Pacific Islands Archives - Planet Whitley

The Bishop's Cruises boat at One Foot Island, Aitutaki.

A Cook Islands cruise to One Foot Island, Aitutaki Lagoon

In the Cook Islands, the Bishop’s Cruises boat crosses one of the most spectacular lagoons on earth. And One Foot Island is the target at the other end of the Aitutaki Lagoon. Trevally in the Cook Islands There’s quite a commotion by the boat. Yelps…

Aitutaki, Cook Islands, cruises, Pacific Islands

Kayaks lined up by the Muri Lagoon, Rarotonga.

A quick travel guide to Rarotonga, the Cook Islands

What to see in Rarotonga To get an idea of traditional life on Rarotonga, the main island of the Cooks, head to the Te Vara Nui Village. The tour takes in presentations of all manner of skills and crafts, from coconut husking and carving to…

Cook Islands, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga

A quick guide to Aitutaki in the Cook Islands

What to see on Aitutaki Aitutaki in the Cook Islands is a tiny bit of land and a whole lot of lagoon. And, boy, what a lagoon – take all those romanticised images of South Sea island paradises and multiply it. Fringed with tiny motu…

Aitutaki, Cook Islands, Pacific Islands

Muri, Rarotonga: The perfect holiday town?

On Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, David Whitley discovers that a decade can make a substantial difference. How Muri has changed Muri doesn’t quite look or feel like it did. The key lure is still the same – the most photogenic stretch of Rarotonga’s lagoon,…

Cook Islands, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga

Samoa’s Pulamelei Mound: The mystery pyramid of the Pacific

David Whitley heads to the largest man-made structure in Polynesia, and tries to work out whether it proves an old adventurer’s controversial theories right. Walking to the Pulamelei Mound “This track is impassable after heavy rain,” says Warren Jopling as we plod diligently up the…

Pacific Islands, Samoa

Exploring Rarotonga on a half day bike tour

Rarotonga in the Cook Islands may be small, but it packs in plenty of surprises – as a half day bike tour around the island shows. Cycling around Rarotonga The circular road around Rarotonga in the Cook Islands is largely flat, making it easy going…

Cook Islands, cycling, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga, tours

Inside Te Ara on Rarotonga, the Cook Islands.

Te Ara on Rarotonga: The story of the Pacific Islanders

In the Cook Islands, the small Te Ara museum provides an unexpectedly engrossing look at the settlement of the Pacific Islands. The wall map in Te Ara For map geeks, the one on the wall in Te Ara is utterly engrossing. It not only shows…

Cook Islands, museums, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga

Trader Jack's on Rarotonga, the Cook Islands.

Raining in Rarotonga: Hiding out at Trader Jack’s

At the Vaka Eiva festival, I realise it’s the rain, not the sun, that sets the slow pace of life in the Cook Islands. Rainy days in the South Pacific They never tell you about the rain. It’s all about the beaches, the lagoons and…

Cook Islands, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga

Spear fishing on Aitutaki, The Cook Islands

A fishing trip on one of the most beautiful islands on earth is harder work than expected. A fishing trip with a difference Mike from Black Pearl Fishing Charters takes one look at the afternoon’s current forlorn haul, and turns towards the cabin. “If the…

Aitutaki, Cook Islands, fishing, Pacific Islands

The cross-island trek on Rarotonga, the Cook Islands.

Hiking across Rarotonga

In the Cook Islands, a trek through the rainforest is a refreshing antidote to lazy lagoon life. Walking with Pa There are few things more humiliating than panting your way up a heart-attack inducing mountain, only to be passed by a bare-footed man in his…

Cook Islands, Pacific Islands, Rarotonga, walks