Things to do in Kavieng
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Kavieng
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Surf season on North Pacific swells, and the north-west monsoon: heaviest rain roughly January to April, rougher boat crossings.
A best overall diving window per dive sources, surf ending, monsoon easing and the islands quiet.
New Ireland Day in Kavieng: the cultural peak, with Malagan, Kabai and Tubuan performances, and full rooms.
The comparatively dry period in long-term records, best for the Boluminski Highway, with a second diving peak in October to November.
Diving visibility is generally best October to March and the surf season turns again from late October.
What's on
- New Ireland Day July
Provincial celebration in Kavieng showcasing Kabai, Tubuan and Malagan culture, including Tatanua masks.
- Malagan Festival Recently revived, no fixed date; check before planning
Provincial festival reported as returning to Kavieng after more than 30 years. Confirm the date before booking flights around it.
Best things to do in Kavieng
Malagan Carvers of New Ireland
Village carving families still make the masks and friezes of the malagan funerary ceremonies, arranged through the lodges.
Bagail Cemetery
The harbour cemetery holding the grave of Franz Boluminski, the German officer the east coast highway is named for.
Kavieng World War II Relics
Japanese guns, bunkers and harbour relics from the 1942 invasion and occupation, seen with a local guide or driver.
Shark Calling at Kontu
A rare living tradition of calling sharks by rattle and catching them by hand, arranged through lodges and seasonal.
Nusa Island
A sheltered white sand island minutes from the wharf, for safe harbour swimming, snorkelling and the sunset view to town.
New Ireland Day Celebrations
The July provincial celebration in Kavieng, with Kabai, Tubuan and Malagan performances including Tatanua masks.
Where to stay in Kavieng
Kavieng town
transit nights, the market and the highway start
The airport, wharf, market and highway all start here, with town hotels and the cheap transit guesthouse.
Nusa Island
the all-round Kavieng stay
Minutes by boat from town, with safe harbour swimming, surf boats and the area's best dinner table.
Lissenung Island
diving
A private island dive resort 20 minutes from Kavieng, with a house reef and more than 40 sites by boat.
East coast, Boluminski Highway
surf and road travellers
Plantation and village stays down the 193 km east coast road, with Rubio as the bookable surf base.
New Hanover
expedition surf and snorkelling
Tunnung Island stays reached by about two hours by boat, for uncrowded breaks and the Sanko Maru wreck.
Think twice about
- Port Moresby transit on foot after dark
The mandatory transit city carries serious crime risk. Use a hotel with an airport transfer and stay in after dark.
Best restaurants in Kavieng
Nusa Island Retreat Restaurant
The Kavieng area's best table: a nightly seafood buffet famous for New Ireland mud crabs, booked by 2pm for non-guests.
Lissenung Island Resort Restaurant
The resort haus win serving a daily changing menu of fresh fish, crab and lobster, pre-ordered the day before.
Kavieng Hotel Restaurant
The town kitchen known for pizza, plus western, local, Thai, Malaysian and Indian dishes on Coronation Drive.
Malagan Beach Resort Restaurant
A beachfront restaurant with a covered extension on the sand on Nusa Harbour, plus a cocktail bar, walkable from town.
Kavieng Market
The harbourside market for produce, reef fish and big mud crabs, busiest Friday and Saturday mornings, and the cheapest eat.
Outdoor things to do in Kavieng
Scuba Ventures Kavieng
Town based diving to Albatross Passage walls and Second World War plane wrecks including Deep Pete and a B-25 bomber.
Surfing from Nusa Island Retreat
Boat transfers to uncrowded reef breaks around the harbour islands, capped at 20 surfers under the national surf plan.
PNG Explorer
A liveaboard surf charter for 8 to 10 surfers chasing remote east coast reef breaks through the October to April season.
Boluminski Highway
The 193 km east coast road from Kavieng to Namatanai, cycled in about five days or driven with village and waterfall stops.
Fissoa
An inland freshwater waterhole along the Boluminski Highway, the local swimming reset on a hot east coast road day.
Sanko Maru Wreck
A Second World War wreck shallow enough to snorkel, reached on a boat expedition to New Hanover from Kavieng.
Best hotels in Kavieng
Nusa Island Retreat
A low impact retreat on a sheltered harbour point minutes from town, full board, with the area's best regarded table.
Lissenung Island Resort
A tiny private island dive resort 20 minutes from Kavieng, 14 to 16 guests, a house reef and 40 plus dive sites.
Malagan Beach Resort
The town resort hotel on Nusa Harbour with 16 air conditioned rooms, a small pool and a beachfront restaurant and bar.
Kavieng Niu Lodge
A town lodge with air conditioned rooms, a restaurant and bar and courtesy airport transfers, built for transit nights.
Kavieng Hotel
The old town hotel on Coronation Drive with air conditioned rooms, 24 hour security and a well regarded kitchen.
Rubio Plantation Retreat
A rustic surf retreat on a 76 hectare plantation 220 km down the highway, with a private beach and a break out front.
Kavieng Transit Haus
A small town guesthouse with a restaurant and free airport transport, the cheap transit bed its name advertises.
Clem's Place
A small surf and expedition guesthouse on Tunnung Island with home cooking, uncrowded breaks and wreck snorkelling.
Is Kavieng expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | PGK 450 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | PGK 950 a person |
| Splurge | PGK 1,700 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Malagan Carvers of New Ireland: weeks ahead
- Kavieng World War II Relics: a few days ahead
- Shark Calling at Kontu: weeks ahead
- Nusa Island: a few days ahead
- New Ireland Day Celebrations: weeks ahead
- Scuba Ventures Kavieng: weeks ahead
- Surfing from Nusa Island Retreat: weeks ahead
- PNG Explorer: months ahead
- Reconfirm the Port Moresby to Kavieng flight the day before, every time, and never book a same-day international connection.
- Book island rooms and flights as one problem in surf season, for New Ireland Day in July, and at Christmas and New Year.
- Book the Nusa dinner buffet before 2pm that day if you are not staying there, and arrange the return boat before dinner.
Is Kavieng safe?
- Crime, unrest and remoteness risks apply across PNG, New Ireland included. The most serious regional risks concern Bougainville and parts of the Highlands.
- Comprehensive insurance covering medical evacuation, diving and surfing is essential: serious cases leave Kavieng by air.
- PNG is a malaria country, New Ireland included: prophylaxis, nets and repellent from dusk, and test any fever promptly.
Kavieng travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Do not treat the sea as a fallback when a flight cancels: PNG ferries and small boats can be dangerous.
- Do not book a surf trip outside the November to April north swell season: outside it there is no surf product to buy.
- Do not touch wartime ordnance on land or on a wreck dive, and do not bargain village or landowner access fees down.
Getting around Kavieng: public transport and more
- Fly Port Moresby to Kavieng with Air Niugini, about 1.5 hours, with a buffer night in Port Moresby at both ends.
- In Kavieng use lodge transfers and lodge boats. There is no public transport network to plan around.
- Down the Boluminski Highway travel by lodge van or a hired vehicle with a driver, in daylight only.
Who Kavieng suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | OK |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Kavieng your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App Store