Cook Islands Adventures

Our three trips to the Cook Islands-in 2018, 2019, and 2024-were built around the things we enjoy most: snorkeling, hiking, biking, eating, exploring, and sometimes doing absolutely nothing. Rarotonga became our home away from home, especially the wonderful Rarotonga Beach Bungalows, where the beach and some of the island's best snorkeling were right outside our door. Each visit brought us back to familiar places, but there was always another trail, reef, restaurant, market, or friendly island dog waiting to be discovered.

Our 2018 visit was our first real trip back to the tropics since our Peace Corps years in Fiji nearly four decades earlier. It was a trip of rediscovery: long beach walks, wine at sunset, exploring Avarua, eating our way through the Muri Night Market, and wandering among the tropical flowers and lily ponds of Maire Nui Gardens. A day trip to Aitutaki gave us a windy but unforgettable lagoon cruise, giant clams, snorkeling, tree-climbing hermit crabs, and a stop at One Foot Island. Back on Rarotonga, we hiked toward Te Rua Manga-The Needle-on the Cross-Island Track, snorkeled with turtles using underwater scooters, and quickly realized that we would have to come back.

In 2019 we returned with Jim and Pam and settled even more comfortably into island life. We snorkeled the reef outside our bungalow, watched sunsets at Black Rock, and climbed the forest trail up Raemaru Mountain, including the steep final section to the summit. We rode bicycles along quiet back roads and through island farmland, sampled local food at the Punanga Nui Market, and enjoyed meals and drinks at Charlie's and the Mooring Fish Cafe. Some of our best experiences came with Kura Happ through Ariimoana Walkabouts: an inland walk through Rarotonga's plants, history, and mountain scenery, followed by a guided reef walk where we discovered sea slugs, starfish, sea urchins, giant top-shell snails, and other creatures we never would have noticed on our own.

By 2024, Rarotonga felt familiar, but it had not lost any of its magic. We returned to Black Rock, Avarua, Maire Nui Gardens, favorite restaurants, beaches, sunsets, and the remarkable lagoon. We hiked the Raemaru route again and made our way to Wigmore's Waterfall-also known as Papua Waterfall-where reaching the falls was at least as much fun as getting wet once we arrived. We spent hours snorkeling among coral, moray eels, eagle rays, clams, crabs, and more colorful fish than we could name. After three visits, the Cook Islands still feel peaceful, beautiful, friendly, and just adventurous enough-and we still have plenty of reasons to return.