Aitutaki

Pros: Quiet, Solitude, Beauty
Cons: Remote with few activities

Ever dream of being a castaway on a remote tropical island - far from the hassles and worries of the everyday modern world? Ever fantasize about a lazy, slow-paced life living on coconuts, bananas and freshly-caught fish from a lovely tropical lagoon? ...

Pros: Absolutely beautiful lagoon colors. Friendly people.
Cons: Not much in the markets. It rained on our lagoon cruise :(

Aitutaki is an atoll in the South Pacific, and is part of the Cook Islands, about two hours west of Tahiti. Aitutaki has been called the Bora Bora of the Cook Islands, and it has one of the most beautiful lagoons in all of the South Pacific. The main ...

Pros: Stunningly gorgeous lagoon, extremely friendly people.
Cons: Very limited lodging and food options. Not much to do at night. Sea cucumbers!

I booked a 3-day trip to Aitutaki while in Rarotonga. It turned out to be one of the highlights of a 4-month trip to Thailand, Australia and New Zealand. The flight over, on Air Rarotonga, was a little hair-raising since the plane was so small--only ...

Pros: quiet
Cons: chilly

This is a rather long, but comprehensive, travelogue of my wife’s and my trip to the South Pacific in the summer of 2004. We spent 3 weeks on 7 islands (Bora Bora, Moorea, Rangiroa, Aitutaki, Rarotonga, and Fiji). The review for each set of islands are ...

Pros: The Lagoon, snorkeling, beauty, some locals, climate, isolation
Cons: Limited infrastructure, bleached coral, complete lack of cultural or intellectual activity, expensive

SUMMARY In June, 2003, my wife and I stayed for a full month on Aitutaki, opting to avoid Rarotonga altogether. We chose to avoid the resort experience, and instead tried to immerse ourselves in the local environment as much as ...

Pros: The lagoon, scuba diving, local people
Cons: Moisture and some mosquitoes.

When we left Rarotonga (see my review on Rarotonga) we knew Aitutaki was going to be very different. Many people had told us so and in some ways we were expecting it to be even more of what a Pacific island should be. We were not going to be...

Pros: Paradise found. The Lagoon. Island time and nice locals.
Cons: Can be difficult to get to the Cooks. Lacks smooth sophistication.

A secret gem of a island Aitutaki. I haven't been there since 1990, doubtful much has changed. Maybe they finally got the cargo crane delivered and rigged on the dock and everyone's a bit older, But prolly not much else has changed on this delightful dot...

Pros: Gorgeous isolation, clear turquoise water as far as you can see!
Cons: Mind numbing isolation

I spent a total of 12 days in the Cook Islands, and only one was in Aitutaki, but I wish I had planned my trip to center around this island and huge lagoon. There are minimal accomodations and restaurants to say the least (only the one resort), but...

Pros: Excellent food; very quiet and calm; very relaxing.
Cons: Very little transportation, a bit expensive, but hey, what are you going to do.

The second half of our honeymoon was spent in Aitutaki at the Aitutaki Pearl Beach Resort and it was fabulous. Our first half was spent in Bora Bora which I wrote a review about as well. We thought the food served in Aitutaki was better than Bora Bora, though it was expensive as well. Our dollars went a little farther in the Cook Islands than in Bora Bora, however. Our bungalow was very comfortable and roomy. The people from the Cook Islands were a bit more friendly than in Bora Bora - not to say that the folks in Bora Bora weren't. Also English was a little more prominent in Aitutaki than Bora Bora. We wanted to do some snorkeling and went to the "concierge" where we were told, "Give "Lawton" a call; here's his number" - like he was the next-door neighbor. Talk about a great day with Lawton! If you get a chance, go. If not, the next Survivor is being filmed there!