LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Cook Islands: Air Rarotonga
built 630 days ago
The Cook Islands range from towering Rarotonga, the country's largest island, to the low oval islands of the south and the solitary atolls of the north. Visitors are rewarded with natural beauty and colorful attractions at every turn. There is motion and excitement on Rarotonga and Aitutaki, peaceful village life on the rest. Since few tourists get beyond the two main islands, a trip to Atiu, Mangaia, or Mauke can be a fascinating travel experience. After French Polynesia, travel to the Cook Islands is inexpensive, and the local accommodation industry is efficient and competitive. It's a safe, quiet place to relax and you feel right at home.
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Rarotonga, principal island of the Cook Islands, lies 700 miles (1130 kilometres) southeast of Tahiti, its closest neighbour. The island is almost 20 miles (31.6 kilometres) in circumference with a population of around 9,000. It's a magical place. The island is lush green, with a dense tropical rain forest in the centre on rising mountain peaks. Flat coastal land is covered with tropical trees and flowers.
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The Cook Islands consists of 15 Islands scattered over some 2 million square kilometers of the Pacific Ocean. They lie virtually in the center of the Polynesian Triangle of the South Pacific, flanked to the west by the kingdom of Tonga and the Samoas, and to the east by Tahiti and the island of French Polynesia. The Cook Islands are in the same time zone as Hawaii and are the same distance south of the equator as Hawaii is north, and lay on the Tropic of Capricorn (latitude 9 to 22 south degrees). Rarotonga [video tour] is the largest of the islands and hosts the international airport and Avarua, the main township, has a good choice of restaurants, shops, hotels and banks.
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The capital of the Cook Islands, Rarotonga, is an island of mountain peaks, verdant rainforests, and beautiful coastline lined by palm trees and tropical flowers. Avarua is the main town and primary port, where cruising yachts like to dock, and Avarua has a variety of shopping locations and cafes to peruse. Cycling is a fun way to circle the island, and the motor scooter is a popular form of transportation.
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Recreational diving is well established in the Cook Islands, with a number of qualified operators both in Rarotonga and Aitutaki with fully equipped boats offering all weather access and minimal boat travel time. Experience the island culture and hospitality, exotic local fare and the most amazing snorkelling and diving around the various atolls and reefs. These famous tropical waters with incredible visibility are suitable for advanced and novice divers. Morning, afternoon and night diving is available, along with dive training at various levels. The outside reef diving boasts amazing drop offs, passages and incredible colourful fish life and even whales are a possibility. Depths range from 12- 30 metres with water temperature being a cosy 23 to 30 degrees.
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Unfortunately the activities of local sharpshooters have made the Cook Islands less attractive as a birdwatching venue, and spearfishing using scuba gear has done much damage to the marinelife. To control this, certain lagoon areas around Rarotonga have been closed to fishing and shell collecting since 1998 under a traditional system known as ra'ui. Humpback whales can sometimes be seen cruising along the shorelines from July to September having migrated 5,000 km north from Antarctica to bear their young. Pilot whales (up to six meters) are in the Cooks year-round. In 2001 the Cook Islands declared its large exclusive economic zone a whale sanctuary.
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Air Rarotonga