Goroka is the capital of the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea.

It has an airport (in the centre of town) and is on the "Highlands Highway", about 285 km (177 mi) from Lae in Morobe province and 90 km (56 mi) from the nearby town of Kainantu also in the Eastern Highlands.

Coffee is a common cash crop in the area; smaller industries include trout farms, pigs, bee keeping and food gardens (broccoli, kau kau or sweet potato, carrots, ginger and peanuts are examples of produce that grow well here; nearby Bena Bena is known for its pineapples).

The Goroka Show event takes place annually around the time of the country's Independence Day (September 16).

Due to altitude Goroka features warm to very warm afternoons and cool to mild mornings year-round, with heavy rainfall most of the year and low rainfall from June to September.