Rabaul  - Culture

Rabaul was Papua New Guinea's most spectacularly sited city - and perhaps its most beautiful - before it was destroyed by the September 1994 eruption of Tuvurvur. It was built between Simpson Harbour and a dramatic backdrop of volcanoes along the old caldera's rim and had a very cosmopolitan and friendly feel about it. Today, Rabaul is a weird wasteland buried to the waist in black volcanic ash. The broken frames of its buildings poke out of the mud like the wings of a dead bird. The town looks like a movie set for an apocalypse film or the X-files, and rubble and ruined buildings recede in every direction.

It's still worth a visit, though, if only to walk around the deserted streets. You can climb all the volcanoes except for the still-smoking Tuvurvur, and the diving in the area is exceptional - the harbour is littered with sunken shipping and war relics. In the hillsides around Rabaul you can explore countless tunnels and caverns - the Japanese dug over 500km (310mi) of tunnels during WWII and local kids will show you the scattered wreckage of Japanese planes. Rabaul is still an important port, so it's not hard to get there by boat from surrounding islands. It's also accessible by plane via the Tokua airport.

The volcanoes are not the sole source of fascination in Rabaul. As the place where the Japanese invaded Papua New Guinea in January 1942, it abounds in fascinating World War Two history. Cave systems honeycomb the hills, created for use as hospitals and storage areas. At Karavia Barge tunnel there are five Japanese landing barges still hidden within the hillside, their appearance ghostly, yet their condition still surprisingly good. Torpedoes and other equipment lie dormant within the bush and plane wrecks dot the area. At Submarine Base, where Japanese submarines once sheltered, one can snorkel only metres from the shore to view where the reef suddenly plummets to cavernous depths,. Since the 1994 eruption of Tavurvur, all activity is monitored closely, so one does not feel any threat; rather a healthy respect and fascination for these mysterious sentinels of Rabaul. A visit here is a journey of discovery, and it will never disappoint. 

Rabaul had its share of hard knocks through World War II, when the Japanese invaded. One of my favourite wrecks is 'Pete', a Mitsubishi biplane used for observation which was sunk at its mooring.  'Pete' lies in 30m of beautiful blue water. Still in great condition, this plane is now encrusted with lovely soft corals and sponges

This island offers a wide range of activities within easy reach. Rabaul, the capital, is on Simpson Harbour, known for its excellent swimming and snorkelling. Trails in the hillsides around Rabaul, perfect for day hikes, lead to a network of tunnels and caverns built by the Japanese during World War Two. For treks through the dense rainforest, head to undeveloped West New Britain. The town of Talasea is worth visiting for its hot thermal springs and bubbling mud holes.