Trip to Papua New Guinea from 5 to 17 August 2027 / From 4,990€ Route of our Mount Hagen Festival tour: what we will discover
Port Moresby: the Motu community and the National Museum
We will begin the journey in Port Moresby, where we will visit a traditional Motu community. We will then explore the National Museum, a first introduction to the history, cultural diversity and traditions of the peoples we will meet over the following days.
Goroka and the Asaro Mudmen
From Port Moresby we will travel up to Goroka, in the Eastern Highlands. Its local market is an ideal place to discover the region’s farm produce, crafts and daily life.
In the afternoon we will meet the Asaro community, famous for its Mudmen and their striking clay masks. They are one of the most recognisable cultural expressions of Papua New Guinea.
Chimbu: the Skeleton Men and the Gena community
In the Chimbu region we will meet the celebrated Skeleton Men, who paint their bodies to represent skeletons. During the visit we will learn about their traditions, their ceremonial performances and their cultural identity.
The following day will be devoted to the Gena community. We will discover aspects of their community life, their cultural expressions and their relationship with the landscape of the Highlands.
Mount Hagen: the Melpa and Enga cultures
Travelling by road through the mountain landscapes of the Highlands, we will reach Mount Hagen. There we will meet the Melpa community to learn about their customs, their traditional dress and their ceremonial expressions.
The next day we will set off on an excursion to meet the Enga, one of the most representative peoples of the Western Highlands. We will discover their traditions, their adornments and their cultural expressions, linked to community identity and to the passing down of customs from one generation to the next.
The Huli: headdresses of human hair and feathers
We will spend a day with the Huli, renowned for their elaborate headdresses of human hair – decorated with feathers and natural materials – and for their brightly coloured face paint. During the encounter we will learn about their traditional adornments, their stories and the cultural meaning of their performances.
The Mount Hagen Cultural Show: two days of dances, songs and headdresses
The trip will culminate in two days at the Mount Hagen Cultural Show, one of the most important cultural gatherings in Papua New Guinea. Groups from different regions come together to present their dances, songs, body paint, headdresses and ceremonial dress, in a showcase of the country’s cultural diversity.
The second day will give us further opportunities to enjoy the performances and to discover the differences between the participating peoples. We will have time to photograph the headdresses, the body paint and the traditional dances that make the festival a celebration of the country’s cultural identity.
This will bring to a close our journey through the Papua New Guinea Highlands, a route to get to know its peoples, their adornments and their ceremonies at first hand.
© Photographs by Aníbal Bueno, Xavi de las Heras and Fernando Rosselot, taken during our trips to Papua New Guinea.
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