For the most spectacular colours you’ve ever seen, you need to visit the tiny Cook Island of Aitutaki, about 220km north of Rarotonga, and less than an hours’ flight.
Words can barely describe the blues here on this island only 16-18 square kilometres, set in a 50-74 km lagoon filled with layers of blues and teals and azure and sapphire. I’ll stop now and let my pictures in this post do the talking. A thousand words and all…
This post covers my picks for things to do in three or four days on Aitutaki, plus my two resort recommendations at the end.
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If you’re a long time reader, you’ll know I visit the Cook Islands most famous island, Rarotonga, every year. I love it so much I’ve been hosting girls’ trips here for the past four years.
But it’s only this year we added a 3-night stay on the sublimely perfect Aitutaki. Yes the sea is as a stunning as you see in all the photos, it’s even got a sand bar called Heaven in the middle of the lagoon that pops up at low tide.
It’s such a popular Rarotonga add-on that hundreds visit on day trips, taking the 45-minute to one-hour flight out in a prop plane to spend the day on the lagoon, then fly home again by 7pm. It’s a long day and means you can’t enjoy any of the evening activities, or wake up to this!
So this year we added three nights to our trip. Was it enough? I’ll let you decide, as I cover what we did each day, where we stayed and where else I’d recommend.
Day 1 : check in and relax
Our flight was at the leisurely hour of 11.15am, and as it was the only domestic flight from Rarotonga Airport at that time, or in fact any flight, we checked in only an hour earlier. The check-in process was about 10 minutes for my group of 13, and we received hand written seat numbers, listed with two people on each.
We grabbed a coffee and a sandwich from the airport cafe (tip: the young woman at the cafe makes the sandwiches and the chicken/mayo was delicious!) and waited for our boarding call. That was hollered when the check-in guy walked to the door.
We were met by transfers from Tamanu Beach Resort, and driven the 10-minutes to our accommodation. More about the resort below, but the rest of the afternoon was free to go for a swim, have a cocktail and meet at 6pm for dinner together.
Day 2 : lagoon cruise
We woke with the roosters crowing (tip: bring ear plugs, they can be super annoying!). Some went for a walk along the beach, others along the road to see what was out there, and we convened over breakfast at the large restaurant facing the beach.
Today was our lagoon cruise day, and I was thrilled that the rain clouds blew away and out we went with Maria from Kutekute Tours.
I’d booked an all-afternoon tour and she brought the catering. As with most water and weather-related activities, we had to be a bit flexible and brought our happy hour food forward and made it lunch. It was divine!
Her boat was in for repairs, so she seconded Uncle Ron (most people are related on this tiny island!) with bright blue eyes, who was happy to skipper 13 women, plus Maria and Miriama. Miss Janice is his boat, lined with plastic deck chairs, but easy to get in and out of (because that is a consideration of a certain age!)
We’d brought wine over from Rarotonga, so we didn’t need to find a shop over here. A good plan, as everyone packed a bottle in their luggage or their carry-on (yes, you can take bottles in your carry-on on these domestic flights).
A lagoon cruise day out is the reason to stay more than a night on Aitutaki, to go out one of the boat charters to swim, snorkel, have a picnic, and generally be amazed by the colours out here.
Day 3 : activities and cultural show
This was a free day for us, so here are a few things we did.
Island tour and umu lunch with Aitutaki Cultural Tour. Sandra, on my tour booked this and loved it. She was hosted by Ngaa who took them for a drive around the island, then built a fire and prepared lunch over hot rocks, whipping up coconut bread made from self-raising flour and the water from a freshly cracked coconut.
They wove headbands out of flax and he wrapped chicken and meats in banana leaves and put them on the fire for lunch.
Use one of the bicycles at the resort and go for a ride. My cousin Kate and I rode up to “town”, about three kilometres away, where I found Tina & Co and bought the lantern (in the picture above with the arrow!) Fortunately I didn’t have to hang it off my handle bars, as the lovely staff member dropped it off at the hotel.
We cycled back via Pacific Resort for lunch, which is about 2km up the road from our resort, Tamanu. This place is gorgeous and if price was no object, I’d probably choose to stay here next time.
Spa treatment! Because who doesn’t need to fit in an hour or two of relaxation. I had a one-hour treatment at Tamanu Day Spa. It was one of their specials and included a 50-minute all over massage and a 10-minute foot soak – whilst still lying on the bed. I’ll leave you to figure that out!
Pacific Resort also has a spa, Tiare Spa. I didn’t try it out, but I’m thinking it’d be super gorgeous.
Cultural Show and Dinner. If you haven’t experienced a cultural night, usually accompanied by a buffet dinner, then you can catch one at Resort Tava’e on Tuesday nights, right next door to Tamanu. The food was great and included ika mata – the famous raw fish salad. Lots of barbecued meats, salads, fruit and desserts.
Tamanu Resort offers the Takurua Cultural Feast and show on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the main restaurant.
Day 4 : depart
Our flight was from Aitutaki to Rarotonga, where we collected our luggage and checked in for our international flight about three hours later to Auckland.
Rarotonga Airport has an Air New Zealand lounge for Koru Club, Gold, Platinum and Elite members. They also allow a plus-one in. There are two sides, so if it’s full they can open the other wing. Grab a glass of bubbles and a snack and relax.
Duty Free shopping at Rarotonga Airport is really good, albeit very small. Expect to pay about half the price on your favourite gin here than you would at home. There are also a few last minute souvenir shops to pick up a smelly, or a pair of earrings or a sundress.
If you have a few hours to kill at the airport, you could check in then walk across the road to The Islander Hotel for lunch or a drink. You can also book rooms here for a few hours if you have a whole day to wait.
Also across the road from the airport is Jireh Cafe which has a brilliant reputation for custard squares! They also have cabinet food and tables and chairs inside and out. They close at 2pm week days though.
Where to stay on Aitutaki
Tamanu Resort and Spa is my pick for location, villa styles and price. It was two neighbouring resorts, once owned by brothers, but with a restaurant in between and also a slice of private land so you walk between the two either along the beach or the road. There is an adults’ only side and a family side. Both have small swimming pools.
On the family side, the villas are one-bedroom with a lounge area and all come with a huge veranda which was big enough to hold all of us for a pre-dinner glass of wine. The villas on the adults side are studios, but large and each comes with a balcony.
The ones at the front of the property have sea views, further back and you still see a snippet.
Check here for rates at Tamanu Resort >>
Pacific Resort
This is a five-star resort with no kids under 12 allowed. It is also nestled beachfront, right on the lagoon with 29 bungalows and villas all with patios to make the most of those sea views. Indoor and outdoor dining, a day spa.
Lots of activities to do from here, like kayaks, bicycles, even kite surfing for the energetic!
Check out rates at Pacific Resort here >
