Monday Escape: Kimbe, Papua New Guinea
The bustling town of Kimbe is the third largest port in Papua New Guinea and is the fastest growing city in the South Pacific. It’s easy to see why. The town is a port on the great Kimbe Bay which boasts more than 60 percent of the coral species of the entire Indo-Pacific.
So if you’re into diving, snorkeling, rich tropical wildlife and warm, clear water, Kimbe is where you want to be. But the scenery on land is equally as spectacular. Blue-eyed cockatoos and the world’s largest moths fill the air, while bandicoots and wallabies share the landscape with one of the world’s greatest number of orchids.
Accommodation in Kimbe is readily available in many high-class resorts and hotels, as well as many budget guesthouses and motels dribbled along the province.
Because of its rich, unique marine life, Kimbe is also an important location for marine conservation. A conservation organization named Mahonia Na Dari (“Guardians of the Sea” in the local language) sponsors marine research, conservation and an education center to aid scientists and teach natives of Kimbe and other islanders about their ecosystems.
Expat biologists, both professional and amateur, are common inhabitants in Kimbe. For instance, the marine conservation and research center now hosts scientists from Australia’s James Cook University, and the place is popular for marine scientists from around the world.
The landscape in Kimbe is also unique due to active volcanic cones which encircle Kimbe Bay on the island of New Britain. This is certainly one of the most dynamic places in the world, and is also a popular destination for interested volcanologists.
Feel stuck in a gray-skied grind back home? Kimbe is the ultimate cure. Ditch your humdrum existence and partake in a real New Guinean adventure!