Your journey in The Cook Islands will provide you with a distinctive cultural experience. You will gain a rich understanding of the culture and customs by living rurally and interacting daily with locals. You will need to come with an open mind and a positive outlook which will take you a long way in blending with the local community and enjoying the programme to its fullest. An island full of coconut palms, white sand beaches, and the clearest azure waters you’ve ever seen, Aitutaki has to be one of the most beautiful sights on earth. With adventure around every corner, paradise is waiting to be explored.
Volunteer Programs in the Cook Islands
Embarking on a volunteer trip in The Cook Islands is a chance for anyone with a passion for helping others to give back to under resourced communities on this stunning Pacific island archipelago. The Cook Islands consists of 15 Islands scattered over some 2 million square kilometers of the Pacific Ocean.
Based on the Island of Aitutaki, some programs will bring you closer to nature and provide a safe and tranquil environment for you to enjoy and thrive on. Home to approximately 1800 people and the world’s most beautiful lagoon, Aitutaki really is the classic picture postcard. It’s just 45 minutes by air from the nation’s capital Rarotonga but it feels like another world.
The Islands magical tranquility is matched only by the people themselves. The locals are warm and hospitable, and will approach you with the call of ‘Kia Orana’ and a sense of kindness, revealing a camaraderie which is in keeping with the islands community.
Make a stunning tropical idyll your home when you join this unique and unprecedented project. Visit a place of unimaginable beauty, where you can discover ancient folklore and legend whilst making an incredible contribution to a deprived community in this most far flung outpost of the Pacific Ocean. This project – the first of its kind – involves living amongst the welcoming people of Aitutaki, one of the Cook Islands, and making an invaluable contribution to the development of their community and the futures of their children. You will be able to immerse yourself in the lifestyle of a people who live in harmony with their natural surroundings, and who have a special understanding of the flora and fauna around them – making this a chance to have a gap year, year out or career break that is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience!
The work on this project benefits from a varied schedule including teaching and a range of village community projects. Students will be interested in life where you come from. You may be able to get involved teaching other activities such as sports, music or science, if you are interested and have the relevant skills. Rather than just seeing teaching as a way of transferring knowledge, you are inspiring and shaping young minds. By investing your time and skills with the children of the Cook Islands, whilst also helping to rebuild the school that is so vital for the futures of the young people here, you are creating a lifelong legacy that will create and open up opportunities in their futures. Living at the heart of the community is an incredibly positive and special contribution, and will be recognised as such by the people here. This is an incredible experience that will hugely benefit the local communities, whilst building your skill base and giving you an absolutely unforgettable Frontier gap year, year out or career break!
Your teaching or community work will bring you into your host community as a welcome new member. You’ll teach children basic English and other subjects of your choosing, and you’ll have ample opportunity to play sports and games with them, put on plays and concerts, and a range of other fun activities; the only limit is your own imagination and creativity. Whilst being some of the most flawlessly beautiful places in existence, the Cook Islands are economically limited and largely rely on tourism for growth and income, which is a precarious and unevenly dispersed source of financial security.
Outside of the central larger islands, many of the smaller atolls suffer and education is under-funded and very poorly resourced. As well as teaching, you may be carrying out vital rejuvenation and rebuilding work, getting involved in community environmental projects or marine projects and other community activities depending on your skills, interests and what you would like to organise! As this project is not strictly structured it gives volunteers a great opportunity to really make a difference in their own way.
At the end of the day you are free to explore the islands, try a range of activities, or simply relax in the heavenly surroundings!
Highlights
• Head to Ootu Beach for a dip in crystal clear waters of Aitutaki lagoon or just chill out and enjoy the peaceful surroundings.
• Discover clam farming and snorkelling at the Aitutaki Marine Research centre.
• Explore the island by bike or hike up Maunga Pu, the highest point on the island with stunning views of the turquoise lagoon.
• Pop over to ‘One Foot Island’ and get your passport stamped at the smallest Post Office in the world.
• Learn about the island’s history, culture and traditions with a local expert led activity.
• Experience the awe-inspiring sight of humpback whales with local expert led whale watching trips.
If you like the idea of helping in the beautiful Cook Islands, you might also want to view volunteer programs in Fiji.