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Scuba Diving Holidays In New Guinea |
A well established diving tradition enables the scuba enthusiast to make the most of the finest wreck diving on the Pacific Rim.
Country Description
Lying in the Pacific Ocean, New Guinea itself is the largest island on the planet. However the whole country is made up of this landmass and thousands of outer islands which range from the huge New Britain and New Ireland and smaller archipelagos. New Guinea is divided in two, with the western half belonging to the Indonesian State of Irian Jaya.
The Solomon, Bismarck and Coral Seas surround the country while the land is covered in rich rainforest, swamps and rivers. There are also a number of mountain ranges with one measuring as only the third largest in the world.
Papua New Guinea is one of the world's least populated regions, with much of the inland territories still yet to be explored. Indeed a tribe was discovered as recently as 1993! Due to the areas strategically importance in World War 2 there are many wrecks including fighter and bomber planes.
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Diving Description
The seas around Papua New Guinea are teeming with life. As a result dive tourism was quick to catch on here and there are numerous resorts with day boats and liveaboards available. What people come to see are colours radiating from the profusion of sea stars, crinoids, sea whips, sponges, gorgonian seafans and anemone species, the awesome coral formations, reefs and mind boggling array of wrecks. Virtually all of the dives are shallow and reefs are all pristine, which is why it's a favorite destination for underwater photographers.
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Walinda
The best known resort is Walinda in Kimbe Bay, New Britain. Diving here is a mixture of excellent pacific reefs, World War 2 wrecks (ships, planes and even tanks), and breathtaking coral walls. The reefs are alive with life, which includes hammerhead sharks and huge shoals of barracuda. Hard and soft corals are covered in huge seafans, which are decorated with crinoids.
World War 2 wrecks
The Pacific Rim is littered with WW2 wrecks however just off Duke of York Island in New Britain Province lie two Japanese tanks. They're in shallow water and are thought to have come from a bombed cargo ship. Planes include everything from Japanese Zeros top American B-17 bombers.
Other info
The villagers in Papua New Guinea are very territorial and tribal wars breakout regularly, although tourist are not considered to be either a threat, or useful as hostages. Which is some small comfort.
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