Membership Options

All members come under two main classifications Ordinary and Associate Members.

1. Ordinary Members
Any individual, partnership or company may make application to become an ordinary member of the association and may be accepted by a majority vote of the Executive Committee and upon payment of all current membership dues are subject to the following criteria;


1. the applicant actually and legitimately operates (or offers) organised tours and / or tour guide services in a defined district, province or region of Papua New Guinea, or nationwide.
   
2. the applicant has their registered office and the headquarters of their business operation in Papua New Guinea.
   
3. the applicant holds all required business registraions and licenses; the minimum requirement being the registration of a business name with the Investment Promotion Authority.
4. the applicant is known to be in good standing with former clients, the Tourism Promotion Authority, and the PNG travel and tourism industry in general.
5. the applicant complies with, or has the capacity to comply with, the minimum operating standards set forth by the Association. Notwithstanding, the executive committee of the Association may refuse any applicaiton for membership, if the committee feels that acceptance of the applicant as a member would be predudicial to the best interests of the association.
   
   

Ordinary members must continue to conform to the minimum operating standards as shall be promulgated by the Association from time to time which shall at the date hereof be those as set out in Appendix II in the constitution, and a breach of which shall be grounds for caution, or expulsion from the Association.

2. Associate Membership
   
   Any individual, partnership or company may make application to become an associate member of the Association and may be accepted and approved by a majority vote of the Executive Committee and upon payment of all current membership dues, if the applicant meets any one of the following criteria;
   
   1. the applicant actually and legitimately operates ( or offers) organised tours and/or tour guide services in a defined district, province or region of Papua New Guinea, or nationwide and otherwise meets the criteria for ordinary membership except that their registered office and the headquarters of their business operation is located outside Papua New Guinea
   2. the applicant is an aspiring or new tour operator not yet meeting the minimum operating standards set by the Association in Appendix II and subsequent amendments but actively working towards compliance with these standards.
   3. the applicant does not actually operate tours or provide tour guiding services but is a private enterprise providing associated services to the tourism industry including (but not limited to) accommodation, transport, catering and marketing services.
      
      Associate members may attend general meetings but shall not move, or vote on, any motion. Notwithstanding, associate members may seek leave from the Chair to speak on any subject before the meeting.
      
      An Associate member shall not be eligible to serve on the Executive Committee.

Benefits [What your membership delivers]

The advantages of being a member to the Association include:

• Support and Referral
  We are an association that focusses on tour operations in the country and are committed to supporting our members by providing up to date information on the industry ad referrring potential clients to our members.

• Promotion And Exposure
  
  we offer opportunitites for our members to showcase their products on displays at local (e.g. Lukim PNG Nau) and international (e.g. Bula Fiji Travel Exchange) travel shows. We provide user-friendly information on marketing and promoting. Being a member you have an excellent change of meeting, networking and interacting with other members of the association and other tourism sectors. Members also have the opportunity to link to the official website of PNG Tourism Promotion Authority (PNGTPA). (Refer to Requirements for Linkage under the MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS)

• Products and Services
  
  Our Network has cost-saving products and services that offer easonable discounts to members on request through TOAPNG via PNGTPA.

• Advocacy and Lobbying


As a strong voice for our members our objectives focus on developing the tour industry in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and communicate our position on issues affecting our members sector or business through PNGTPA and Papua New Guinea Tourism Industry Association (PNGTIA) meetings. We have a voting right PNGTIA executives through our elected representative.

• Growth & Development and Cooperation & Partnership
  
  We focus on issues affecting our members' business growth and development through training in areas that are relevant to their businesses, assisting members to source project funding through PNG TIA and PNGTPA or rhrough sourcing donor funding through PNGTPA to develop specific projects for interested members.
  
  We collabourate and partner with PNGTIA and PNGTPA to create a strong foundation to develop tour industry in PNG. Through PNGTPA we connect with top business, goverment and donor fudning agencies from around the region to assist with project development fudning, training, workshops and other relevant issues in the tourism industry.
  
  
  * PNGTIA - PNG Tourism Industry Association
  * PNGTPA - PNG Tourism Promotion Authority
  *PNG - Papua New Guinea

Minimum Requirements