Landing in Port Moresby: A Practical Arrival Walkthrough

On the aircraft

Keep your passport and your PNGDAC confirmation in the seat pocket rather than the overhead bin. The arrivals hall at Jacksons is not large, and moving with the front of the queue is worth more than the two minutes you save by waiting.

Immigration and customs

You clear immigration before baggage claim. The officer checks the passport and the digital arrival card, and may ask for your first address and length of stay. Answer consistently with what you declared.

Customs and quarantine follow baggage claim. Papua New Guinea is strict about agricultural material, and declaring is always faster than being found with something undeclared.

Money, data and transport

Three things are worth sorting before you leave the terminal: local currency, a working phone connection, and a confirmed ride. Airport exchange rates are not the best in town, but a small amount of cash beats arriving at your hotel with none.

Arrange your transfer through your hotel or a known operator, particularly for a first visit and particularly at night. Agree the price before you get in.

If you have a domestic connection

Most trips beyond Port Moresby connect through Jacksons, and domestic departures are separate from international arrivals. Leave a generous gap: delays on the first leg are common and re-booking a domestic seat at short notice is expensive.