Cook Islands offers great opportunities for deep-sea game fishing as well as saltwater fly and light tackle sports fishing. According to some, this is the world's best kept secret! The two main areas in the waters around the main island of Rarotonga and Aitutaki.
If you visit Cook Islands from July to October, there is also the added bonus of possibly seeing humpback whales which often come very close to Rarotonga's shoreline on their migration route north from the Antarctic.
The fishing grounds are easily accessible from both islands ... once out of the harbour the fishing begins. Big fish of many species are abundant, including wahoo, barracuda. dolphin fish, yellowfin and skipjack tuna, sailfish and marlin. The Cook Island record for marlin is 616 lb (280 kg).
Aitutaki's magnificent lagoon (12,500 acres) is particularly suitable for fly, lures or bait for world class bonefish, trevally, cod, snapper and other reef fish. It holds the world all-tackle record for Hump Head Maori Wrasse, set in October 1989.
Both Rarotonga and Aitutaki have game fishing clubs at which visitors are made very welcome. The clubs are affiliated to the International Game Fishing Association.
There are a number of fishing trip operators, who cater for both novices and experienced anglers. The charter boats are fully equipped with up-to-date safety gear and can handle between four and six lines. Rarotonga has two fully equipped game fishing cruisers for charter as well as smaller boats.
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