LOCAL tour and dive operators have been forced in recent weeks to arrange homestay in the capital for tourists transitting to Walindi, Rabaul or Alotau.
These tour and dive operators have complained to the PNG Tourism Promotion Authority (TPA) about the lack of rooms in Port Moresby for their transitting visitors.
TPA marketing manager Jim Yomapisi said the room shortage in the capital was a serious problem that needed to be addressed.
“We have been forced to arrange homestay for our visitors on three occasions because of the situation with rooms in Port Moresby.
“Hotels are fully booked until next April.
“We must do something about this, or lose tourists.
“Either make more rooms available or have direct international flights to Gurney and Tokua to avoid transit passengers having to sleep in people’s houses in the capital,” Mr Yomapisi said.
He expressed concern that this could affect the tourism industry in a year when the number of visitors to the country and bona fide tourists were expected to reach record levels.
Major hotels in Port Moresby such as the Holiday Inn, Airways Hotel, Lamana Hotel, the Ela Beach Hotel, Hideaway Hotel and Gateway Hotel confirmed that they were fully booked until after the Christmas and New Year periods.
President of the Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce and Industry (POMCCI) David Conn confirmed that hotels had been this way for several months now, and it was good business in that sector and was indicative of how well the economy was generally doing.
“In many ways it is an excellent sign,” he said yesterday.
A number of hotels are being planned or are under construction in Port Moresby, but they would not be ready to take in guests until after 2008, leaving no immediate solution to the current room problem in the capital.