Lissenung Island Resort
Lissenung is a small private island with a white sandy beach, tall swaying palm trees, exotic gardens and magnificent sunsets. Surrounding this beautiful adults-only hideaway are some of the most vibrant reefs and marine life on the planet. With a maximum of 14 guests, you will be assured of personal service in a tranquil atmosphere.
This dreamy resort consists of four private ocean-front bungalows are spread out over the island. Three of the bungalows house two rooms each with its own private bathroom. Water is supplied by the rain tank on the roof so shower water is comfortably warm, but not hot. The last bungalow is a one-room bungalow and uses the shared facilities. Built in traditional style with woven bamboo and thatched roofs, the bungalows completely blend into their surroundings. The rooms are fitted with mosquito netting over the bed, ceiling fans, a large desk by the window and a wardrobe. Large windows are fitted with screens to keep the critters out, but allow for beautiful breezes to circulate. This ensures that no air-conditioning is necessary. All bungalows also have a big verandah with comfortable chairs to relax in after diving. There are a number of power points (240V, Australian-style socket) in each room and 24-hour electricity. Other than a handful of friendly local staff, you won’t see another soul, and you can easily circumnavigate the island in about 10 – 15 minutes.
Meals are served in the “Haus Win”, the big main house, and feature delectable dishes from the sea and freshest produce from the local market in Kavieng or from the resort’s garden. The restaurant is beautifully designed with a sandy floor, handcrafted furniture, comfortable lounges and local artwork. You will dine together at one long table so you may exchange stories about the diving, surfing, snorkeling and other adventures of the day.
The resort’s three dive boats will have you at any of our dive sites within 20 – 30 minutes. New Ireland is known for its pelagic fish action, but you need currents to attract big fish. These currents can sometimes be strong and make diving a little difficult. The experienced dive staff will show you the easiest and safest way to dive the Kavieng area. There is so much more to see in these waters than the pelagic, as Papua New Guinea’s oceans are part of the Coral Triangle and have one of the largest bio-diverse reefs in the world. The house reef is also the spot to do night dives, with another whole bunch of different fish, mollusks and crustaceans coming out to play and feed. Other activities include kite surfing, village visits, surfing, snorkeling, fishing and more.
After a 1-1/2 hour flight from Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, you will reach Kavieng. Lissenung Island Resort is a short 20-minute boat ride from Kavieng,
Turtle Conservation
In 2013, we started to visit a couple of nearby islands to protect turtle eggs. During a visit to one of the islands, we had stumbled across locals who were poaching the eggs, something we hadn’t realized was such a big problem here. Sure, we had seen the occasional turtle sold at the market, but we weren’t aware that the eggs were also a food source. A bit naive, probably, not to realize that locals would eat turtle eggs just like we eat chicken eggs.
Ever since then, from mid-September until the end of March, we travel to those two islands daily to beat the locals to the nests, and hence protect the eggs. We check for new turtle tracks that weren’t there the day before, follow them to locate the nest, then dig up the eggs carefully. They are placed into chicken egg cartons and transported to Lissenung, where they are placed in nesting boxes in a nest that is as similar to the original one as possible.
Philanthropic Projects
We live in the most beautiful spot in the world and we are fortunate to be able to do something we love for a living. Unfortunately, not everyone in Papua New Guinea is so lucky as PNG remains one of the poorest countries in the world, despite its wealth from logging, fishing and mining. Somehow, all this income just doesn’t make it into the communities, so we help where we can.
On-going projects:
Water tank for the Health Center
Medical supplies for the Kavieng Hospital
Enuk Community Project – building a new school, providing second hand eye glasses and school supplies.
