Tourism
From The Report: Papua New Guinea 2019
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With the new administration of Prime Minister James Marape committed to easing dependency on extractive industries, supporting diversification and stimulating job creation, the tourism sector offers significant potential. However, travelling in Papua New Guinea at present requires patience, perseverance and fortitude. Considerable scope remains for savvy local and international operators to exploit shallow product offerings in niche markets, notably adventure, cultural tours and ecotourism. In addition, many Chinese tourists have been made aware of PNG through coverage of the APEC summit. Convincing them to visit will require targeted measures. More broadly, ongoing improvements to transport infrastructure, code-share agreements between airlines and a coordinated effort to counter the perception that PNG is unsafe are essential. This chapter also contains an interview with Heidi Kunkel, Vice-President of Australasia Operations, Hilton.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Unlocked potential: A rising international profile and unique niche market offering support growth in the sector
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With the new administration of Prime Minister James Marape committed to easing dependency on extractive industries, supporting diversification and stimulating job creation, the tourism sector offers significant potential. However, travelling in Papua New Guinea at present requires patience, perseverance and fortitude. Until infrastructure constraints, high travel costs and security concerns are addressed, PNG’s pristine coastlines and vast tropical forests will likely remain out of reach from all…

Interview

Exceeding expectations: Heidi Kunkel, Vice-President of Australasia Operations, Hilton, on overcoming challenges and tourism’s bright future
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Interview:Heidi Kunkel What tourism-related lessons can Papua New Guinea learn from its regional partners? HEIDI KUNKEL: There are some key lessons that PNG can learn from the Fiji tourism landscape. PNG and Fiji have similarities because they are both endowed with natural diversity and rich cultural traditions. The tourism sector in Fiji has marketed the country extensively over the last decade and in turn gained a solid reputation of being a safe and friendly destination, attracting both…

Analysis

Into the spotlight: The successful APEC summit draws international attention and leaves a positive infrastructure legacy
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The APEC Leaders’ Summit in November 2018 put Papua New Guinea firmly on the map, but work remains to ensure the country’s tourism industry successfully capitalises on its time in the international spotlight. Over 9000 international visitors descended on Port Moresby for the two-day event, booking out the city’s hotels and requiring three Australian cruise ships to dock in the harbour to accommodate the overflow. Visitors spent an estimated PGK200m ($60.7m) over the course of the event. The…

Analysis

Trendsetters: Outbound tourism from China drives growth across Asia Pacific
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Over the course of less than two decades, China has gone from being a minor player to being the world’s largest and most lucrative source of outbound tourists. In 2017 alone Chinese nationals made more than 131m trips outside of their national borders, spending approximately $300bn in the process. The growing volume and financial clout of Chinese tourists presents considerable opportunities – while simultaneously posing new challenges – for hoteliers, tour group operators, retailers and national…