Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# Advice for Transport in Rarotonga Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea
KotiroNZ 07:01 UTC 21 May 2012 | Hi, Have done a bit of browsing but am also wanting advice on the best way to travel while on the island. It will be myself, my partner and our 3 year old. Would love to hire the scooter but i dont know wether you can carry a child on the scooter or the scootercars. Please help me! And possibly the cheapest aswell!=) |
lagoon 15:50 UTC 21 May 2012 | The public bus does 2 circuits of the island, one route goes clockwise and the other anticlockwise - during daytime until 4:30pm then clockwise only until midnight (2am on Saturday morning), but only set times on Sundays. This is a good transport option if you dont plan to go beyond the village much from where your are staying. A 10 trip concession ticket is better value compared to a return journey. Scooters have their place, but with a 3 year old as a pillion pasenger on one scooter (illegal to ride 2 adults with a child on a single scooter) you will be much safer to hire a car to fit your family. Car rental agencies include Avis, Polynesian Rentals (formerly Budget), Island Car & Bike Hire, Pacific Rentals, Rarotonga Rentals and Raro Cars. There are also small third tier operators with even older cars - BT Rentals and CarWorx. The first 4 hirers I've identified have bases in Muri village, as well as their sites in town, and some also in Arorangi (Edgewater way). If you are competent drivers, you could arrange to have your car waiting at the airport which will save on the accommodation transfers fees. Same with airport dropoff upon departure. Cook Islands drivers licences are required. The hire companies issue a one day temp licence ($4 extra), and you make your way to the Police HQ in town to apply for a local licence ($20 minimum). If you've never driven a scooter and plan to hire these, a practical test needs to be taken with a police officer beforehand. But realistically, as H2ooh says, one car will work out to be a little above the equivalent price of renting 2 scooters anyway. May as well be safe and comfortable. With scooters I would recommend hiring safety helmets anyway. If you want a car seat for your 3 year old, bring yours from NZ. You know its condition, and its free to carry over as an additional item to your luggage allowance. Edited by: lagoon | 1