LOS ANGELES, CA—2018 marks the third year in a row that Global Traveler readers have named the Cook Islands the best island nation in the Pacific Rim.
This is a destination that is known as “a little paradise in a huge setting”. The Cook Islands have a combined landmass 44 times smaller than the Hawaiian Islands, yet the Islands occupy an ocean space more than 4 times the size of California. The population is little too—less than 18,000. Global Traveler readers familiar with the destination have discovered a relatively secret paradise that is not over commercialized like most other island destinations; in fact, the islands have no buildings taller than a coconut tree, no traffic lights, and very little stress.
Nor is it stressful to get to the Cook Islands—they are one of the only untouched island groups that can be reached via a direct, nonstop flight from Los Angeles, and for a reasonable price, too. It’s also not stressful to plan an unforgettable vacation; in the Cook Islands, adventures and experiences are so accessible visitors are not tempted to spend their days at a hotel pool. It’s easy to find an empty, pristine stretch of beach, or a lagoon-side bar offering live music, cocktails, and front-row seats to the show of a South Pacific Polynesian sunset.
It’s also easy to make local friends. Cook Islanders love sharing their culture and telling people about their legends and everyday ways of life. The islanders love talking about how the world looks from where they are standing, in a place that’s so beautiful it makes one’s heart swell.
In the Cook Islands, visitors can find nice things—luxury spas, linen-napkin dining, air-conditioned art galleries—but the islands aren’t overdeveloped, and the culture isn’t contrived. Here, as they say, “what you see is what you get”. What visitors see is natural, and breathtaking, and real. An unfiltered paradise in an authentic Polynesian setting.
The percentage of people who only come once—that’s little, too.
From North America, the Cook Islands can be reached by an easy overnight 10-hour non-stop flight on Air New Zealand from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) every Saturday night to Rarotonga’s (RAR) lagoon-side international airport. The Cook Islands Tourism North America office is located at 5901 W. Century Blvd, Suite 1004, in Los Angeles, California, adjacent to Los Angeles International Airport. To learn more about travel to the Cook Islands, what there is to see and do, its special vacation packages, airfares and free brochures, visit www.CookIslands.Travel or e-mail USAManager@CookIslands.travel
MEDIA CONTACT:
5901 W Century Blvd #1004
Phone: (310) 694-7027
usamanager@cookislands.travel
