Alegre Travel

Cook Islands

This collection of 15 South Seas islands takes their name from the famous explorer Captain James Cook. The island group lies the same distance south of the equator as Hawaii lies north and is also in the same time zone. Included in the boundaries of New Zealand since 1888, Rarotonga and Aitutaki, the Cook's 2 main islands, provide most of the group's tourist trade and activities. As teh chain's main island, Raratonga, a mere 22 miles around, is the largest and most populated. Best known for its "Bounty" mutineers, it is a very lush habitat, rimmed by an offshore coral reef. The island is mostly mountainous with a small flat rim of land surrounding the island and providing most of the area used for agriculture and building. The pace of life is very relaxed here and the island sustains itself through a combination of agriculture and tourism.

Suggested sights and attractions in the Cook Islands.

No visit to the Cook Islands should be considered complete without a visit to the atoll of Aitutaki. Its' main island is perched within a magnificent fringed lagoon. This fringed reef not only protects the island and its' collection of smaller, uninhabited islands, but also provides a natural barrier and filtration system which creates the most magnificent blue lagoon imaginable. It is in this inner lagoon that visitors can see crystal clear, white-sand beaches and distinctive cobalt blue starfish.

Frequently asked questions about the Cook Islands.

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