Visit Aitutaki Island
Most tourists are drawn to Aitutaki Island for it's amazing lagoon and uninhabited coral islands with gorgeous white sand beaches. These uninhabited islands are visited on various day cruises around the inner lagoon. The island can be visited on a day tour from Rarotonga with around five hours spent on the actual lagoon, but it is a long day on the largest cruise vessel in Aitutaki so less intimate than other local lagoon cruises which can only be enjoyed if staying overnight on Aitutaki Island. And this is why you should definitely stay on the island for a few nights.
Aitutaki offers some excellent day tour options, including a handful of wonderful lagoon cruises, boat charters and water taxis to explore the uninhabited islands, walking tours of the bush, scuba diving excursions and deep sea fishing charters.
watch video of aitutaki lagoon cruise
To best experience Aitutaki we recommend staying at least 3 nights on the island so you can explore the lagoon at leisure for at least two days and spend a few days unwinding on the islands main beaches absorbing the relaxed ambience of the local culture. There are two popular spots to stay on Aitutaki Island: The North West Coast and Ootu Point. The best stretch of beach is along the north-west coast, where you can swim in the lagoon on all tides and snorkel around coral patches. This region also benefits from stunning sunsets over the lagoon. Ootu Beach, on the point south of the airport, is a tidal lagoon without a beach at high tide but the lagoon here is good for exploring by kayak. Our pick is definitely the north west coast where you'll find three small resorts as well as the beautiful Aitutaki Beach Villas which has just four self contained bungalows right on the beach front.
The laid back main island of Aitutaki is a wonderful spot for exploring local life. There's little road traffic and the island is small so it's easy to get about and explore with pretty coastal villages and easy access to the beaches around the island.
Aitutaki Beach Villa Accommodation
Aitutaki Beach Villas is ideally located in the heart of the east coast for exploring Aitutaki Island. There are quiet roads criss-crossing the island and these are great to explore and experience how the locals live. Amuri Village is a ten-minute walk away for those wanting to explore by foot, and Arutanga Town is about a 25-minute walk (10 minutes by bicycle / 5 mins by moped). If you don't feel comfortable riding a moped, or are travelling with younger kids, there are three car rental companies close by; or you can even walk to most places on the island.
Visit Aitutaki Beach Villas
The best stretch to of beach on Aitutaki Island is right in-front of Aitutaki Beach Villas. You can walk south along the beachPacific Resort in five minutes; or north to Tava'e Resort in two minutes, and another three minutes walk takes you to Tamanu Beach. Both have restaurants and island nights with traditional Cook Islands dancing open to outside guests.