Kokopo Village Resort

Kokopo, Rabaul, Paupa New Guinea

22-Apr-09

When we stayed at the Kokopo Village Resort we were given a room in the ‘brand-new first-guests-to-use’ addition.  It was excellent and much more than we expected from Papua New Guinea accommodations at a very reasonable price.    The bed was quite comfortable, the shower was great, and the in-room newspaper and coffee were pleasant western touches.  In ‘needs improvement’ category, there was no mirror in the bathroom, the bath sink is tiny and there is no vanity or place to rest toiletries, and there was no place to hang clothes.  Since these rooms had just opened, it’s possible that these finishing touches will be added soon.

The hotel was very attentive and caring.   The crew kept the grounds very very clean.   Accountings at check-in and checkout were accurate and efficient.  The hotel has a restaurant on the premises serving tasty meals at reasonable prices of 30 to 50 Kina [$10 to $18 at today’s exchange rates].   Bar drinks on the other hand were a bit on the expensive side.  We heard that the bar and kitchen get a bit overloaded during high occupancy.  We avoided the problem by avoiding peak times. 

There is a Business Center with computers, printer, and Internet with access charge of  45 Kina per hour [about $16 at today’s rate].  The connection is not very fast; in an hour’s time one can download/browse about 10Mb worth which is a speed reminiscent of the old dial-up days.

Adjacent to the Kokopo Village Resort is a lovely golf course and a a well stocked WWII museum.  While staying in the area, there are very interesting volcano and WWII sights in Rabaul, however one has to travel 45 minutes or more on a poorly maintained mostly dirt road.  Since the 1994 volcano interruption in Rabaul, Kokopo has attracted much of the commerce and hotel nights, and the Kokopo Village Resort is an easy 15 minutes away from the airport.