One of the highlights was the Koko Lagoon Cruise out of Muri Beach.
Text by Carla Dukeson
RETURN TO PARADISE
Carla Dukeson returns to Rarotonga to escape the cold Kiwi winter and admits she found it hard to come back home.
The last time I wrote an article for Pacific Powerboat magazine on the beautiful islands of Rarotonga was back in October 2008 following a marriage proposal – the rest is history!
We had always wanted to take the kids to experience what we had, but due to the worldwide pandemic and many travel restrictions, the idea was put on hold. When Doug was approaching a milestone “0” birthday in June, and travel restrictions eased, particularly to the Cook Islands, it was the perfect opportunity to escape the dreariness of a New Zealand winter and at the same time celebrate a couple of big birthdays within our family group.
So with bags packed, it was not long before eleven of us were escaping a moist New Zealand 5 deg winter, for a beautiful dry Rarotongan 27 deg. It certainly did not take too much convincing for us and our five kids, and their partners. This was our fourth trip across and we couldn’t wait to share our special tropical paradise with our family.
On the day of arrival we collected a 12 seater rental van from the airport – this gave us the chance to spend a couple of days to explore the island with the family, pointing out the highlights and hot spots of the island, should they want to break away for their own adventures, later in the trip.
We chose to stay at the Edgewater Resort this trip. A long well-established resort that is currently being renovated, the rooms completed to date are comfortable and have been redecorated nicely. The staff were very friendly and helpful, food was delicious and drinks flowed! The first night in town we experienced the Edgewater’s Island Night, a cultural night of tales and dancing, with a bit of crowd involvement and a fantastic buffet.
GAME FISHING…YEAH RIGHT
We had planned a few excursions for the 7 days, before we departed New Zealand, which is just as well we did, as most were booked out when we got there! The first was on day three when four of our team were to head out for a game fishing expedition with the experienced Marlin Queen Charters team on their Kiwi built 6.75 m Senator.
Unfortunately, that Monday it was blowing 25 knots and not the most suitable for the trip – bugger, this was to be followed up by a Fire on the Water Paddle board that evening for four of our more adventurous in the team. Again the wind was against us and as safety comes first for both operators we respected their calls. We had to remember that this was also Rarotonga’s winter season. We decided instead to hire a fleet of scooters for the team, which involved a trip to the local police station (for a few hours !) to sit licences and a short practical, but well worth the effort! (Everyone passed ).
MURI MAGIC
However the next day was sunny and calm, so we continued on with the next planned activity – one of the highlights for our group, the Koko Lagoon Cruise out of Muri Beach. We arrived to the beautiful shores of Muri to hop on board and join the Koko Lagoon Cruise Team. We were greeted by a team of enthusiastic leaders that made the trip so much more exciting!
We adventured off into the clear blue lagoon and had a chance to snorkel and see what these Rarotongan shores had to offer, many beautiful fish and even had a chance to hold a clam. Koko then took us over to an island where they had set up a lovely Rarotongan buffet lunch for us following a cultural show where we learnt about the culture and life in the Cook Islands.
We loved how they involved all the guests, in particular climbing coconut trees and learning how a coconut can be used in so many different ways, before heading back to Muri, we were entertained by watching a fire dance, which was pretty amazing!
MARKET TIME
The visit to the Saturday markets (just north of town) is a must – your one stop souvenir spot – with some great tucker to keep you fuelled – the markets close at 12.00, so get there early. The artwork for sale is quite something and I couldn’t resist a purchase, a keepsake and reminder to hang on a wall back home!
The other market not to miss is the Muri night market food extravaganza – a foodies dream offering everything from raw fish, pizza, wontons, BBQ, kebabs, dumplings, fresh fruit smoothies, churros and beautiful deserts. With Rarotonga working in NZ currency with similar prices, was nice and easy for everyone.
EXERCISE ?
For some reason, after talking to fellow tourists at the resort, on Wednesday morning, one of our more athletic in the team woke and said let’s do the walk across the island (Doug had ridden around it last time on a bicycle). We thought yes, especially with too many cocktails and unburnt meals onboard. We thought this was a great chance to burn a few calories off. Well, for the athletes, it was an enjoyable tramp, but for some of us it was a little more challenging in places !
But man, the view at the top was it worth it. We are glad to be able to say that we have conquered the needle (about a 45 minute walk/climb each way). However, we, the parents (at 50 plus) are not too sure we would do it again. But we are but very proud of ourselves, for having done it!
REHAB TIME
One of the restaurants we visited whilst on the island, is well worthy of a mention. Antipodes is perched high on the hills, above the Pacific ocean in Blackrock, a beautiful quintessential Mediterranean style villa. Now open to the public for a la carte dining, accommodation, weddings and events. We loved the experience here while we watched the sunset, with food simply, out of this world!
With nine of our party in their 20’s – all thought it was a great idea to experience the REHAB Party Bus trip. A party bus that collected you from your hotel, delivered you to several bars around the island, finishing up at the REHAB night club. Then you are dropped off at your hotel after the club closed at a respectable 12.00am. This was another highlight, a lot of fun and bonding for the family as one. Although the next day many of our crew had the realisation, of why was it was called REHAB – because that was exactly what was needed the next day!
Another resort enjoyed by some of the team was the Nautilus. A couple of massages were enjoyed and we chose to have our final dinner here – food, service and drinks were first class, not to mention the serenity of the decor! Being able to move about the 32km island gave you a great opportunity to experience the other properties and many restaurants about the island. Having scooters or a car gives you the independence to do so.
SEA SCOOTER SAFARI
Our final planned excursion was probably one of the most amazing experiences I have had to date, and think most of the team would agree. We had booked an excursion with the Ariki Turtle Sea Scooter Safari. We were all a little nervous as we would not know until the day, if the conditions, weather and tide, were right!
They had made a special time for us as it was the day we were flying home and had brought it forward earlier than their usual. Thank goodness the conditions were good! The instructors were amazing and very knowledgeable. The front desk operator was even from our home town – Arkles Bay, so it was great to catch up with a friendly familiar face!
This was such a special activity, swimming with turtles in their own environment. Priceless memories were formed! Some of us were out of our comfort zone, but the staff taught us how to use the sea scooters and stayed with us the entire time, offering life jackets for those like myself, who felt they needed, a little more security. I saw other groups of tourists doing similar tours, however I would highly recommend this one, as having the sea scooters, we were the only group able to go right out in the currents and get up close and personal with manta ray and these magical turtles!
GREAT MEMORIES
In summary, Rarotonga is certainly not a shopping destination, it is more a mix of fun, food, drink, sun, relaxation and adventure – or a mix of all as in our adventure! It was a fantastic family trip, memories were made which will last a lifetime.
A beautiful tropical island which for us, ticked all the boxes.
And as Arnie would say ‘I will be back !!’
RECOMMENDATIONS
Breakfasts of the trip – Beluga & Kai Co
Lunch spots of the trip – Moorings Fish Café for their fresh fish burgers and the always popular Trader Jacks with Pizza to die for.
Dinners of the trip – Antipodes & Nautilus prices up there – but you get what you pay for – delicious.
Adventure of the Trip – tramp (Climb) to the Needles.
Activity of the trip – Ariki Sea Scooter Turtle Safari
Links to some of our Adventures:
Turtle Sea Scooter Safari https://arikiadventures.rezdy.com/236189/turtle-sea-scooter-safari
KOKO Lagoon Cruise – Link https://www.kokalagooncruises.com/
Raro Pub Crawl Link https://cookislands.travel/supplier/rehab-nightclub
