Where is Rarotonga?!  – It’s the main island out of the Cook islands, in the south pacific ocean, and about a 4 hour flight from Auckland, New Zealand.
I recently visited the island for a 5 day retreat, as it had been recommended by many kiwis, but I soon found out theres a lot to learn about the island! Here’s a few things that are pretty bloody useful if you’re heading there.

1. There is a big time difference! 23 hours behind New Zealand, means you gain a day once you get there, but also loose a day when you get back, so if you’re booking accommodation, make sure you book the right day! (and likewise make sure you book the right time off work at home!!)
   
2. There is NO free wifi. Anywhere. And if you want to use your phone roaming is very, very expensive. You can buy wifi, but to buy 100MB costs $10 and pretty much goes after loading one picture. So basically go with the full intention of no internet!!
3. Make sure you choose the right side of the island. It’s down to preference. We stayed on the north side, near to the airport and town. Which was fairly convenient, but not as picturesque and beautiful as the south west, which has a big lagoon, perfect for snorkelling, and SUPing whilst searching for fish. Generally the south west side is more expensive, with pricey hotels and b&bs.

3. Supermarket food is very expensive. I guess I should have guessed this being an island, but I had heard that it was fairly self sufficient, growing its own fruit etc. So this means you will eat out ALOT. which brings me to my next point.

4. Make sure you have enough money! I didn’t realise we would need to eat out so often, so we spent a fair amount of money on food. (and then drink too). 

Activities are expensive!! So if you’re thinking of snorkelling/4x4ing in buggys/ going on fishing charters or doing lagoon tours, you need a fair amount of money (most of those activities are atleast $100pp.)

Decide your transport around the island and stick to it. We didn’t want to spend too much, so we thought we would rent mountain bikes, and we cycled around the whole island. Which was fun, but also meant we were aching the next day, with very sore backsides!! and then we rented a scooter, which was much easier, and hardly used any fuel at all (therefore working out cheaper).  The other options are to get the bus (although they are not frequent and do not run in the evenings) or renting a car, which is expensive unless you can split the cost between you.

You really don’t need many clothes. if you’re going for 5 days, you can literally pack a pair of shorts, t-shirt, summery dress, and a lightweight coat incase it rains (and it definitely rains). You don’t need much. Besides clothes are not expensive at the market.

Pick up leaflets! When you arrive in the airport, there is a ton of leaflets on the wall to one side, pick up as many as you can. These have useful info on the island, with a map, and also tend to have discount vouchers in the back. Plus the fact these leaflets don’t seem to be anywhere else.

Know your happy hours of course 😉 The Islander Hotel has a daily happy hour, with drinks from $3.50, way cheaper than NZ. Also the Castaway resort (which has a cool little cocktail bar where you can sit on the beach and watch the sunset) has happy hour after 2pm.

The market is every Saturday. This is pretty cool, with lots of food for you to try, and gifts/clothes to buy.

Just because its an island, do not expect it to be beautiful weather It rained/was stormy almost every night we were there, which was fine as it was through the night, but it was overcast pretty much everyday. We went in September, which was supposedly during the sunny season.

Wear suncream.. This one goes without telling, but hey, I forgot. It was an overcast day, and we only planned to head out for a bit, so naturally I didn’t think. Don’t make the same mistake as me!!

Choose your accommodation wisely There are many places to stay around the island, but they can also be very expensive. We managed to cut the cost by 60% by using Airbnb rather than a hotel/motel. Have a look on Airbnb now, and get some free credit too by clicking this link: www.airbnb.com.au/c/harrietc369

The Unexpected best bits of Rarotonga:

The food is AMAZING. Who would have thought a little island could make such delicious, fresh meals?! My favourite, would have to be the Marlin & Mango pizza, from The Islander Hotel. (Freshly caught just off the island might I add) and honestly the best pizza I have ever had – beating Italy.

I also had a Marlin salad from trader jacks, which was also delicious, and had an awesome view out to sea, in which we spotted a whale splashing and waving its tail about in the water.

Rarotongans are lovely people I thought kiwis were lovely people, but Rarotongans seem to beat them. They are always smiling, and happy to help.

The ruins of the sheridan Hotel are pretty cool. We had heard about it before we went, a big resort that had almost reached completion, and then production suddenly stopped. Rumours are that the italian owner was involved with the mafia and money ran out so he fled. It is still there today, just a shell of derelect buildings, covered in grafitti and overgrown plants. Pretty creepy acctually but worth a look! 

The downsides of Rarotonga:

There’s not a massive amount to do (if you can’t afford the big activities). Therefore I would recommend a stay of 5 nights max. This is only if you’re not staying in a resort, as resorts generally have free hire of kayaks/paddleboards, and tennis courts. However I have heard many people recommend the big walk across the island which is apparently very good – just take mossy spray, plenty of water, and check the weather!

Have you been? What did you think? Or are you thinking of visiting?