Northern Cook Islands Transport: 10 Ways to Get There & Around

The only Northern Group island with scheduled domestic flights is Manihiki. Flights are available with the Cook Islands’ sole domestic airline, which flies every other Tuesday from Rarotonga to Manihiki, taking approximately 4 hrs 30 mins. The flight is typically in a small eight-seater propeller plane.

The cost of flights to Manihiki, as well as more information, are updated in Domestic Flights in the Cook Islands: Your Guide to Interisland Flights.

One of the easiest, fastest yet most expensive ways to get to the Northern Cook Islands is to charter a flight. The Cook Islands’ domestic airline offers charter flights in their six-seater or 34-seater jet planes.

Charters depart from Rarotonga and travel to any of the inhabited Northern Group islands with an airstrip: Manihiki, Penrhyn and Pukapuka. The flight time from Rarotonga to any of these islands is approximately 2h 30mins. Customised itineraries, visiting each of the islands mentioned above, can be created for island-hopping.

Discover more details about charter flights to the Northern Group in our guide, How to Hire a Plane in the Cook Islands: A Guide to Plane Charters.

Available just a few times a year, Island Hopper Vacations offers guided tours of the Northern Group. The tour visits Pukapuka, Manihiki then Penrhyn, usually over five days and four nights (but three-night packages have been available in the past).

Transport is via private jet departing Rarotonga, making the journey approximately 2h 30mins to Pukapuka, then around 20 minutes between the other Northern Group islands. The packages are all-inclusive, including accommodation, meals, airfares, airport transfers, and a tour guide.

Cargo ships for the Northern Group depart Rarotonga every 2-2.5 months, transporting supplies and a few people in the cabins available. Cargo ships in the Cook Islands are notoriously unpredictable, rarely stick to a schedule and are subject to constant delays (if we may be so candid).

The voyage to the Northern Group takes several days, depending on which islands are stopped at first. Islands accessible by cargo ship include Penrhyn, Rakahanga, Manihiki and Pukapuka.

If your heart is set on the adventure and you have the time to spare, reach out to Taio Shipping at the Avatiu Wharf on Rarotonga to organise your voyage.

More information can be found in our Cook Islands Cargo Ship Guide: How to Use the Ferry for Interisland Travel in the Cook Islands.

The Northern Cook Islands aren't as popular a sailing ground as other South Pacific nations, but those with a private yacht have access to some of the more secluded Northern Group islands. The best islands set up for yachties are Suwarrow and Penrhyn. Penrhyn is an official port of entry to the Cook Islands.

Although Suwarrow is not an official port of entry in the Cook Islands, you are technically still allowed to anchor at Anchorage Island if you have provided a “Cook Island border agencies application for marine craft to arrive at or depart from a place outside of a designated Customs port” application via email.

Learn more about visiting the Cook Islands via yacht in our Sailing Guide to Rarotonga & the Cook Islands: Tips for Yachting in the Cook Islands.

There are two islands in the Northern Group that are accessible by "ferries" from neighbouring islands: Rakahanga and Nassau.

Most get to Rakahanga by taking a boat/ferry from Manihiki. There is no set schedule for the ferry; it is arranged when demand is present and the weather conditions are calm enough. The journey between the two lagoons is 42km (26 miles), taking approximately two hours.

The only way to get to Nassau is via Pukapuka. There are unscheduled boats running between the two islands, which are best organised once you arrive in Pukapuka. The trip is 88km (55 miles) and takes approximately three hours.

The most readily available vehicles to rent on the islands of the Northern Group are scooters (also known as mopeds). Accommodation hosts on the islands can typically arrange scooter rentals for the day, allowing you to explore larger islands that are otherwise too difficult to explore on foot, such as in Penrhyn and Manihiki.

Rentals typically include fuel, as there are no conventional fuel stations on the islands.

Most of the islands in the Northern Group are coral atolls with lots of islets lining a lagoon. Accommodation hosts can typically arrange informal tours of their lagoon with a local boat operator, fisherman, or themselves.

These tours are typically for you, so you can usually let your guide know what you'd like to do, such as snorkelling, and they'll take you to a good snorkelling spot, for instance. They may also take you fishing and island-hopping between different motu (islets).

All of the airstrips in the Northern Cook Islands just have a hut at the airport: no bathrooms, no ATMs and no other facilities. Wherever you stay, you will be met by your accommodation host when you arrive from your flight.

You will be transported to your accommodation, usually via boat or on foot, typically with a bulldozer (no, we're not kidding), a quad bike, or whatever other vehicle is on hand to carry your luggage.