The Kokoda Track

10 days
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4.5/5 Excellent
100+ reviews  
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USTOA

Small Group Tour
With dense greenery, difficult passes, glistening rivers and incredible views, it is hard to believe that the historic Kokoda Track was the site of one of the bloodiest battles for Australian troops in WWII. Discover the humbling history and remote beauty of the track on this 10-day adventure, with eight days of intense trekking through the Papua New Guinea m...
26%
$5,184
From$3,840
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Overview

Trip type
Small Group Tour
Lodging level
Standard - 3 star
Physical level
Extreme
Trip pace
Full schedule

Highlights

    • Trek the famous Kokoda Track the ethical way. We partner with a local cooperative that ensures local communities benefit directly from your visit.
    • Hear incredible tales of wartime courage from the local historian in Brigade Hill
    • Hike up the arid spines of mountains and through valleys of lush rainforest, stopping to cool off in pristine rivers along the way.
    • Meet the people who live in this region, learn about the local cultures and contribute to these small and remote communities.
    • Trek every step with a personal porter, trekking leader and crew – all locals – to ensure that you have the best experience possible while supporting employment in the region.

What's this trip about?

    With dense greenery, difficult passes, glistening rivers and incredible views, it is hard to believe that the historic Kokoda Track was the site of one of the bloodiest battles for Australian troops in WWII. Discover the humbling history and remote beauty of the track on this 10-day adventure, with eight days of intense trekking through the Papua New Guinea mountains – a pilgrimage that honours those who fought and lost their lives here in 1942. With the guidance of your personal porter, trekking leader and a hardworking local crew to illuminate the wartime stories of the trail, this trip will see you testing your personal stamina on a journey through tiny villages and thick jungle.

Details

Itinerary focusActive and Outdoor Sports
Group sizeIntimate group - max of 12 people
Age range18 years and up
Flights and transportAll internal ground transport included
Start CityPort Moresby
End CityPort Moresby

Travel Themes

  • Hiking & Walking
  • Trekking & Expeditions

Destinations

  • Australia
  • Papua New Guinea

Attractions

  • Port Moresby

Activities

  • Hiking
  • Trekking

Popular Trips

Itinerary

Travel Map

Day 1 Port Moresby

Your adventure begins in the capital of Port Moresby with a welcome meeting tonight. An airport arrival transfer is included in the price of this tour. Please ensure you have provided us with your flight details no later than 14 days before your tour begins in order to book this service. Attend the pre-trip briefing this evening at 6 pm to meet your fellow travellers and trek leader.

Day 2 Port Moresby / Kokoda Track

This morning take a short, spectacularly scenic chartered flight over the jungle canopies and craggy peaks of the Owen Stanley Range to the landing strip of Kokoda station (approximately 35 minutes). Arrive and meet your trekking team, including your your personal and...

Day 3 Kokoda Track

Commence the first full-day trek with an early start towards Isurava village. Pass through choko gardens planted by local villagers and by water holes where you can fill up your bottle. Your trek leader or porters will let you know the best fill-up points. Arrive at I...

Day 4 Kokoda Track

The trek to Templeton’s Crossing begins with a walk through lush rainforest and past creeks and rivers that feed directly out of mountain springs. Follow the hilly trail to Eora Creek, where the tranquil landscapes are in stark contrast to the two brutal battles that ...

Day 5 Kokoda Track

Get set for a tough day of trekking as you climb to a 2200-metre-high point on the flank of Mt Bellamy, also known as the Gap. Be sure to stay close to your personal porter while navigating the ascent. Take in some spectacular views across the Owen Stanley Ranges and ...

Day 6 Kokoda Track

Rise and shine and set off towards the northern face of Mt Bellamy, taking in views of the villages of Naduri, Kagi, Brigade Hill, and Nauro along the way. Make a 2-hour descent to Efogi I through open grassland and along steep, slippery trail, with a brief break en r...

Day 7 Kokoda Track

Embrace an early start this morning to trace the path taken by retreating Australian soldiers. The first climb takes you to Mission Ridge where you can turn and look back over Efogi I and II. Continue following the ridge towards Brigade Hill. Upon reaching Brigade Hil...

Day 8 Kokoda Track

Tackle the Nine False Peaks to the top of Maguli Range (1350 metres) this morning. This involves roughly 3 hours of serious uphill trekking. From the top of the ridge, make the first of many descents today with a rest stop at Jap’s Ladder. Take another break at Ofi Cr...

Day 9 Kokoda Track / Port Moresby

Your journey today starts across multiple river crossings along Uaule Creek. Come prepared with trekking sandals or expect wet boots. Continue with a trek up the back of Imita Ridge for about 1.5 hours. From here, trek down a trail once known as the Golden Staircase, ...

Day 10 Port Moresby

Your Kokoda adventure has come to an end. Check out of the hotel is at 11 am. Please ensure you have informed us of your flight details in order to arrange a complimentary departure transfer for you. 

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Dates & Availability

Price From $3,840
Price per day$384
Last Updated: 6/4/2024

Check current availability, prices, specials & more.

The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.

Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.

Intrepid Travel Reviews & Ratings

4.5/5  Excellent
Excellent
3,342
Great
666
Average
149
Disappointing
81
Terrible
215
C

Christopher

Aug 2018

Written on

I highly recommend Intrepid tours.

The two Intrepid treks I’ve been on (Peru and Papua New Guinea) are run by local people, and they took me to local places. I learnt something about locals’ lives; an...

S

Stefan

Jul 2018

Written on

Truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience!!

This trip was probably the hardest thing I have ever done, but the feeling of accomplishment once arriving at Owers' Corner can't be beaten. The porters are amazing ...

E

Emma

Oct 2015

Written on

Doing the Kokoda track was an amazing

Doing the Kokoda track was an amazing experience that I would recommend to anyone and there were many good things about the intrepid group however there were a few t...

K

Kylie

Sep 2015

Written on

The Kokoda Track trip was fantastic. It

The Kokoda Track trip was fantastic. It was very different to any other trip previously taken. The history and local knowledge was fabulous and the small trekking gr...

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Other Intrepid Travel Reviews

M

Michele Twigden

Aug 2024

Written on

Completed 3 trips with Intrepid this…

Completed 3 trips with Intrepid this year. A prior last year. The Leaders are well organized, informative and fun. Travelling inland in Greece and the Greek Island...

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jasonemeraldrealestate.com.au

Aug 2024

Written on

The intrepid group were excellent to…

The intrepid group were excellent to work with and were very helpful at all times and made organising the trip a breeze. This was an excellent trip, and was enjoyed ...

M

Michael Campbell

Aug 2024

Written on

Awful waste of time and money.

I’m aware that Intrepid responds to reviews, so here’s my updated take. I paid approximately $1,800 USD for a 9-day trip to Costa Rica. However, between the arrival...

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Intrepid Travel

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Our group size has an average of just ten travellers, which allows us to get off the beaten track, use local accommodation and transport, and really get to know the culture. It also ensures we are contributing to the local economy; by choosing local suppliers we were able to keep AUD 60 million in local economies in 2012. We’re also working hard to reduce our carbon footprint and were the first in our sector to introduce carbon offset trips. This, along with our many corporate sustainability activities, has meant we’re one of the travel industry’s leaders in responsible travel.

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Logistics

Accommodation

Hotel (2 nts),Village community hut or camping (7 nts),

Transportation & Flights

Plane,Private Vehicle,

Transportation & flights

Plane,Private Vehicle
Guides
Our Kokoda trips are accompanied by a crew consisting of a tour leader, a lead man, and the porters. We have established a partnership directly with the local landowners to ensure that our clients receive not only the best value for their trip, but also the best cultural interactions possible. In choosing to support this collective of landowners, we have been able to select the best of the Kokoda Track's local guides and porters to work with us. Our guides have been trekking the Kokoda Track for up to 10-15 years and have learnt the skills, knowledge and tricks of the trade from many extremely experienced and long-established Kokoda Track tour operators. The collective was created by local experienced guides from the Kokoda Track, and its members represent a number of villages from Nauro to Eora Creek. The collective was formed with the objective to empower local landowners along the track and to enhance the international profile of local guides, many of whom are the original descendants of the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels. We are working with the collective to provide ongoing training and development opportunities for local people - we hope that with time, our porters of today will gain the experience to become lead man, and ultimately tour leaders. TOUR LEADER: Each group will be assigned a local tour leader who will be responsible for communication with home base, decision making on the track and liaising between the lead man, porters and trekkers. The tour leader has ultimate responsibility for the group on the Track, and has the authority of us in all instances - including making decisions on whether a trekker can continue if sick or injured. Due to the remote locations being trekked and the limited resources available locally, it is imperative that the seniority of the tour leader is respected and supported by all trekkers. The lead man and porters will not act against the instruction of the tour leader. Any decisions made by the tour leader reflect the needs and safety of the whole group which must be prioritised above the wishes of individual clients. LEAD MAN: The lead man will be at the front end of the group at all times and is responsible for setting the pace for the trekking group. The lead man is the senior assistant to the tour leader and he will be in contact with the tour leader who is positioned at the back end of the group. PORTERS: Included in your tour cost is the assistance of a personal porter to carry your main kit. Please note that there is a weight limit of 10 kilograms for personal belongings carried by the porters as they will also carry your additional food and their own personal belongings.. Any additional items will need to be carried by the trekkers themselves in day-packs - each day you will be asked to carry your own water and one day’s snack pack as well as personal items such as your camera, guidebook etc. We include a 1:1 trekker to porter ratio to promote relationship building between porters and trekkers. Our aim is to provide greater employment opportunities for porters as well as ensuring that all our trekkers complete the trek from start to finish. For some trekkers, part of the challenge is to carry their own pack - we encourage you to take advantage of the porter's presence so that you can focus on enjoying the trek and staying safe and well. By nature, local people are quite shy, so if they offer their hand to assist you and you decline, they will wait for you to ask for help in the future. Their experience and kindness will astound you and we encourage you to use this unique opportunity to get to know them as much as possible. Try to look at your Kokoda Track trek as an exercise in partnership rather than as a challenge for the individual. Our intention is that the relationship between the trekkers and the porters becomes one of the most important experiences of the trip, reflecting the wartime bonds between Australian troops and the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels.
Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is compulsory on all our trips for those travelling internationally. We require that at a minimum you are covered for medical expenses including emergency repatriation. If you are travelling within your home country or region please confirm before travel that you are entitled to access the public medical system easily should an accident occur. We strongly recommend all travellers have a policy that also covers personal liability, cancellation, curtailment and loss of luggage or personal effects. For international trips, you will not be permitted to join the group until evidence of travel insurance and the insurance company's 24-hour emergency contact number has been sighted by your group leader or local representative. If you have credit card insurance your group leader or local representative will require details of the participating insurer/underwriter, the level of coverage, policy number, and emergency contact number rather than the bank's name and your credit card details. Please contact your bank for these details prior to arriving in-country. For travellers who reside within the European Union, Switzerland or USA the requirement to purchase travel insurance cannot be compulsory. However the purchase of travel insurance is still highly recommended, and travellers from these regions who decline travel insurance when travelling outside of their home region must sign a Travel Insurance Waiver Form at the Group Meeting, recognizing personal responsibility for emergency medical and repatriation costs should they arise. For assistance with travel insurance or other services, please visit the link below: https://www.intrepidtravel.com/booking-resources/our-services
Visa requirements
PASSPORT You’ll need a valid passport to travel internationally and most countries require your passport to have a minimum of 6 months validity, so remember to check the expiry date. We need your passport information to get everything ready for your trip so it’s important that the information on your booking matches your passport exactly. Please take care to provide the correct details. We recommend carrying a copy of the photo page of your passport while travelling and leaving a copy at home with family or friends. VISAS & ENTRY REQUIREMENTS Many countries require a visa and obtaining the correct visa for your trip and any countries you may transit through is your responsibility. We recommend you check your visa requirements as soon as you have booked your trip. This will ensure you have time to prepare your documents and for your visa application to be processed. You can check the entry requirements for your nationality on your government's foreign travel advisories, consular websites or on our page here:  www.intrepidtravel.com/visa-entry-requirements
Health & Safety
Most national governments provide regularly updated foreign travel advice on safety issues involved with international travel. We recommend that you check your government's advice for their latest travel information before departure and ensure that your travel insurance covers you for all destinations and activities on your trip. Please refer to our website's safety page for links to major travel advisories and updates on safety issues affecting our trips here: https://www.intrepidtravel.com/travel-alerts We strongly recommend the use of a neck wallet or money belt while travelling, for the safe-keeping of your passport, flight tickets, cash and other valuable items. Leave your jewellery at home - you won't need it while travelling. Many of our hotels have safety deposit boxes, which is the most secure way of storing your valuables. A lock is recommended for securing your luggage. Your group leader or local representative will accompany you on all included activities, however, during your trip you'll have some free time to pursue your own interests or relax and take it easy. While your group leader or local representative will assist you with the available options in a given location, please note that any optional activities you undertake are not part of your Intrepid itinerary, and Intrepid makes no representations about the safety of the activity or the standard of the operators running them. Please use your own good judgement when selecting an activity in your free time. Please also note that your group leader or local representative has the authority to amend or cancel any part of the trip itinerary if it's deemed necessary due to safety concerns. Intrepid's operational safety policies can be viewed on our website at the link below. We recommend that you take a moment to read through this information before travelling, and would appreciate any feedback on how safety is being managed on our trips. https://www.intrepidtravel.com/safety-guidelines EVACUATION: The Kokoda Track is isolated and medical, including emergency rescue services are not easily available. We have drawn up a contingency plan for evacuation from along the track in the unlikely event of a serious problem occurring, however even in the case of an emergency, evacuation services may not be accessible up to 48 hours after an incident occurring.
Age Requirements
18 years and up
Additional Information

Finish point

  • Holiday Inn Express Port Moresby
  • Islander Drive
  • Waigani
  • Port Moresby
  • PAPUA NEW GUINEA
  • Phone: 675 3032002
Trip ID
intrepid-TESA

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