Cook Islands A-Z Visitors Guide - Small Guide to a tropical paradise
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 Cook Islands A-Z - The Small Guide to a Tropical Paradise

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Eating Out

Restaurant dining should be on every visitors list. The size of Rarotonga makes dining out easy and those willing to get outside the resorts will be rewarded. Apart from the wonderful location, Trader Jacks in Avarua has excellent food. For those wanting to kick on there’s the Staircase Bar and Restaurant nearby and Banana Court. Also in Avarua, Portofino is still popular after 15 years - good food (dine in and take away) and there’s Lotus China for Chinese. The outdoor garden setting is nice, once you get used to the traffic noise and the occasional rooster (for some reason Cook Island roosters have no idea of time and they can crow at any time of day). For a cheap snack, head to Mama’s Café next to Foodland or Aramoana Fish ‘N’ Chips by the harbour.

In the Arorangi area (Edgewater Resort) Windjammer is popular with the locals and nearby there’s The Spaghetti House and Hopsing’s for Chinese. The Paw Paw Patch (Moana Sands) is relaxed with a nice little menu. The Flame Tree and Sails restaurants by Muri Lagoon are both wonderful. An example of cuisine at The Flame Tree - Japanese Vegetable Tempura ($9.50), Local Curried Octopus ($9.00) Coconut Crumbed Fish Fillets ($25.00) Indonesian Satay ($21.00). If you like garlic bread ($3.00), be sure to share with others so you don’t offend in the morning. For a full Flame Tree menu sample, click here. At Sails, perhaps a Classic Chowder ($12.50) or a Thai Beef Salad ($24.50). For a full Sails dinner menu, click here (they also have a lighter lunch menu).

Also in Muri is a little pasta place formerly known as That’s Pasta. In late 2005 it changed its name to Stefano’s Italian Cuisine – look for the yellow sign with the big plate of spaghetti. Click here for a menu and if you mention the A to Z guide, Roberta and Stefano will throw will throw a few extra prawns into the Pasta ai Gamberi!

On Aitutaki, if you want to sample some excellent local fare away from your resort, Café Tupuna is wonderful (Tupuna is the gifted chef) and the Samade Bar can be a lot of fun.

Tipping is contrary to Polynesian customs. Basically, a tip is considered getting money for nothing and the person receiving will feel as though he/she then owes you. In the Cooks ‘maetaki mata’ (thank you) will be enough.

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Edgewater Resort

Edgewater is the largest resort on Rarotonga facing the sunset about 10 minutes from Avarua. It has all the facilities and activities that you would expect in a large resort (swimming pool, tennis, restaurants, bars, themed nights etc) but, quite frankly, at the time of writing there are better value resorts on the island. One plus - it’s close to restaurants like The Spaghetti House, Hopsings and Windjammer.
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Electricity

You’ll find some three pronged plugs (same as in Australia and New Zealand), mainly on air-conditioners and power tools. Others are two-prong so, if you require power, invest in an adapter. Some resorts have 110V for electric shavers.
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Embassies

Apart from the New Zealand High Commission there are no real ‘embassies’ as such for other countries and most visitors would be seeking one because they have lost a passport. If this happens, head to the Government Office Building behind the Post Office and seek out The Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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Emergency

The hospital on Rarotonga is open 24 hours a day and the number for an ambulance is 998.
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Entry Requirements

No visa is required for a stay of up to 31 days which is granted on entry but visitors must have a return or ongoing ticket. You can extend this by applying at the Immigration office in the Government Office Building behind the Post Office (phone 29 347). The maximum extension is six months and you’ll need proof of funds to get an extension. Officially you are supposed to have a hotel reservation for your first night on Rarotonga, and the minimum most hotels will book is two nights (some even have four night minimums). In practice, if you write the name of a hotel on your entry card, the Immigration Officer probably won’t question your ‘honesty’. Representatives of the backpacker places meet all flights and their dormitories are never full. However, if you want medium to top end accommodation, you should book ahead as the best resorts are often full.
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Exchange Rates

The currency in the Cook Islands is the New Zealand dollar. This is my favourite currency conversion site - www.xe.com
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