The view from 'The Needle', one of Rarotonga's highest peaks. My room is more of a private villa, surrounded by its own secluded fenced garden complete with a plunge pool. I’m staying at the 4.5-star Nautilus resort, where the focus is on water: A deep pool looks out to the lagoon in front, perfect for snorkelling, paddle boarding and kayaking (all on offer for hotel guests – just grab and go). Instead, the accommodation is largely small, boutique resorts, each with its own unique charm.
Once you arrive, you realise what the locals mean with that Hawaii gibe: There are no big chain resorts in the Cook Islands (Some have tried and failed in the past – a derelict, half-built Sheraton is a testament to that). Passengers jostle for the windows and gasp as Rarotonga suddenly comes into view, a blip in the middle of the Pacific Ocean that still packs a mighty punch, ringed by a clear-blue lagoon and covered with jagged green mountain peaks. Jetstar's first direct flight touches down in Rarotonga last Thursday morning. The Cook Islands is a few hours ahead, but a day behind. The time change is a bit of a head-scratcher: Our five-hour 9pm flight sees us arrive in Rarotonga not at 3am but at 7am … the morning before we left. I was on that first overnight flight last Thursday, escaping Sydney winter for a few days in the sun (current average island temperature: 27 degrees). Jetstar is the first Aussie airline to fly direct to the island nation in more than 30 years. Now, paradise is only five-and-a-half hours – and as cheap as $500 return, during a Jetstar sale – away. Before now, holidaying Aussies – or some of the many Cook Islanders living in Australia – faced a taxing day of flights with a lengthy stopover in New Zealand to visit.
Jetstar last week opened up a new direct route between Sydney and Rarotonga, the largest and most populated of the Cook Islands (at around 13,000 residents).
Smack bang in the middle of the Pacific Ocean lies a tropical island so untouched by big tourism that the locals cheekily describe the place as “what Hawaii was 50 years ago”.Īnd now, it’s a direct flight from Australia.
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