Planning a Cook Islands trip and would love your advice!

G'day all,

Just looking into planning a holiday to Rarotonga and Aitutaki early next year, and was hoping to grab some quick advice from those of you in the know...having never travelled outside Australia, I'm a bit of a newbie at this so please excuse the random questions...Just by way of some personal info, I'm an Aussie guy in my early twenties and will be traveling with either one or two mates of a similar age. We are not the biggest party animals, so we're looking primarily for a bit of relaxation, making new friends and getting immersed in another culture.

We're only going to be in the Cook Islands for a reasonably short time - 4 nights in Rarotonga, 3 nights in Aitutaki and one final night in Rarotonga. Would this be enough time to do the trip justice?

Regarding booking flights with Air Rarotonga for the Aitutaki leg of the trip, is it better to book before we arrive over the internet, or wait until we get to Rarotonga? Also, is it worth grabbing a hotel room when we first arrive (at 3am!), or just relaxing at the airport for a few hours?

Would you advise booking for tours (especially the Aitutaki lagoon tour) in advance also, or can we just do it when we arrive at Rarotonga?

Thanks for your help guys, and sorry for the random questions - the Cooks look beautiful (thank you LP guide for piquing my interest) and I'm massively looking forward to seeing them for myself. Might catch some of you guys over there next year!

Hey, we've just returned from our second time in the Cook Islands. Won't be the last time - it's definitely a good choice to go there!

To answer your questions:

One week in the Cook Islands is better than not going there at all, but I'd suggest to add another week or even more, especially when you want to go to Aitutaki as well (and you should, it's stunningly beautiful!)

Usually it's cheaper to arrange a trip to Aitutaki when you are in Rarotonga. But I don't think that's a good idea when you're only there for one week. (The plane going to Aitutaki is rather small!) Maybe you should try to contact Island Hoppers by e-mail, they organize flights and accommodation for outer islands trips.

When you arrive at the airport on Rarotonga you will be asked where you will be staying. And there is nothing (really nothing!!) at the tiny airport to hang out and relax! So I'd say you better get a room in advance. (my tip: rarotonga backpackers, at the beach - fantastic sunsets! Stayed there twice, loved it! Relaxed, nice people, not too much party) Usually your host will pick you up at the airport.

You don't have to book the lagoon cruises on Aitutaki in advance, do it when you get there. When I was there the guys from our hostel booked it for us. Same for any tours on Raro, I'd assume.

Have fun planning your trip!

Alex

Thanks for the advice Alex! I'm currently booking up a few things now, so thanks for passing that info along. Looking forward to the trip already...

Hi there, I visited Rarotonga and Aitutaki last June, and I found Aitutaki the place to go to relax, it is beautiful. I stayed in a place called paradise cove (www.paradisecove.co.ck;Arutanga;house). It was a lovely place to stay, single rooms are NZ$ 35, double $45, but if you can stay in a beach hut, they are just lovely, and along a stretch of white sands and turquoise waters, single is $45, double is $60. They had some trouble with the card machine when I was there, so I would say take some cash with you. The guy who works there, Ron is really helpful, he will pick you up from the airport, and help you get around. There are things to do, which you can find out about at Reception, but I would say definately try and go to the Island night at 'Tamanu' it's lots of fun, great food, and dancing. A must for eating is 'Tupuna's restaurant' the food is amazing. and they sell a mud crab for a whopping $59. Aitutaki has a lot of couples visiting, and I was there on my own but it didn't really bother me. If you're into nightlife, Rarotonga is more happening, but check the bus times, as there are only 2 buses, one clockwise and one anti- clockwise, ha ha.
In answer to your questions, it is definately better to visit the Cooks for a short time, than not at all.
I booked flights to Aitutaki when I arrived in Raro, over the internet. I would say it's up to you whether to get a hotel room, I would as you may be tired, but you gain a day when you cross the date line.. weird! I booked all tours, when I rocked up to each place and it was fine. Have a great time, enjoy!

Hi there, hold offbooking flights to Aitutaki if you can until you arrive Raro - there are usually $99.00 fares available directly from Air Raro. Island Hopper is the inbound tours arm of Air Raro, and they have good all round packages including flights, accommodation & transfers. Again hold off until you arrive - they release the best prices one week prior to inter-island departures. When you arrive it's our requirement that all visitors have their first night's accommodtion prebooked. Aquarius Hotel directly across road from airport has ensuite rooms in addition to backpacker rooms. Licenced cafe, bar, small pool, ocean views. Paradise Cove on Aitutaki, beachfront cottages are NZ$125 per night, sleeps 2 persons in small studios. They also have a couple of rooms in main guesthouse, with shared facilities. Ranginui's Retrreat, or Inano, both at O'otu would be a good spot. Separate villas near to Samade bar, and Boatshed Bar 'n Grill. Located near point where cruise vessels depart for lagoon tours. Hire scooters at Ranginui's. Hire kayaks at Samade, licenced all day cafe/bar.

Hello! It's definitely a good idea to book ahead - we called three months ahead and were shocked when everything was book up in Aitutaki. Couldn't figure it out...till one guy asked us - are you with that darn film crew? Turned out they were filming Survivor on the island...while we were there! LOL. I'm sure your experience on that front will be different!

I would definitely agree about Rarotonga Backpackers - we stayed in one of the beach front bungalows and it was super nice! You wouldn't want to just stay in the airport as for sure you'll be tired and you'll also want to shower etc, before hitting the beach and you usually can't check into your room till the afternoon. Our blog about our stay at Rarotonga Backpackers.

In Aitutaki we did a glass bottom boat snorkel tour which was great despite the slightly altered route due to Survivor. The guy was super nice and lunch was great. Here's our blog about our experience.

The Cooks are beautiful! We loved Polynesia and can't wait to go back!

Our photos from our trip

Hope that helped! Good luck and happy travels!

Wendy Sewell
[www.ianandwendy.com]

Hi guys,

Sorry for taking so long to reply...

Thank you to everyone for your advice. I enjoy a good meal, so thanks for the heads up Lagoon and Yllek...also, thanks for the photo link Ian and Wendy, a great indication of what to expect - hope it's a bit sunnier though...

Just a quick update regarding flights...I was going to hold off booking with Air Raro until I got to Rarotonga, however I found some really good deals on the Air New Zealand website. They had a promotion where if you booked accommodation you got $1 transfer flights from Raro to Aitutaki, so that kind of swayed me. Also, Air New Zealand have had discounted fares every so often lately - I managed to get flights from Brisbane to Rarotonga via Auckland for $233, which was half price I think. Unfortunately I suspect this was only a short-term thing, but definitely worth keeping an eye out if you're planning to head over.

Thanks again...massively looking forward to catching some sun - might see some of you local guys in February...

Hi again. Fantastic that you were searching for flight details at the time Air NZ were offering those $1.00 deals. February is a hot time of year (very humid), but you'll enjoy getting out into the water lots! Plenty of places to hire scooters on Rarotonga and several hire places on Aitutaki. Need to apply for driver's licence through Cook Islands Police if you intend to hire scooter/vehicles. Bus service runs on every hour/half hour at peak times on Raro, with dedicated service for night-time patrons, and for church services on Sundays. Aitutaki does have a taxi service, plenty of hire scooters and mountain bikes as well as cars/4WD. Numerous lagoon tour operators on Aitutaki, and several on Raro. Check out the historical cultural show at Highland Paradise, Raro Safari Tours, and Staircase for an alternative island nite experience. Hire kayaks on Muri, snorkel at Tikioki marine reserve. Aitutaki did have kite boarding near One Foot in recent times. Have a blast!