Rarotonga is the main and biggest Island in the Cook Islands. By car it only takes about an hour to drive the entire length, and there are only 2 busses: Clockwise & Counterclockwise. Being so small, I feel I got a great idea of where to stay, eat and what to do after only 4 days!
I renewed my passport at the end of 2019, and it sadly did not get used until our trip to Rarotonga in June 2021. Being able to have a travel bubble with the Cook Islands is a privilege (Go New Zealand!) and going only 4 weeks since its opening felt quite special. Having the Island to only Kiwis made it feel less crowded and the locals were very happy to have visitors around again.
Mark and I decided to stay on the East side of the Island for the first part of our trip. We found Moana Sands: Lagoon Resort and were pleasantly surprised. Moana Sands is a group of hotels, however the Lagoon Resort is Adults Only. Phoebe at the front desk was so helpful answering all our questions and booking cabs & bikes for us. This is a smaller hotel with maybe 40 rooms total.
Our room included continental breakfast and we had dinner here our first night because the Happy Hour specials were so good. One thing we found was that in order to dine in at any restaurant, you almost ALWAYS needed a reservation.
This resort is closest to Muri Beach, but is still a bit South and therefore a tad isolated if you don’t have a car or a bike. We loved the pool and being able to hear the waves crash put us right into holiday mode.
Day View 
Sunset View
For the second half of our trip we stayed on the West side of the Island. This side of the Island is a bit more populated with a lot more things within walking distance. After flying in from Aitutaki, we had one more night in Raro before flying back to Auckland and chose to stay at The Edgewater. This was a very large hotel with multiple buildings, pools and kids play areas. It also included continental breakfast and is on the main bus route which makes getting around the Island a bit easier. Unfortunately, you get what you pay for and our service here was not what we experienced at Moana Sands Lagoon. Plus is was way louder with larger groups and lots of children.
We walked down the road to Manuia Resort for dinner. This is another Adult Only resort and we were so impressed we are staying here when we go again in May! Although we did not have a reservation, they allowed us to start drinks & appetizers at the bar and then moved us to a table once there was availability.
Mark would not stop raving about The Mooring Fish Cafe, so it was one of our first stops to eat once we got our bikes. It was about a 15 minute ride from our hotel on the East side of the Island, just North of Muri Beach. The fish is caught daily so we each got a sandwich. The atmosphere is great with an lovely view, and the fish was super fresh!
Closer to the main town, Avarua, is a tourist favorite Trader Jacks. They have any cuisine that includes seafood, so I tried an Indian dish. Although the fish is fresh almost anywhere you eat, most places it will be fried and the only other option to eat is pizza. This could have been because tourism was just ramping back up, but it also could be to market to visitors who may not be open to too many traditional Cook Island dishes.
Saturday is the Punanga Nui Market in town. This is an excellent place to buy food in bulk and finally be able to try some authentic food. It’s also a great place to get gifts and flower crowns.
There is only one Brewery on the Island and it’s what all the locals drink. They only brew one beer, but it’s pretty good. Definitely make a stop here, its very close to the airport on the NW end.
The Infamous Bar Crawl. The party bus will pick you up from your hotel and return you at the end of the evening. You go to 4-5 bars, however I was pretty disappointed the night of our tour. At the second bar, which is owned by the Bar Crawl company, there was a small concert and therefore they did not take us to any other bars! I was gutted I only got to see 2 bars, but it is still a fun night as you get to know everyone on the bus.
The best thing we did was rent bikes and ride around the entire Island! We tracked it on Strava and it took us just under 3 hours over various stops and was a total of 23.5 miles. It was great because it’s pretty flat plus you can find some interesting gems off the beaten main road.
One thing I had heard about was the “haunted,” abandoned Sheraton hotel. After almost being completed, the developer pulled out and it became run down. It’s a shame to see the current state as there was so much potential however it was also interesting to see how the local bush has come back to claim the space. Do note: you are technically trespassing when you enter, so it does make you get a bit of a rush.
Continuing past the Hotel, we found the waterfall. There is a walk that takes you across the Island and if you complete it North to South, you end at the waterfall. It was nice to cool off since it was so muggy, and I loved seeing the “Real Raro” on the Inner Route Roads.
Of course, being able to lounge and soak up the sun was amazing as well. It was pretty overcast and a bit rainy the first 2 days, so when the sun finally came out we posted up at the beach. We even switched our flight to take a later one to catch all the rays. I did think the beaches were a bit better on the West side of the Island, however when we go this coming May, we will be staying at Muri Beach Club Hotel which seems to have a nice beach and access to kayaks to paddle out to a few smaller Islands!
So far the Cook Islands was one of my favorite in the Pacific because it was clean and used NZD. I can’t wait to get back!