What to do on Rarotonga

[MrsSmith91739]

I've tried to get in contact with an outfit that has a catamaran but no answer any suggestions?

[Keith1010]

We went to the rain forest there.

 

Keith

[Tikiintahiti]

Raro's lagoon isn't near as dramatic as Aitutaki's except for the backdrop of the mountain. If your stopping at Aitutaki I would recommend to do the cat there.

 

Raro is a good island to buzz around shopping, go to Muri Beach and have a bite to eat, stop at Fruits of Rarotonga if you want to eat casual and then snorkel across the street at the only marine reserve on the island.

[J-D]

Other options on Rarotonga: We spent 8 days there in 2011. Besides things mentioned above, some additional possibilities for a brief 1/2 day or 1 day visit are as follows:

 

-- The colourful outdoor market in Avarua; besides food, clothing, and other tourist items, there were also a Cook Isl. dancers the morning we were there. I believe the market operates 6-days per week (not Sun.), but is best on Saturday.

 

-- The (small) National Museum in Avarua was also interesting to us.

 

-- The Takitumu Nature Conservation area, if you are interested in looking for the few surviving species of endemic landbirds. You need to book a guide for access to this area, and it is on the southern part of the island. During an afternoon visit, we saw the Rarotongan Flycatcher (Kakerori) and Cook Isl. Fruit-Dove, and heard the Rarotonga Starling.

 

-- There is bus service around the circumference of the island -- hourly in each direction when we were there (though less regular on Sundays).

 

-- Renting a car is probably not a good option during a short port visit, as there is a requirement to go to the police station in Avarua and get a local drivers licence, which may take an hour or more. I believe this requirement also applies to motorbike rentals.

 

John

[Tikiintahiti]

FYI - Rental agencies can issue a 24hr temporary driver’s license for $5.00. This is paid at the time you rent the car. This is great for cruisers who will be in port only one day.

[J-D]

FYI - Rental agencies can issue a 24hr temporary driver’s license for $5.00. This is paid at the time you rent the car. This is great for cruisers who will be in port only one day.

 

Good to know. When I rented a car on Raro for 2 or 3 days, my impression from the rental agent was that her temporary paperwork was valid only for long enough to drive from the agency to the police station. That would be under an hour from anywhere on Raro. In any case, it was rather neat to have a nicely prepared (on plastic) driver's licence, with photo, for the Cook Isl. It looked much better than my Ontario licence, and I used it as photo-ID a couple of times. Regretably, it has expired.

 

John

[Tikiintahiti]

The 24 hours is on the $5.00 license fee because the police station is closed on Sundays for getting a license. They like to get the extra revenue out of you and tell you it's good to drive over to the PD but it is in fact 24 hours. They actually collect more revenue by the $5 because everyone pay it than the vast majority that never go get a 1 year license.