlines.

MAF flies into a lot of different places the airlines don't go, and run on a regular schedule flying Cessna 206 and Twin Otter aircraft. I think they do charter flights from Goroka and Mt Hagan, and probably many other locations.

The Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) also flies into many remote airstrips, but they don't fly a regular schedule. They are available for charter and fly Cessna 206 aircraft (6 seater) and Bell Jetranger helicopters (expensive.) They are based in Aiyura Valley, near Kainatu.

If you have enough cargo and people to fill a plane, a charter might be your best bet.