Customer Reviews

Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book, which is more of a trip report than a real guidebook is not adequate to be your only guide to the Cooks.

The most crucial failing is that the location of lodging and restuarants is not indicated on his maps. It really is helpful to know where places are located.

Looking at page 35, his map of Rarotonga, shows some districts, Muri, Titikaveka but there isn't even a scale indicator, how far is one neighborhood from the other?

He often subsitutes personal anecdotes for useful information. For instance he tells you that 3 collect calls he made to his office in California were expensive but does not really explain how the phones work in the Cooks (Kia Orana cards, etc.)

Or he writes "What Not to Take - Leave behind your hash pipe, methanthedamine, fruits, meats, cats, dogs and your nine-millimeter Uzi, for none of these are permitted." Was he padding? did he have to add some more pages? because that is just a useless waste of words.

Othertimes he relies on opinions of his fellow tourists (he admits as much himself) as in restaurant reviews.

I just feel that this was a lazy book. He went to the Cook's to write this guide and just didn't make much (or any effort) to do anything extra that would assist the traveler. He rode around on a scooter and saw some accomodations (he only lists those that have more than 4 units), if you use the Cook Island tourist Web site you can get more info and pictures.

He also describes the cross-island walk but on the Lonely Planet forum he admitted that he had not done the walk himself but only interviewed a guide. Yet he writes stuff like "The rest of us, after viewing the needle ..."

If this book is available for free somewhere, sure take a look.
He does describe taking a freighter out to Penrhyn, an interesting 4 page description that is not in Moon or LP.

I did glean one valuable thing from the book, under Courtesies and Appropriate dress he writes than one should always exchange pleasantries with a shopkeeper (Good morning, how are you?) before asking for whatever you want to purchase.

But this is not a real guidebook.

Sorry to disagree with one of the other reviewers, bu the COOK ISLANDS are NOT a "little known" island chain. I am sorry to say that the small island of Aitutaki has been over-built with INCREDIBLY expensive (for the poor service & mediocre food) resorts that charge 5 star prices (and more) and deliver 2 star service & food, pollute the fragile lagoon with OTWB (over-the-water-bungalows) that can cost $US 600+ per day. An nearby, off-shore tiny atoll (where one can go for a day snorkel picnic) is now over-run with tourists, an over-priced shack where one can stay for the night & a refreshment/food stand.

If you purchase David Stanley's TAHITI HANDBOOK you get maps, culture, history, religion, politics, flight & ferry schedules, reviews on food, dive shops, car rentals, excursions and lodging in all categories, on ALL of French Polynesia, the Cook Islands & Easter Island, all in the same book for a reasonable price. If this other reviewer had read the COOK ISLAND section in David's book he'd know that the Cooks are not a remote, untraveled island chain, but an island chain frequented by Kiwis & Ozzies who get MUCH better deals (on hotel room rates) by booking through their own local travel agents as opposed to US travel agents, and he'd also learn that sometimes, self-booking and negotiating with the smaller hotel's owners can produce a better rate, and a better experience, than relying on a US packager that wants to shove you into a pre-packaged plan that pays him/her the biggest commission. David's 25 years of traveling the South Pacific incognito makes his advice INVALUABLE. He also includes the feedback of readers, I know, I am one of them. Tahiti Handbook is more extensive and reliable than Papa Mike's or the unreliable (on price & room rates & maps) LONELY PLANET'S COOK ISLANDS.

Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook is a fun and informative resource for vacationers and business travelers seeking to take advantage of all thirteen occupied islands in pursuit of what the Cook Islands chain has to offer. From complete trip planning (whether luxury to budget style), to a complete inter-island flight schedule, 40 maps and pictures, coverage on popular activities on each island including diving, fishing, snorkeling, horseback riding, surfing, tours, cultural events and more, Papa Mike's Cook Islands Handbook excellent and recommended guide for trip planning.

Papa Mike's Cook Islands Hanbook is an exceptionally useful guide for the first time visitor to the Cook Islands. My wife and I traveled to the Cooks in July 2004, and loved it. Papa Mike's book helped us prepare every step of the way, from booking our accomodation in advance, bringing proper clothing, procedures at the airport, to very accurate reviews of local restaurants. The book details the many options for activities around the island, including the "not to be missed" Island Nights. Also included is a detail of all of the Rarotonga bus schedules, so you can quickly and inexpensively get around the island.

This book is worth every penny, and will save you tons on your trip. I give it my highest rating.

This book was fabulous. My wife and I were married in the Cooks and I found this book to be quite helpful and full of humor. As for map scale, the island is very small and you could almost throw a rock to the other side of the island. As Papa explains in the book the islanders are very nice and accommodating while working on what they claim is "coconut time".

My suggestion if on a trip to the Cooks, read Papa Mike's book and you will see for your self how easy the island was to navigate after reading this enjoyable masterpiece.

I have never been to the Cook Islands, but as I read Papa Mike's book, I felt as if I was in the middle of a trip there. He makes the reader feel life on the island as it is lived. It is very clear that he loves the people and their way of life. His stories and tips are warm with touches of humor, and yet very detailed so that the reader can easily visualize a trip to the Islands. I was impressed with the details of the accomodations or lack thereof on each island, and the details of activities and travel on each island. Mr. Hollywood has obviously spent some time living on the Islands, and after reading his book, I hope to do so, too.

Mike Hollywood's book is a refreshing alternative to the functional, yet sterile Lonely Planet guide to the Cook Islands. Hollywood's sense of humor, honest and unvarnished review of accommodations and restuarants, and his open and enthusiastic approach to the book is a welcome addition to the more traditional guide books currently available on this little known island chain.

Hollywood's book contains loads of useful contact information, several very useful inter-island flight schedules, a relatively complete description of various amenities and activities, and a straight-forward, yet thorough discussion of the various islands that make up this tiny nation. His descriptions and recommendations give the reader an insiders view of the place and its people that encourages readers to get off of the couch and make the trip themselves. I highly recommend this great little handbook, and can't wait to take it with me to the Cooks! Kia Orana and Thanks Mike!