Your Guide to Diving Papua New Guinea

Diving Papua New Guinea Overview

Papua New Guinea Seasonal Dive Planner

PNG is a very mountainous country, and its weather is dependent on local topography. Heat and humidity are reasonable considerations. Only in the Highlands does it get cool at night. The driest time of year is May through October, but it rains considerably even then. During the rest of the year, plankton blooms are more common. Although Walindi Plantation Resort (New Britain) accommodates guests year-round, January, February, and March are the wettest months. Some boats beat the rainy weather by moving to the other side of the mountains at Kandrian, miraculously transporting to a dry climate. It's a bit of a steam for the crew, but for guests, it's a quick flight over the mountains by Twin Otter. The water temperature is a wonderfully warm 84°F (29°C), and the nights are T-shirt comfortable. The heaviest rains occur in the New Ireland (Rabaul) between January and April. The weather can be as different near Port Moresby as it is between the fjordland area (Tufi) and Madang to the north.

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Diving Papua New Guinea Reader Reports and Feature Articles

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Latest Reader Reports from Papua New Guinea from the serious divers who read Undercurrent All Reader Reports from Papua New Guinea	All 10,000+ Reports
Scuba Spa Zen Report in Papua New Guinea "Top 3 or better of all the dive experiences I have had" filed Nov 10, 2023 by Soren Hesner (Experience: 251-500 dives, 2 reports)
[None]... ... Read more
Lissenung Island Resort Report in Papua New Guinea/New Ireland "Basic resort with incredible diving" filed Oct 19, 2023 by Michael N. Hofman (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 25 reports, Sr. Contributor )
This resort is NOT the Ritz Cartlton, but has simple cabins, screen enclosed with 24 hour electricity and ceiling fans. It can get qui... ... Read more
MV Oceania Report in Papua New Guinea/West N. Britain, n. ireland "Better experience than previous trip but still be cautious" filed Oct 19, 2023 by Michael N. Hofman (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 25 reports, Sr. Contributor )
This trip was better than the first, mainly because a) Dan toned it down a bit, b) the destination was better than before (even though ... ... Read more
MV Oceania Report in Papua New Guinea/milne bay "An alternative live aboard in PNG" filed Oct 19, 2023 by Michael N. Hofman (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 25 reports, Sr. Contributor )
This trip was organized by a group who we've traveled with before, but no one had been on the Oceania before. The owner, cruise direct... ... Read more
Walindi Plantation Resort Report in Papua New Guinea/New Britain "A difficult place to reach and get out of" filed Jul 20, 2023 by John Morgan (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 3 reports, Reviewer )
I’ve been diving since 1983. In that time I’ve got 1500 dives and countless trips under my belt. This one was without a doubt the most ... ... Read more

Editor's Book Picks for Scuba Diving Papua New Guinea

The books below are my favorites about diving in this part of the world All books are available at a significant discount from Amazon.com; just follow the links. -- BD

Reef Creature Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Paul Humann and Ned Deloach

Paul Humann and Ned Deloach have done it again, releasing a definitive identification guide to 1600 extraordinary reef creatures of the Tropical Pacific. with this 500+ page softbound guide, you get upwards of 2000 exceptional photos of shrimp and crabs and stars and worms and lobsters and nudibranchs and slugs and squid and bivalves . . . well, all those invertebrates that move along the reefs of this region without fining, so it seems. There are several photos of some creatures to help you identify them during different life stages, and about ten percent of the book is descriptive copy so you can tie down your identification. Even if you have no plans to go to the tropical Pacific, just to thumb through the pages, gawk at the complexity and uniqueness of these animals, and read a thumbnail sketch will give any serious diver vicarious thrills for endless hours.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Reef Fish Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Gerald Allen, Rodger Steene, Paul Humann, & Ned Deloach

At last, here's a comprehensive fish ID guide covering the reefs of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The generous 500-page text, displaying 2,500 underwater photographs of 2,000 species, identifies the myriad fishes that inhabit the warm tropical seas between Thailand and Tahiti. The concise text accompanying each species portrait includes the fish's common, scientific and family names, size, description, visually distinctive features, preferred habitat, typical behavior, depth range, and geographical distribution. This is an essential book for every diver traveling westward. 6x9 inches.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef
by Neville Coleman.

With 2900 reefs in 220,000 square miles, the enormous Great Barrier Reef has incredible dives -- and some very ordinary ones. If you're contemplating a trip, Neville Coleman's Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea will help you ensure you pick the best. This 176 page book, with good maps and scores of colorful photos, describes the significant sites, the topography and the critters, then rates and ranks them so you can pick the best. Don't even consider a trip to Australia without consulting this. $24.95

Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide
by Gerald R. Allen, Roger Steene.

I was trying to pack light for a change. Surely the Solomon Sea would have good identification books aboard. Not so; the only book on the boat belonged to a fellow passenger. It was one that I had not seen before, the Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide, by two of the best fish guys around, Gerry Allen and Roger Steene. The problem was this fellow passenger kept it in a plastic baggie most of the trip and I had to beg to see it. Great book, good traveling size, and it covers everything from fish, shells, marine plants, mammals, corals, and invertebrates to sea birds and more. Now I've got my own, and it won't do you any good to beg me to borrow it. This is one of two books that I will not travel to the Pacific without. Good for travel to the Red Sea, East Africa, Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives, Andaman Sea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and Hawaii, it has 1,800 color illustrations in a 6x8 1/2 paperback format with 378 pages. $39.95.

There's a Cockroach in My Regulator
by Undercurrent

The Best of Undercurrent: Bizarre and Brilliant True Diving Tales from Thirty Years of Undercurrent.

Shipping now is our brand new, 240-page book filled with the best of the unusual, the entertaining, and the jaw dropping stories Undercurrent has published. They’re true, often unbelievable, and always fascinating. We’re offering it to you now for the special price of just $14.95.

Click here to order.

You might find some other books of interest in our Editor's Book Picks section.