9 DAYS PAPUA NEW GUINEA: GOROKA FESTIVAL & HIGHLAND TRIBES

Gateway to Papua New Guinea

Arrive in Port Moresby, where you are met on arrival and transferred to your hotel for an early check‑in to rest after the journey. In the afternoon, join your guide for a short city sightseeing tour, introducing the capital’s key viewpoints and local life before a relaxed evening at the hotel.

Arrival in Tari & Ambua Nature Trails

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your domestic flight into the rugged Highlands region of Tari.

Arrive in Tari and transfer up into the lush rainforest to Ambua Lodge, your highland retreat overlooking the Tari Valley. This afternoon is devoted to gentle birding and a guided nature walk along Ambua’s forest trails, crossing vine bridges and pausing at gushing waterfalls. With luck you may spot several of the thirteen local species of birds of paradise, alongside vivid orchids, mosses and unusual insects that make this eco‑zone so special.

Huli Wigmen & Men’s Wig School

Today introduces you to the Huli Wigmen, one of Papua New Guinea’s most distinctive highlands cultures, famed for their colourful bilas and elaborately constructed human‑hair wigs. You visit a traditional men’s wig school to see how initiates grow and shape their hair over many months to craft ceremonial headdresses, learning the symbolism behind feathers, flowers and pigments.

Tari Market & Everyday Highlands Life

This morning you stroll through the lively Tari town market, where highlanders trade taro, sweet potatoes (kaukau), leafy greens and handmade bilum bags, often mixing modern dress with traditional adornment. The market visit is followed by relaxed walks through nearby hamlets and gardens, giving insight into subsistence farming, clan relationships and the role of women’s work in highland society.

Villages, Architecture & Valley Panoramas

Your final day in Tari focuses on village architecture and the landscape that shaped Huli history. Guided walks take you past traditional homesteads protected by massive mud walls and deep trenches, built as defensive structures in times of inter‑clan conflict. You’ll learn how beliefs, gardening practices and ceremonial life are intertwined, before a last opportunity to photograph sweeping valley vistas and spend a quiet evening reflecting on your time among the Huli people.

Arrival in Goroka & J.K McCarthy Museum

After breakfast, fly by charter from Tari to Goroka which be your base for the duration of the 2027 Goroka Cultural Show.

On arrival, visit the J.K McCarthy Museum, a well-known small museum that displays a large number of collections, such as masks, pictures, artworks, etc. Through these exhibits, people can better understand the history and culture of Papua New Guinea.

Pikinini Festival: Tradition for Tomorrow

After breakfast, transfer from your hotel to the lively Pikinini (children’s) festival in the Eastern Highlands, where youngsters appear in full traditional dress and bilas, celebrating and learning about their own cultures through song, dance and performance.

Goroka Show: Grand Highlands Gathering

Today is devoted to the Goroka Cultural Show, Papua New Guinea’s longest‑running and most famous sing‑sing, held around Independence Day each September. More than 50 tribal groups typically gather, each presenting their own costumes, body paint, music and choreography in a spectacular, full‑day celebration of culture and community. It is a stunning reflection of the incredible diversity of Papua New Guinea’s cultural landscape.

Farewell to the Papua New Guinea

As your Goroka tour concludes, transfer to the airport for your flight back to Port Moresby. On arrival, connect with your onward international departure, carrying with you the echo of drumbeats, painted faces and mist‑touched highland valleys long after you have left Papua New Guinea’s skies behind.