Geography

The Cook Island are located in the South Pacific, about 1875 miles (3015 km) north east of Auckland. The Cooks' nearest neighbours are Tahiti to the east and American Samoa to the west, each roughly 1500km (930 miles) away. The Cook Islands are spread across some 2 million square km ( 772,200 sq mi) of sea, an aera as large as Western Europe.

Aitutaki ranks behind Rarotonga in the visitor contest, and it lacks the sheer physical beauty of its larger neighbour, but it has charms all its own. For a start, it sits at one corner of a triangular lagoon dotted with lovely motu (small islands). And it's historically interesting, with a number of impressive marae (pre-European religious meeting grounds) that are open to visitors. Aitutaki also has one of the best 'island nights' dance and music performances in the Cooks.

The Turquoise clear lagoon is dotted with coral heads and boasts wonderful snorkeling on the reef areas.

History :

There is much conjecture regarding where the original settler came from, however it is believed that the first settlers came during the Great Polynesian Migration in around 800 AD. In the 11th century a chief named Toi built the first coral road in Rarotonga, lying

Cook Islanders Maori is the local language but everyone also speaks English. Commerce is conducted in English.

Population :

The Cook Islanders are Polynesians. Over 90% of the population is polynesian, with small minorities of Europeans and Chinese.

The local tongue is Cook Islands Maori, closely related to New Zealand Maori and to the Polynesian languages of Tahiti and Hawaii, though English is spoken as a second language by virtually everyone

The people in the Cook Islands are open and naturally friendly. Their hospitality is warm and spontaneous, the dancing exuberant and the mood relaxed. Cook Islanders share a genuine concern for others and their old culture lives on through song, dance, legends and an easy pace to life reflecting the nature of the islands in which they live The current population in the Cook Islands is estimated at 17,000 people, with around 9,000 living on the main island of Rarotonga.

Culture : Cook Islanders retain much of their culture and this is passed down from generation to generation. There are restored sites, marae's and also our museum to see. Other culture is kept alive with dance and song and these can be seen at the Cultural Village or at the special Island Nights at the main hotels. There are very good displays also at constitutional celebrations and with our Dancer of The Year competitions and also Tiare Week.

Various denominations are found in the Cook Islands with the main religions being Congregational Christian Church and Catholic.

Climate :

The climate here is particularly comfortable and warm. June to August are the cooler months, whilst November to March is normally the wet season with tropical showers and higher humidity. With the changes in climate as they have been for the last two years, we have also seen unseasonal weather however you can be assured of rain and a good proportion of sunshine (see chart below).