Location: Alotau
Top Things to do in Alotau
What to do and see in Alotau, Papua New Guinea: The Best Places and Tips
Alotau in Papua New Guinea, from South Pacific region, is best know for 4WD. Discover best things to do in Alotau with beautiful photos and great reviews from traveller around the world here!
Restaurants in Alotau
1. Alotau Land Tours
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 62 reviews
An Intimate and comprehensive day tour of Alotau and surrounding area. Includes War memorial and related sites, markets,visit to villages of friends&family,swimming/snorkling, primary school,hospital and local interaction. Lunch on day tour provided. Massage(optional extra) Pick-up and drop off 0830 to 1500
Reviewed By A8657WLpaulineh - Perth, Australia
We booked this tour and paid for it online before we left home. The tours on Princess Cruises in Alotau were very expensive and our emails with Cathy were very efficient and explained everything fully. Cathy and Wilma met us when we got off the Ship and as promised we visited a family at their home who made Tapa cloth out of bark from trees, another family whose children had dressed traditionally to welcome us and they cooked in their claypot for us to taste their food and explain how they lived. We walked to the beach to see leftover things from WW2 including the unique toilet pictured above. Visited the Hospital and were given the opportunity to hand out toiletries to patients if we wished and also visited the Lookout, war memorial and market. This was just a morning tour but gave us a great insight into how life is lived there and their traditions and struggles. We would recommend this tour to anyone visiting Alotau as it is excellent and good value.
2. Reeftours Milne Bay
Overall Ratings
5 based on 82 reviews
Reeftours Milne Bay is Located and operated at the eastern tip of Papua New Guinea ( Milne Bay Province Alotau town) We are a small local sightseeing tour company. Our aim is to provide a safe, reliable, fun and informative tours to all our visitors, young as well as the oldies amongst us.
Reviewed By derekgoodes - Chatham, United Kingdom
We picked this tour after Reading all the reviews on Trip Advisor ;we were not disappointed. As explained in the pre- tour paperwork, we were greeted outside of the port gates in Alotau, by Elaine and Ken and presented with hugs and floral garlands.
The tour of Alotau followed including the "Transit Hotel" for visiting tribes with concrete floors, one communal tap and a public toilet/shower block. Then on to the craft market with numerous wooden gifts,all carved with hand tools with one guy actually polishing his handiwork with a toothbrush. Next stop was the war memorial celebrating the first on land defeat of the Japanese army in August 1942.
Onward into the hinterland to see the remains of three air strips built in 1942, the remains of the pier where Queen Elizabeth landed in 1977.
Our next stop was an elementary school, where the children were both charming and respectful.We were shown some of their work, their writing was very good.Some of the children performed a dance for us. Ken explained that many of the children walk to school, some a distance of 10 kilometres and in bare feet!
We then travelled on to Shanniah's village, which comprised wooden houses in the bush with no running water or electricity. Lunch was provided which consisted of fruit and home baked pastries cooked on a wood fire; the food was excellent and washed down with tea or coffee.
After lunch we were taken on a guided tour of the village,including wandering through the stream which meanders through the edge of the settlement. We were shown how they make woven panels for the house walls made from strips of soya palm branches cut with a machette. The people in the village made us feel very welcome and could not do enough for us.
Sadly, in mid afternoon, it was time to say a very emotional farewell and board the transport back to the port.
The village seems to be self sufficient although they are very poor, It is worth noting that the proceeds from these tours are reinvested in the village to make they life more comfortable
To sum up, one truly amazing day..A highlight of our holiday which we will always remember.
3. Kwalia Adventure & Expeditions
Overall Ratings
5 based on 5 reviews
Hiking/Trekking, Caving, Cycling, Snorkelling, Culture Tours, Fishing Tours, Island hopping, Heli Tours etc... Anything that is worth the adventure or an expedition, we do it all.
Reviewed By Worldview8 - Seattle, Washington
I took a day trip to East Cape in Papua New Guinea. I was picked up by Liam who turned out to be a great guide! He talked about the villages en route to East Cape and also highlighted some things along the way that...MoreWe thank you for choosing our tours. It was a pleasure to show you what we have in-regards to our unique culture and the beauty of our natural environment that is found in this part of the world.
4. Turnbull War Memorial Park
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 15 reviews
Reviewed By Margaret B - Queensland, Australia
This tour was organised through Princess Cruises and although it was enjoyable was overpriced. The tour also included other points of interest and the history of Australia's part in repelling the Japanese in World War 2. Although the memorial could be better maintained, it was worth the visit and to see and hear about other points of interest around the Milne Bay Area.
5. Manta Watch Camp
Overall Ratings
5 based on 4 reviews
The Island Manta Watch Camp is located on the remote and stunning paradise Island in the South Pacific. Gonubalabala, Papua New Guinea. It's so remote that it's not even on google maps yet! Milne Bay reefs are full of life with anything from the tiniest weird and wonderful critters, to the large pelagic trophies such as Hammerheads and Whale Sharks. PLEASE CONTACT US FOR FULL DETAILS BEFORE BOOKING
Reviewed By Tanja K - Canton of Bern, Switzerland
I spent a week on Gonubalabala island, and i can honestly say it was one of the best weeks of my life. Adam, Carmen and the locals welcomed me with open arms, ready smiles, flowers and songs. The 1h30 boatride from Alotau offers amazing landscapes and the opportunity to get to know your hosts. The food on the island, cooked by the amazing Nydia, makes me salivate just reminiscing about it. And the diving, oh my god, the diving! I had dived in Thaïland and on the great barrier reef but they have nothing on PNG! Imagine watching, mesmerized, Manta rays playing near the surface just 5-10m from the beach and then going into the water and spend your time below the surface admiring these majestic creatures glide below/above you. And if one of your many (included in the price) dives happens to fall on a Manta-free period, there is enough here to excite even the most demanding of divers, from ornate ghost pipefish, cuttlefish and turtles all the way to the most amazing nudibranchs and slugs.
Carmen and Adam help you make the most of every day, organize excursions and help you identify all the beautiful creatures you saw on your last dive.
6. Port of Alotau
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 11 reviews
Reviewed By Dan L - Bunbury, Australia
I guess our first glimpse of Alotau Port was not very inspiring. However, after disembarking the ship, our attitude changed somewhat. There was a warm welcome from local tourism volunteers, a small information booth was set up near the ship but had minimal literature and seemed more concerned with selling the trinkets on offer. Still, nice friendly people. Just outside the port area, various tour booths operated, there were more volunteers and the first of the myriad of market stalls. Fabrics were very colourful and offered in a variety of clothing, household items, etc. The wooden carvings were quite extraordinary and easy to see that many hours had been spent producing these works of art. Shells and shell products everywhere. We were probably a 30 minute stroll from the main centre and there were various markets along the way, most established for the locals although tourists were welcome to browse and purchase. Footpaths are not good, roads are potholed, and the place looks mostly unkempt, dusty and with betel juice splatter everywhere. Nevertheless, you are greeted with a warm friendly smile by locals and be prepared for a posse of young children to follow you everywhere. We did not visit any of the shops or other establishments as we had a cultural tour pre-booked. Plenty of reinforced mesh and bars in evidence over windows and doorways. Tourism is relatively new to Alotau and has the means to improve the living standards of the inhabitants without compromising the local culture. A learning experience for sure and glad that we visited.
7. Alotau's best bar
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3 reviews
Reviewed By Herpam D - Stanthorpe, Australia
If you are intending to visit Papua New Guinea than you must include Alotau in your itinerary because Alotau gives you the best of two worlds - the westernized and the cultural. AND it is the cultural you want to experience. We visited Alotau on the Princess Cruises Sea Princess on 24 February and went on an organized tour to the "Kenu and Kundu Festival" viewing the local canoe races, cultural displays, and musical offerings. (Kenu means canoe.) The canoes can hold up to 24 rowers and a captain steering the canoe from the rear. Take a camera and tele lens with you because you will want to take many close up photographs! Cultural dances are performed by many tribes living around Milne Bay. They are cultural dances and the performers DO NOT wear brasseries (Bras) so if you are somewhat shy - don't look! Well, why would you want to go to cultural Performances if you do not want to look??? Anyway, I took about 250 photographs of the various displays and performers and am glad I can give my friends an idea of what the Papua New Guinea Milne Bay offers. Yes, after having spent some 4 hours at the festival we did have a beer at Alotau's best bar and really enjoyed it. BUT we were glad to have the beer after the festival instead of before! Yes entrance to the festival cost about AUD56 per person but it is worth every cent. Don't forget to take a photo of people chewing Betel nut! That is what causes the teeth to go red! There is, however, a downside to betel nuts. Many locals dip it in to lime which causes a chemical reaction and gives them a high. Similar to marijuana and the like. Don't try the stuff - it doesn't do westerners any good! I hope you enjoy Alotau as much as we did. AND TAKE YOUR CAMERA wherever you go - please...
8. Massim Museum
Overall Ratings
4 based on 8 reviews
The Museum currently two opening history exhibitions: The Rise and Fall of Samarai, and Milne Bay's place in WWII: The Battle of Milne Bay 1942. More contemporary displays include paintings & objects created by Milne Bay artists and weavers. The museum's permanent collection includes 40 carvings and 12 story boards from the Malinowski Legacy forum carving project. The museum is not for profit and your donation will help to keep us growing and serving the community
Reviewed By RayParks - Adelaide, Australia
It’s situated in the former conference room of the main building of Wanigili. Various carvings and photos from the past as well as a couple of war canoes were displayed. On the front door there was a sign that said it’s free for the locals (please see the attached photo). As we had lived and worked in Milne Bay as volunteers for many years, the local people consider us as locals. So we entered the museum with our PNG counterparts.
Then, the Australian curator, who’s been new to PNG, came out and said that she had to charge K25 per tourist. When we said that we were not tourists, she questioned us further and told us that she’d give us discounted admission fee of K12.50! Why couldn’t she put up a clear sign of admission fees on the door? It may be a nice museum, but we didn’t feel welcomed.
It’s open from Wednesday to Saturday 11:00am - 4:00pm. If you are interested in visiting the museum, you can walk from town about 1km along Abel Highway, but there is no street sign to indicate where Wanigili (Education Milne Bay) is. So it would be best for you to catch a “town bus” to “KB” from the bus interchange in town, and ask the offsider to drop you off at Education Milne Bay. Then, walk towards the waterfront. You will soon see a large timbered building with a red roof and the sign that says “Wanigili.”
When returning to the town, you can either walk back or catch a PMV from where you got off the bus. The bus fare is only K1. If you decide to walk back, be careful along the bush between Napatana Lodge and the Fire Station.
9. AlphaBlue Limited
AlphaBlue Limited is a 100% PNG-owned company based and operating in Milne Bay Province, with a global footprint via Singapore through AlphaBlue SG Pte Ltd. We aim to build and operate a successful, innovative, and expandable boating operation to cater for private, corporate, and tourism requirements. We offer fishing tours, sightseeing, island-hopping, etc and offer customized tour packages.
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