Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Cook Islands vs. Fiji

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Cook Islands vs. Fiji

Hi there-

I looked up info on this forum Fiji vs. Cooks, but all of the posts looked like they were 5-10 years old.....so I will ask the question again. Cooks vs. Fiji?????

My fiance and I would like to take a month long honeymoon in the South Pacific. We have epicurean tastes, so French Polynesia was our first obvious interest. We are easily impressed by the best haha! But when we started researching it we saw that it would just be too outrageous in cost for an entire month (we are american so our dollar sucks right now!). This is our honeymoon, and we want to be able to live freely and not have to penny pinch and strategize for every last purchase. Thus we are considering the cooks and fiji. Please tell me if i am wrong here....Tahiti just seems insane cost wise.

From my reading online, it is hard to understand what the main differences are between fiji and the cooks. These are our criteria:
-We would like luxury accommodation for a few nights after our wedding, but then for the rest of the month we don't need anything too fancy. Just comfortable.
-We want to dive
-We want to snorkel lots
-We want to hike
-We want jungles and waterfalls
-Surf would be great but not a necessity
-We want beauty, picturesque landscapes
-We want to be in an island dream fantasy!
-Awesome, kick ass beaches are a must and plenty!
-Incredible blue water is a must
-Food is not that important to us, as long as it's decent
-We are explorer types so wherever we go, we will want to see a variety of islands. We'd like interisland travel to be affordable and possible.
-We would like to be able to spend about $9,000 to $12,000 USD for a month.

So......there it is....the ultimate list. Not too much to ask, is it? hahaha

Where can this be found? Which will more easily satisfy these desires, Fiji or Cooks? Or elsewhere, I am open minded to other suggestions?

Thanks so much, especially to those who have actually BEEN TO BOTH and can give a good comparison. Thanks!

I have travelled extensively in the South Pacific and I have been to Fiji ( great resorts and excellent tourist accommodation), but not the Cooks. However the island that I feel you should consider, at least for a short period, is Samoa. I have visited Samoa many times and for me it is the real deal South Pacific. The people are friendly, it has the jungles and waterfalls you desire, is ideal for snorkeling, has a wonderful market, sensational seafood (try Roccos or the Yacht Club) and is everything you would a imagine a South Pacific Paradise to be. There is good accommodation at the original Aggie Greys or the newer resort and you have American Samoa a short distance away if you like to explore. I would suggest you also include the Cooks on your itinerary as the beaches are probably better than Samoa. http://www.aggiegreys.com/

Another website that may help you http://www.polynesianxplorer.com/

We have been to all the islands in the South Pacific including New Caledonia -1, Vanuatu-1, Fiji-4, Tonga-2, Tahiti-1, Cooks-1, Samoa and W. Samoa-1. Although we are much older than you intended newly weds we can still remember.If there is any matter that I say here that needs clarification please get back to me and I will dig out more detailed information.
Unless you want to go to more than one of these nations the one that will suit most if not all your needs will be Fiji.You need to do your research into the 7,14 or 21 day pass on the Yasawa Flyer.This would give you the option to choose an upmarket resort on the main island(before you venture wider) on what is called the Coral Coast. From there you can visit Sigatoka and the Sigatoka valley and river and explore the mountains and villages up through that area. Surfing is rather limited in Fiji but the "best " in this country is near here. By using the " Pass" as mentioned earlier you can plan to visit a number of islands in the Mamanuca group and the Yasawas. do some research yourself into this and you will see you will be able to call on a number of islands. Get back to me and I will be able to help you on some of these islands. Some are up market and some are village basic ,some have a mixture of both.In the Yasawas you will have some of the more pristine snorkelling and diving areas, beautiful beaches.The movie "The Blue Lagoon" was filmed out here and you could stay on the Blue Lagoon. We have stayed at Nanuya Resort which is a bit up market on this lagoon.
I also love the Cooks, Tonga and Samoa but I think you will be very limited in what you want to do there. I can explain this if you need to know.You are right Tahiti is the more expensive of these places,although we worked out how to do it reasonably cheaply.
Something you may be able to research is whether there is still such a thing as a Poly Pass that is for an amount you can fly to a number of these island nations
I will do some research for you if you get back to me either on the internet or all the Lonely Planet Guides I have for this area.

Thanks everyone for the great advice, it's a big decision. And I'm sure that either choice would be awesome. But it's really hard to tell just from looking at photos and reading online, what are the main differences in these places? How/why are the beaches different? How is the water and reefs different? How are the landscapes different?

The major difference is accessibility. Fiji has a good International airport at Nadi with many schedule flights daily. Flight schedules to the other islands are limited. All the islands have friendly people, good beaches, blue waters, good accommodations and wonderful scenery, but remember their economy relies a lot on aid from other countries e.g. China, Russia, Australia and NZ so you will also find poverty and living standards (except for the resorts) that you may not be used to. The South Pacific is still a wonderful part of the world and if you like outdoor activities and adventure it is certainly the place for you and really is everthing you see in the brochures.

Thanks so much for the great photos, 2thdok - which location did you prefer?

Robe - we are in the exact same situation as you! My fiance and I are also looking to take a 4 week/1 month honeymoon and want to have both the adventure-side (scuba, hiking) as well as the nice resort/relaxation side. We were looking at first at Bali, but it seems a bit unstable right now. When are you planning to go?

Jame - were you able to find out about the PolyPass? Also, how long does it usually take to fly from one island to another - when we were looking at lonely planet we got the impression that it's not a quick flight.

2thdok
Wow! Thanks for the great photos! Brings back soooooo many lovely memories of the Cooks (Raro and Aitutaki). I've been to both Fiji and the Cook Islands, most recently to the Cooks in 2004. It would be great if you could include both island chains.

wbel, I haven't been to Bali, but I've been to S E Asia 19 times, specifically Thailand. I have friends who love to go to Bali. I'm curious why you say it is unstable right now.

Carol

simpson - there are us and other government travel advisories against going to Bali right now so it just makes me nervous

I've got several friends going in May. They are all fodorites, by the way.
Carol

bookmarking

Hope to visit either Fiji or Cook Islands later in the year.

Hubby wants to dive, me snorkelling

We are 56 and 58. We have epicurean tastes too and think that we can probably keep up with young honeymooners :-)

Our nostalgia for this region goes back to the days when the actor Gardner McKay, as Adam Troy, used to sail the Tiki around those islands in the TV Series "Adventures In Paradise"

Robe0488 opens this thread by pointing to the search for epicurean standard food outside of Tahiti. This is important.

We too enjoy food and most of the advice we have received is that there is no great food in the Cook Islands and that you have to enter the luxury market segment in Fiji ( like Turtle Island) to find great food.

We hope that you experienced Fodorites who can provide Robe0488 and the rest of us all with some culinary ideas for the Cook islands and Fiji within close reach of the beaches, rainforests, waterfalls and crystal clear waters.