|
Hotels
|
| DINING:
There are lots of
restaurants on Rarotonga. Many are open only in the evening, but
you should look at a current guide for Rarotonga before making up your
mind because they are all within 30 minutes by bus or car.
On Saturday morning
(7:30am--noon) the locals set up stalls on the west end of town in the
Cultural Park. There is a wide variety of prepared food at good
prices. [PHOTOS]
|
GETTING AROUND:
| Bus:
The
buses take 1 hour to make it around the island. They run both
ways Monday to Saturday hourly from 7am - 4pm. Sunday 8am
- 12 noon & 2pm - 4pm (clockwise only). Night bus
departs hourly Monday to Saturday at 6, 9, 10pm. Friday
night & Saturday night have late busses between 11pm and
1:30 am (see local schedule). |
|
| Rental Car: Lots
of companies to choose from and prices starting at NZ $
40. Budget has: Nissan Laurel's for $56.30 a day, Jeeps
for NZ $67.50, and Mazda MX5 convertibles for only NZ $ 67.50
also. Prices include unlimited mileage, tax, and $2000 deductible
insurance (full coverage for an extra $9). You must have a Cook Island drivers
license. Just take your home license to the Police station
and you get a photo drivers license good for 1 year for NZ
$10. Takes about 20 minutes. |
|
| Motorcycle:
At NZ $55
for four
days,
this is great value. You must have a Cook Island drivers license
(See Car above). If you don't have motorcycle on your
license from home you must take a drivers test for NZ
$5.
Rarotonga
Rentals: www.rarotongarentals.co.ck |
|
| Scootcars:
These little things looked like fun. They have two seats,
seatbelts, windshield with wipers, roll bars, a removable top,
and a lockable trunk. The owner told me they will do
60kph! Ph: (682) 22-426 cutejag@oyster.net.ck |
|
| Bicycle:
Mountain bikes are available for NZ $6 per day. |
|
| Taxi:
Tiare Transport (24 hour service)
Phone 55-217 04 29-629 |
|
|
|
INTERNET CAFES:
|
| LAUNDRY:
Snowbird Laundry. Same day service. Across
from the port where the yachts dock and another branch on the west
coast. |
| GROCERIES:
The kitchen in
the Paradise Inn was good, so I decided to cook my own meals here.
The main grocery store in town, Foodland, had a limited selection.
But right on the west end of town is CITC Supermarket. It has a
great selection, almost as good as an American supermarket.
Surprisingly
hard to find fresh fish on Rarotonga or Aitutaki.
Some
Grocery Prices |
 |
 |
WHAT'S GOOD:
- Saturday
Morning Market (see Dining above for photos)
- Prices on
rental vehicles
- Wide variety
of restaurants
- The showers
in Paradise Inn, great pressure & lots of hot water
|
WHAT'S NOT SO GOOD:
- The beaches
are not great for swimming.
|
WHAT TO DO:
- Nightlife
tour
- Trekking
- Pa's
Mountain Walk
- strenuous
hike that "requires a certain standard of
fitness."
- see
ancient carvings
- bring
a drink & mosquito repellant
- lunch
provided
- 0930-1500
Monday, Wednesday & Friday
- Pa's
Nature walk
- Tuesday
& Thursday
- Not
suited for those with knee problems
- NZ$ 55
each
- HASH (on
Monday's)
- Lawn Bowling
- Cricket
- Fishing
- Golf
- Horse Riding
- Reef walking
- Sailing
- Scuba
- Snorkeling
- I went
snorkeling near Muri Beach. Visibility was only about 7-10
feet near shore and 15-20 feet near the barrier reef. Some
nice schools of fish and a few very big fish when you get near
the reef. Not much live coral, but still worth an
hour. Hard to stay in longer because the water was very
cold.
- Tennis
- Windsurfing
- 4WD tours to
top of highest mountain
- Quad bike
adventure (South side of the island)
- 10am, 1
pm, 3 pm
- NZ$50
- Ph
22-200
- Day trip to
Aitutaki
- Cultural
Village
- 0940-1400
Monday, Wednesday & Friday
- Lagoon
Cruise
- Shopping
|
|
Misc
Photos
|
