Oceania · Cook Islands
Thirteen days between Sydney, the lagoons of Rarotonga and Aitutaki in the Cook Islands, and Auckland, with international and domestic flights included.
Quick facts
Indicative price from
€3,999
per person
This itinerary is a starting point: we'll adapt it with you in your tailor-made proposal.
Request informationThe South Pacific away from the busiest routes. It starts in Sydney, with the Opera House and the harbour, then flies to the Cook Islands. On Rarotonga, the main island, forest-covered mountains surround a turquoise lagoon, with villages, markets and Cook Islands Maori culture.
Aitutaki has one of the most beautiful lagoons in the Pacific, dotted with white sand islets such as One Foot Island, to explore by boat and with mask and snorkel.
On the way home, a night in Auckland, the city of sails, in New Zealand.
13 days in the programme
Departure from Italy on a scheduled flight to Sydney, with a stopover: the journey takes more than 20 hours in all. Night on board.
Arrival in Sydney. The transfer to the hotel is not included: the airport train reaches Central station in about a quarter of an hour. Free time is spent around Circular Quay, the ferry harbour: on one side the Opera House, a UNESCO site, on the other The Rocks, the district where the first British settlers established themselves in 1788. On the Harbour Bridge, opened in 1932, you can cross the harbour on foot. Sydney is 8 to 10 hours ahead of Italy. Room only.
Transfer to the airport, not included, and scheduled flight to Rarotonga, the main island of the Cook Islands. You cross the International Date Line and the clock goes back 20 or 21 hours: you live the same calendar day twice. On arrival, assistance and shared transfer to the hotel. The greeting you hear everywhere is kia orana. The island is green and mountainous, ringed by a lagoon, and no building is taller than a coconut palm. From today, bed and breakfast.
A free day. One idea: Muri lagoon, on the south-east coast, the widest stretch of Rarotonga's lagoon. The water is shallow and calm, sheltered by the reef, with four motu you can reach by kayak or paddleboard, hired on the beach. There are also optional glass-bottom boat trips. For snorkelling, among the best spots are the marine reserves on the south coast, such as Tikioki, where fishing is banned and fish are plentiful. Breakfast included.
A free day. The coast road loops around Rarotonga in about 32 km, served by two bus lines: one clockwise, the other anticlockwise. Along the coast you pass villages, white coral-stone churches and plantations. For walkers, the optional cross-island hike takes three to four hours: it climbs through the forest to Te Rua Manga, the rock spire known as The Needle, and comes down to Wigmore's Waterfall. A guide is recommended, booked separately.
A free day. If it falls on a Saturday, spend the morning at Punanga Nui market in Avarua, the small capital: tropical fruit, fish, pareu, black pearls, food stalls and live ukulele music. On other days Avarua is still the place for some shopping, between the shops and the harbour. In the evening, one optional idea, booked separately: an island night, with dancing, drumming and a buffet of local food. Cook Islands dancing is famous across the Pacific for its fast drumbeats and rapid hip movements.
The last free day on Rarotonga. One idea: the morning at the Aroa marine reserve, on the south-west coast, with mask and snorkel among coral and tropical fish. If it is Sunday, you can attend a service at a Cook Islands Christian Church, known for its hymns sung in harmony: modest dress is expected. In the late afternoon, sunset on the north-west coast at Black Rock, where, according to tradition, the spirits of the dead set off for the land of the ancestors.
Shared transfer to the airport and domestic flight to Aitutaki, about 50 minutes to the north. From the plane you already see the lagoon, a large turquoise triangle enclosed by the reef and dotted with some fifteen motu. On arrival, shared transfer to the hotel. Aitutaki has fewer than 2,000 inhabitants and is smaller and quieter than Rarotonga, with roads almost free of traffic. The afternoon is free for a first swim in the lagoon. Bed and breakfast.
A free day. The most popular trip, optional and booked separately, is a day cruise on the lagoon. The boats stop for snorkelling among tropical fish and giant clams, and land on white sand motu. The best-known stop is One Foot Island, Tapuaetai in the local language, where a tiny post office stamps your passport. Nearby is Akaiami, where the Coral Route flying boats landed in the 1950s.
A free day between beach and lagoon. One idea for the morning: the walk up Maungapu, Aitutaki's highest point, just over a hundred metres, with a view of the whole lagoon. Then Arutanga, the main village, with the coral-stone church considered the oldest in the Cook Islands: Christianity reached Aitutaki in 1821, before the other islands. The afternoon is for a last swim and sunset over the lagoon. Bed and breakfast.
Shared transfer to Aitutaki airport and domestic flight to Rarotonga, then a scheduled flight to Auckland, in New Zealand: about four hours. This time you cross the date line the other way and lose a calendar day. Auckland is 10 to 12 hours ahead of Italy, depending on the time of year. On arrival, the transfer to the hotel is not included: you get to the city centre by taxi or bus. Room only.
A free day in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, spread across an isthmus between two harbours. One idea: the waterfront at the Viaduct and Wynyard Quarter, among sailing boats and restaurants, then the Sky Tower, 328 metres tall. A ferry ride of just over ten minutes takes you to Devonport, with the old volcanic cone of Mount Victoria. In the afternoon Mount Eden, the highest natural point in the city, and in the evening the Ponsonby district. Room only.
Transfer to the airport, not included, and scheduled flight back to Italy, with a stopover. End of the trip.
