Where shall I go?

I am travelling to New Zealand for the coming Northern winter to visit family.

I plan to fly out of Vancouver around November 1st and return in early April. I want to spend 6-8 weeks in the Pacific and my first stop will be Nadi.

I'm looking for suggestions for an interesting Pacific experience on a tight budget. I have $50US a day to cover hostel accommodation and food. I have a travel fund of $750 after buying my roundtrip flight to Auckland via Nadi.

I did a similar trip 3 years ago and spent time on the Coral Coast of Viti Levu, both main islands of Samoa and Raratonga.

On other occasions I've also visited Vanuatu and Tonga.

I love the beach and snorkelling but I'm also very interested in local culture and history.

So, what are your ideas?

Have you thought about Aitutaki island for your next visit? Since you've experienced Rarotonga already, you will probably want to spend much less time on Raro, by using its as a stopover point while you organise travel over to Aitutaki.

If you love the beach, local culture and history, Aitutaki is wonderful for all these features. Have a look at Amuri Guesthouse (in the main area of the island and close to town); Josies Lodge in Ootu (beautiful lagoon area); and Tom's Cottages (guesthouse facility as well as s/c cottages all located close to town).

Best way to buy fares to Aitutaki are to keep an eye for specials on the Air Raro website, or arrive in Raro then one week prior to travel date to Aitutaki contact Island Hopper Vacations or Jetsave Travel.

You are probably already aware that a Visitors Entry Permit into the Cook Islands lasts for 31 days. For longer stays you need to apply to Immigration on Raro, but I understand that you can also apply to the Immigration/Quarantine offical based on Aitutaki island for an extension to your stay.

Thankyou lagoon for your reply. Sadly Aitutaki doesn't work because I'm flying to Auckland with a stopover in Nadi. This means that I need a destination or destinations accessible from Nadi directly. I have to return there for the onward leg to NZ.

So, more suggestions? Please!

Unless you have another reason to be in Nadi you can probably get as good or better NZ-CA fare routing through Rarotonga.

Not sure what you paid for your flight but I just got a ticket for Sept 27th return YVR-LAX-NAN-AKL for $1600 all taxes in and includes a 4 week stopover in Nadi (NAN)... If you haven't bought your flight yet it I would shop around as much as possible. The next closest fare I could find was $2100.