Mount Hagen — Western Highlands

Why Mount Hagen — Western Highlands works

The Papua New Guinea Highlands, home to some of the country's densest concentration of distinct clans and languages, hold their most visible cultural tradition in the sing-sing — a competitive gathering of tribal groups performing ceremonial song, dance and dress that predates, and now coexists with, organised shows at Mount Hagen (mid-August) and Goroka (September). Clans travel for days on foot or by truck to compete, each group's bilas — elaborate headdresses built from bird-of-paradise, cassowary and parrot feathers, shell ornaments and hand-mixed ochre face and body paint — representing specific clan identity rather than a generic costume. Drumming on hourglass-shaped kundu drums accompanies most performances, and the visual density of a full show ground, dozens of clan groups performing simultaneously, is unlike organised cultural tourism anywhere else in the Pacific. Outside show season, the Highlands' terraced sweet-potato gardens, coffee plantations at higher altitude, and clan-based village life continue at their own pace, with guesthouses and cultural lodges around Mount Hagen and the Wahgi Valley offering less choreographed encounters. The region's altitude (1,600-2,500 metres in places) brings a notably cooler climate than PNG's coast, and its relative remoteness — reached by domestic flight from Port Moresby rather than road — has kept the sing-sing tradition closer to its clan-competition roots than a staged performance for visitors.

Trip Snapshot

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