PAPUA NEW GUINEA, AGATS & RAJA AMPAT EXPEDITION

Embark on an exciting, 18-day expedition cruise that grants you access to one of the remotest regions left on earth – Oceania’s smaller islands. Discover cerulean seas, remote tribes, and incredible wildlife and marine life when you travel from New Guinea’s New Britain around the tip of PNG, through the Torres Strait and to the westernmost point of West Papua. This sailing proffers the twin promises of luxury and unfettered horizons. Travel aboard a stylish and comfortable ship crewed by a passionate and knowledgeable team. Enjoy unique onshore excursions in special places that our guides know well. ITINERARY

DAY 1, RABAUL Your luxury expedition cruise begins in Rabaul, the former capital of Papua New Guinea’s New Britain island. Located inside a flooded caldera, the town’s proximity to a volatile volcano – plus aerial bombardment during World War II – has forced it to rise from the ashes more than once. Most recently the town was rebuilt after widespread destruction caused when Mount Tavurvur erupted in 1994. Thanks to its impressive harbour, buzzing markets and fascinating wartime past, Rabaul is an exciting place to visit. There’s an observatory in the town’s centre, which monitors the country’s two volcanic arcs, and a small museum located in what was a Japanese bunker.

DAY 2, JACQUINOT BAY Arrive at a tropical paradise today, as you call on Jacquinot Bay. A large, open inlet on the southeast coast of New Britain, you’ll enjoy the sugary white sand, swaying palm trees which cast perfect patches of shade, cascading cooler-water waterfall, and above all, the tranquillity. Flashback to 1944 and this was not such a peaceful place. The Allies landed here in November of ’44, and the Australian 5th Division went on to establish a base from which to support the advances on the 40,000 Japanese troops concentrated in the Gazelle Peninsula and headquartered in Rabaul. During your time at Jacquinot Bay, take in this island paradise from a relaxed pose on the beach, under the waves as you swim or snorkel, or immerse yourself in wartime stories as you reflect on the past.

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com DAY 3, TAMI ISLANDS region’s most important port. Trading ships would take advantage of the island’s deep-water harbour and stop-over here en route from Tokyo and The artists of the Tami Islands – a small archipelago of just four lush islands, Shanghai to Brisbane. The Anglican Church is picturesque, as are the views, located south of Finschhafen in the Huon Gulf – are some of the most prolific so be sure to do some hill- climbing so you can enjoy them. Just west of carvers in Morobe Province. They are famed for their intricately carved Samarai in the China Straits lies Kwato. You could fill your visit simply staring hardwood bowls. Highly polished and superbly crafted, these ‘Tami bowls’ are slack-jawed at the island’s tropical beauty, but Kwato’s appeal lies beyond its used as ceremonial vessels and valued highly. Examples of these bowls, looks. Home to a once-thriving boat-building community, the island’s main which feature the face of a spirit clad in an oa balan (three-peaked attraction is the Abel Church, which was built by missionaries. Reverend headdress), can be found in the New York’s Metropolitan Museum and the Charles Abel and his wife, Beatrice, arrived to “save” the local tribes in the British Museum. Admire these artworks on your visit, as well as the 1890s. Topped by a traditional Papuan thatched roof, the church dates from archipelago’s turquoise waters, tranquil beaches and beautiful underwater the early 20th century and features materials brought all the way from world. Scotland.

DAY 4, TUFI DAY 7, BONARUA ISLANDS Begin your time in Papua New Guinea proper when you visit Tufi on the Long, narrow Bonarua Island lies about 10 kilometres off the southern coast southeastern peninsula of Cape Nelson in Oro Province. Located on a rias, or of Papua New Guinea. Local legend has it that an eagle carrying a massive drowned river valley, this fjord-like inlet was made by volcanic activity and is snake across the sea struggled with its weight, and dropped the snake in the famed for its diving. Vibrant offshore reefs, stunning inshore sites, sunken ocean, where it became the serpentine-esque isle. Local villagers will welcome ships and downed WWII aircraft await exploration. Tufi is also synonymous you ashore, and you’ll enjoy a visit to a tribal village. Relatively untouched by with the tapa cloth that is produced here. This bark fabric is used in traditional modernity and little changed across the centuries, you might be privileged to tribal ceremonies and is made from the inner husk of a paper mulberry or see an astonishing ceremonial dance or simply bask in the friendly company breadfruit tree. Birders and butterfly lovers will enjoy exploring the local forest, of the villagers. Enjoy nature walks inland to look for endemic birds, or swim in which has a highly diverse population of birds of paradise, butterflies and the warm waters from isolated palm-fringed beaches. orchids. DAY 8, AT SEA DAY 5, DEI DEI HOT SPRINGS (FERGUSSON ISLAND) & DOBU Spend the day at sea savouring the ship’s facilities. Perhaps attend an ISLAND onboard talk or take in the magnificent seascapes. You could indulge in a One of the most amazing natural wonders that you can encounter, hot springs relaxing treatment at the spa, work out in the well- equipped gym, enjoy some always have visitors bubbling with excitement. From afar, steam can be seen down-time in your cabin, get to know new friends: the options are numerous. billowing from the otherworldly milky-blue Dei Dei Hot Springs. Located on mountainous Fergusson Island, one of three in Milne Bay Province, part of the DAY 9, TORRES STRAIT D’Entrecasteaux Islands, these incredibly photogenic geysers erupt periodically Named after European explorer Luis Vaz de Torres, The Torres Strait separates – causing ‘oohs and aahs’ from those present. You won’t find yourself wanting Papua New Guinea from Australia’s Cape York Peninsula. The strait’s nearly for local birdlife either, parrots, sunbirds and birds of paradise all live around 300 islands – very few of which are inhabited and only a handful permit the hot springs. Next, it’s off to Dobu Island, an extinct volcano just south of visitors – can be found dotted across the ocean like stepping stones from the Fergusson, which was made famous by anthropologist Reo Fortune when he Melanesian islands to mainland Oz. Visiting these remote, pristine islands – published the seminal Sorcerers of Dobu: the Social Anthropology of the Dobu Australia’s northernmost outpost – are home to a unique culture, a mixture of Islanders of the Western Pacific in 1932. Immerse yourself in the island’s two of the oldest on earth. Aboriginal Torres Strait Islanders are of Melanesian customs as you engage with the locals. descent but have interacted with Aboriginal people from North Queensland for tens of thousands of years. The result is a rich and vibrant culture with DAY 6, SAMARAI AND KWATO traditions of dance, colourful headdresses, carving, mask and printmaking. Samarai is a seemingly insignificant speck of an island just south of Milne Other reasons that cruisers love visiting the Torres Strait islands include the Bay. Belying its size and current sleepiness, in its heyday, Samarai was the fishing, the stunning landscapes, and discovering the region’s role in World

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com War II and its historic pearling industry. the waves, enjoy a nature walk on Semisarom: the area is a green-sea-turtle nesting ground, and many bird species can be seen along the shoreline. DAY 10, DAY 15, WATUBELA ARCHIPELAGO Alight today in the wide-streeted city of Merauke in the Papua province of . It’s a gateway to an area that is utterly flooded with life: the vast Having sailed westward from Triton Bay, arrive at the Watubela Archipelago. Wasur wetlands. Part of an ecosystem that straddles the Indonesia-PNG Composed of the small, raised coral islands of Kasiui and Teor (or Tio’or), the border, the wetlands is a low-lying national park that is made up of Watubela Archipelago is best known for its description in Alfred Russel savannahs, swamps, forests and fed and crisscrossed by many slow-moving Wallace’s 1869 book in which he referred to them as rivers. Little-visited, this wild kingdom – dubbed the ‘Serengeti of Papua’ – is Matabello. Wallace was a 19th-century explorer and naturalist who traversed home to nearly 400 species of birds, innumerable species of fish, as well as this area. A peer of Darwin and the ‘father of biogeography’, he independently mammals, reptiles and lush, exotic plants. You might see a saltwater conceived a theory of evolution at the same time as Darwin. Explore the crocodile, New Guinea crocodile, or even a marsupial such as a wallaby or landscape today that Wallace described as “beautiful”, and meet its small kangaroo, thanks to its location in the Australian faunal zone. inhabitants.

DAY 11, AT SEA DAY 16, BANDA NEIRA As you cruise towards Agats, enjoy a full day indulging in the amenities of your In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Dutch, Portuguese and English navies vied ship. You might find your inner calm practising some yoga. Listen to an for spice-trade dominion over the . At one time, this group of informative talk. Lounge on the deck and enjoy a cocktail from the bar. Tonight eleven volcanic islands was the only place in the world where mace and after a delicious dinner in the restaurant, settle in for some light entertainment nutmeg could be found. Nowadays, the ships that pass through are of the and a nightcap before heading to your comfortable cabin. luxury variety, rather than merchants’ galleons, stopping at Banda Neira and its neighbours to see Dutch fortresses, Dutch colonial houses, nutmeg DAY 12 - DAY 13, AGATS plantations, and to view a volcano. Gunung Api is one of Indonesia’s most picturesque volcanoes. At only 666 metres high, its conical shapes often Take two days to explore the ravishing scenery and pristine coastlines of reminds visitors of a mini Mount Fuji. It can be climbed in less than half a day. Asmat Regency in the south of Papua, Indonesia. A place for fascinating Its submerged lava flows provide an excellent opportunity for a unique diving cultural encounters, this stretch of the littoral jungle is famed as being the experience. home of a notorious, once-cannibalistic tribe of the same name, which only began to have significant contact with the wider world from the 1950s. The DAY 17, PULAU RAJA capital of the region is the stilted village of Agats. Founded as a Dutch outpost, it’s a unique and charming place with markets, shops, mosques, Sail through the crystalline waters of Raja Ampat today. The region – the churches and an unmissable museum to enjoy. Keep an eye out for highly easternmost islands of Indonesia – is the most biodiverse marine habitat on stylised carvings in the marketplace: the art of the are prized by the planet. The seas around these jungle-woven islands contain roughly 1,000 collectors and can be found in premier museums around the world. Beyond known coral species and more than 1,200 types of reef fish. Raja Ampat Agats, there is a dense, beautiful swamp, which features gorgeous mangroves, means ‘four kings’ and refers to the islands of Waigeo, Salawati, Batanta and tall grasses and palm trees. Misool. Still, there are 1,000 small atolls, isles and islets spread across some 40,000 square kilometres of the ocean here. And they are very different from DAY 14, SEMISAROM ISLAND the rest of Indonesia. Originally, Raja Ampat was joined to the landmass of Australia, the people are Melanesian, and the islands are home to wildlife not Go ashore to visit Semisarom Island. This small island is located in West seen elsewhere in the country. Small marsupials live in the trees as do 500 Papua’s Triton Bay within the Kaimana Marine Protected Area and part of the species of bird – it’s a twitcher’s paradise. But it’s really the diving, snorkelling Bird’s Head Seascape. Known for its marine biodiversity, exploring the vibrant and surfing that draw visitors here. underwater world here is a must. Don a snorkel and mask, or diving gear to see the coral and encounter the reef-dwelling fish. You might even encounter a DAY 18, SORONG Bryde’s whale or whale shark – they aren’t uncommon in these parts. Above

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com Day 18 is the last day of your luxury expedition cruise through this fascinating region. Disembark your ship after breakfast in the largest city of West Papua, the bustling port of Sorong, and transfer to the airport to begin your journey home.

Please Note: Itineraries are subject to change.

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com YOUR SHIP: MINERVA

YOUR SHIP: Minerva

VESSEL TYPE: Expedition Ship

LENGTH: 115 meters

PASSENGER CAPACITY: 152

BUILT/REFURBISHED: 2020-2021

Arriving in November 2021, our 5 star elegant Scandi-design boutique ship offers you an intimate setting from which you will be fully immersed in all the sights and scenery of your voyage. >Your Wellbeing Introducing SH Minerva The safety & happiness of our guests is paramount to our Our brand new ship has been designed to journey to off the 120-strong crew on board as well as our passionate expedition beaten path destinations and remote polar regions in style and team who'll be serving up thrilling shore excursions and lasting comfort. The ship incorporates a PC5 ice-strengthened hull memories. combined with extra-large stabilisers to make your journey as Cabin Types smooth as possible. Our 76 cabins including 6 suites have all the amenities you will Sophisticated Elegance need to feel comfortable including dressing gowns, hairdryers, We know how important outdoor space is, so our spacious, personal safes and minibars. Our stylish cabins all have desks, relaxing public spaces provide wide open, unobstructed views a dressing area and comfy seating. En suite bathrooms all throughout the ship. The destination will always be in view. feature glass-enclosed rain showers.

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com INSIDE YOUR SHIP

Balcony. From Oceanview

Premium Suite Suite

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com PRICING

09-Apr-2022 to 26-Apr-2022 Oceanview 20937 AUD pp Balcony. From 22893 AUD pp Suite 29313 AUD pp Premium Suite 33334 AUD pp

0800 945 3327 (within New Zealand) | +64 (0) 3 365 1355 | 1800 107 715 (within Australia) [email protected] | wildearth-travel.com