I had the good fortune to join the MV Orion, an Australian operated luxury small ship, for the second of her cruises around some of the remotest islands of Papua New Guinea. This program as it stood could have been the most perfect of incentive travel rewards – experiencing a truly exotic destination in five star luxury and safety.

PNG, Australia’s northerly neighbour, comprises such rough tropical jungle terrain that there are no roads between the capital, Port Moresby and its outlying provinces. Access is by sea or air into a country which has some 800 distinct languages and where most of the population sustain themselves through agricultural methods barely changed over millennia.

Orion offers an “expeditionary” cruise experience. At just 4000 tons, she carries a maximum of 104 passengers in her 52 highly luxurious staterooms. I can report that the quality of the rooms, with their marble bathrooms, plasma TV screens, luxurious toiletries and fine timber panelling were as good – if not better – than the Queen Mary 2, the world’s largest liner which I travelled on 16 months ago.
The idea of expeditionary cruising is to give visitors a unique insight into the natural and cultural highlights of the places visited. Papua New Guinea is absolutely perfect for this. The ship was able to get close to islands such as the Trobriands, New Ireland, and the mainland ports in Madang and Milne Bay.

No one claims PNG is the safest of destinations and the beauty of the ship is she sails overnight, with every morning revealing yet another place of immense beauty and unique interest. Staying well away from the hotspots such as Port Moresby and Lae, there was not a single moment of concern and the greetings we received were as warm as they were genuine.

Apart from at Alatou in Milne Bay where there is massive unemployment, this was our experience everywhere we visited over the 10 days. PNG natives are a most dignified people despite the difficult circumstances of their lives. The coastal people of PNG are able to keep themselves in relatively good condition through all the fish they consume and a complete absence of highly processed fast foods. They’re energetic gardeners with a wide range of root vegetables and palm products such as sago adding to the diet.

Some of the passengers took the opportunity of one day in Madang to fly up to Goroka in the PNG highlands to experience a show from the “mudmen”, another unique PNG cultural ritual which has the “warriors” donning sturdy clay pots as masks for battle.

I was taking a picture on the beach at Tufi when a man approached and asked if I’d like a photograph of him in his tribal headgear. He introduced himself as Christopher Gigiwa and told me he had built a guesthouse overlooking this exquisite beach. When I gave him a few PNG kina for his trouble, he insisted on my taking a beautiful papaya in exchange. This was the nature of the place. Throughout the day there were at least 50 outrigger dugout canoes circling the ship as we were clearly as exotic to them as they were to us. They had bananas, flowers and a wide variety of beautiful hand crafts, yet not once did we feel any of the tug-at-heartstrings pressure that occurs when first and third worlds collide.

Morning Major
Travelling on the Orion was Major General John Hartley (retired) of the Australian Defence Force, a veteran of the Vietnam War and keen historian of Australian military history in PNG, including the Kokoda Track and the Battle of Milne Bay. He was able to bring insights that brought Australia’s remarkable achievements in New Guinea into sharp relief.

Just as the places visited offered different experiences, so too did the Orion, which was a continual surprise. Sydney celebrity chef Serge Dansereau is consultant chef to the Orion and a range of dishes from his celebrated Bather’s Pavilion are on offer each evening as well as those of the ship’s chef, Marco Bijl, who has more than 10 years’ experience cooking for the high end of the cruise market.

His dishes include asparagus and lobster salad with a passionfruit vinaigrette, herb-crusted veal tenderloin, and a to-die-for double chocolate mousse.

Breakfast and lunch are served alfresco on the aft deck and on several evenings dinner was served under the tropical stars, washed with balmy Pacific breezes.

Orion also cruises the Kimberley Coast, the Great Barrier Reef, Tasmania and the Antarctic during the summer months. The officers are Scandanavian, with most of the crew from the Philippines and very well selected.

A scouting Zodiac is sent out and strict safety protocol is maintained as they frequently have elderly passengers to bring on and off the inflatable craft. The oldest on our trip was a sprightly 84-year-old Swiss lady who didn’t miss a beat.

They handled the passengers and crew with diplomacy and tact and at the end presented all the guests with a 250-image CD ROM with highlights from the voyage.

With a maximum of 104 passengers, Orion is perfectly set for incentive and conference travel. She has a fully equipped 90 seat theatrette, a spacious main lounge, a lift for the infirm or idle and a lounge on the upper deck which can be used for smaller meetings. She’s currently cruising the Kimberley coast and returns to PNG in October.

Visit www.orioncruises.com.au for further details.

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