Cook Islands
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
67.1km²
Area
32km
Coastline
measured on a simplified outline
652m
Highest point
Te Manga
10,572
People
28°C
Warmest sea
March
4,893km
To the mainland
When to go to Rarotonga
Best for the beach from June to October.
The sea is warmest in March (28 °C) and coolest in August (24 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island of the Cook Islands
Rarotonga is an volcanic island in Cook Islands. It covers 67.1 km², with 32 km of coastline. Its highest point, Te Manga, rises to 652 m. About 10,572 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 4,893 km away.
Getting there
- Rarotonga International Airport (RAR)airport on the island, with scheduled flights
- Ferries1 ferry terminals on the island
- 4,893 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From June to Octoberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Rarotonga.
- 4beachesMatavera Beach and 3 more
- 11viewpointsClear area, Airport view, Towards Airport and 8 more
- 1ferry terminalsCruise Berth for Tender
- 16named peaksTe Manga, Te Atukura, Te Kou and 13 more
- 1castles and fortsTinomana Palace (Au Maru)
- 2ruins and archaeological sitesTaputapuātea, Arai te Tonga
- 2dive centresCook Island Divers, Dive Rarotonga
- 27hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 40restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Rarotonga in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Rarotonga, each with its own numbers.
18mountainsPeakyas
Highest point
652m
according to Peakyas
18 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Te Manga652m
- Raemar
- Ikurangi
- Te Rua Manga
- Kavera Mountain
- Maungaroa
- Maungatea
- Piako
10 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 97 m above the sea. 79 % of it is below 200 m.
- 50 %0–50 m
- 30 %50–200 m
- 21 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Avarua13,373 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 27 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 25 |
| Sea (°C) | 27 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 |
| Rain (mm) | 195 | 202 | 198 | 166 | 150 | 62 | 77 | 63 | 83 | 94 | 144 | 174 |
| Wet days | 19 | 19 | 21 | 17 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 17 |
| Sun h/day | 7.8 | 7.6 | 7.4 | 6.9 | 6.2 | 6.5 | 6.6 | 7.2 | 7.8 | 8.0 | 7.9 | 7.8 |
| Wind (km/h) | 22 | 22 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 21 | 22 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | −0.5 | +0.3 | +0.5 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.1 | −0.2 | +0.5 | +0.6 | −0.2 | +0.9 |
| 2021 | +1.2 | +1.3 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +1.0 | +0.1 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | +0.4 | +0.1 | +0.5 | +1.0 | +1.5 | +1.5 | +1.2 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +0.1 | −0.8 | −0.1 |
| 2023 | −0.6 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.8 | +0.4 | −0.3 | −0.2 | −1.1 | −1.0 |
| 2024 | −0.2 | +0.1 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.4 | −0.1 | +0.3 | −0.1 | −1.1 | −0.6 |
| 2025 | +0.5 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +0.5 | +0.1 | −0.3 | −0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | +0.6 | −0.1 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q471793) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | Natural Earth · public domain |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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