Papua New Guinea
Risk Overview
PNG is the most demanding destination on this list. Serious crime affects Port Moresby and Lae at levels requiring organised security awareness rather than street smarts; tribal conflict flares in the Highlands; and outside the towns, terrain and weather make every journey a logistics exercise. The Kokoda Track's heat, terrain and evacuation difficulty produce medical incidents every season. Set against all of this: the diving is world class and the trekking historic, which is why people go and why membership matters here more than anywhere.
Medical Infrastructure
Domestic capability is minimal: Port Moresby's facilities handle stabilisation, and anything serious is an international evacuation, almost always to Cairns or Brisbane. On the Kokoda Track, evacuation means walking or rotary extraction from designated points, weather permitting. For dive incidents, chamber capability in-country cannot be relied upon; DCI cases are Australia-transfer cases with the altitude-profile planning that implies.
Entry Requirements
Most nationalities require a visa, with e-visa options for tourism. Kokoda trekking requires permits through the Kokoda Track Authority and licensed operators. Verify current requirements before travel.
Altitude and Dive Notes
Travel with established operators whose security and evacuation arrangements you have actually confirmed; independent travel carries a categorically different risk level here. On Kokoda, heat illness and gastrointestinal cases dominate — hydration discipline and water treatment are the controllables. Dive conservatively: Australia is the chamber.