Cook Islands holiday

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frankv

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#288798 24-Jul-2021 10:05

I thought people might be interested in my recent experiences travelling to Rarotonga (having abandoned plans to go to Aus).

Mask compliance seemed good on the aircraft both ways, except

1. What's the point of masks if you can take them off when you eat or drink?

2. One guy with a motorcycle bandana/mask thing which had 3 or 4 5mm holes over the mouth.

3. One woman with a home-made mask that didn't fit

4. As soon as people got off the plane, some took off their masks

Cook Islands has its own app CookSafe. They also have the inverse of what we have here... people carry QR cards and businesses have scanners (mostly repurposed phones) set up at the entrance. These are never used AFAICT. Outdoor markets don't have scanners or QR codes. Complacency rules. Plenty of signs around the place giving covid information.

Almost all visitors were Kiwis. One family of Aussies in a large room full of people.

Due to lack of jobs due to covid, *many* (a third?) Cook Islanders moved to NZ last year. This has caused problems with many resorts and tourist businesses not able to get enough staff to open fully, if at all... perhaps 40% occupancy? Quite a number of what appeared to be Fijians working there. Plane going there was not quite full, returning was full.

Duty-free in Raro is much cheaper (Jim Beam half the price) of Auckland.

Free Wifi on 777 going there. No Wifi on the 787 coming back to NZ. :(

Total ineptness at organising showing the All Blacks-Fiji game. :(

Great snorkelling... bring your own mask and snorkel due to covid.

shk292

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#2749050 24-Jul-2021 10:14

You could argue that with the CI bubble only open because we have no CT, what's the point of mandating masks at all?

Good to hear you had a nice holiday though, I'm sure the revenue you generated was very much appreciated.

gmball

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#2749051 24-Jul-2021 10:14

Who did you fly on to Rarotonga, I thought only Air nz were operating there, and Air nz not currently operating any 777 aircraft on passenger routes since prior to commencing the Raro bubble.

Perhaps you struck it lucky and actually travelled on the one and only 787 with Wifi?

old3eyes

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#2749073 24-Jul-2021 11:05

gmball:

Who did you fly on to Rarotonga, I thought only Air nz were operating there, and Air nz not currently operating any 777 aircraft on passenger routes since prior to commencing the Raro bubble.

Perhaps you struck it lucky and actually travelled on the one and only 787 with Wifi?

I went to Raro a couple of times pre 2020 and Air NZ used A320s.

Regards,

Old3eyes

frankv

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#2749724 26-Jul-2021 09:17

gmball:

Who did you fly on to Rarotonga, I thought only Air nz were operating there, and Air nz not currently operating any 777 aircraft on passenger routes since prior to commencing the Raro bubble.

Perhaps you struck it lucky and actually travelled on the one and only 787 with Wifi?

Yes Air NZ. And oops, yes, it was a 787.

Batman

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#2749786 26-Jul-2021 09:46

old3eyes:

I went to Raro a couple of times pre 2020 and Air NZ used A320s.

Same here but 777. Really put me off

wellygary

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#2749805 26-Jul-2021 10:00

frankv:

Cook Islands has its own app CookSafe. They also have the inverse of what we have here... people carry QR cards and businesses have scanners (mostly repurposed phones) set up at the entrance. These are never used AFAICT. Outdoor markets don't have scanners or QR codes. Complacency rules. Plenty of signs around the place giving covid information.

On the plus side thou,

10,931 First dose administered

9,578 Second dose administered

They have 85%+ of the target population fully vaccinated so far...

https://covid19.gov.ck/vaccination

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openmedia

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#2749821 26-Jul-2021 10:40

Batman:
old3eyes:

I went to Raro a couple of times pre 2020 and Air NZ used A320s.

Same here but 777. Really put me off

What was the issue with flying a 777?

We've been to the Cook Islands on 320s and 777s and I far preferred the 777

Generally known online as OpenMedia, now working for Red Hat APAC as a Technology Evangelist and Portfolio Architect. Still playing with MythTV and digital media on the side.

frankv

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#2749858 26-Jul-2021 11:24

wellygary:

10,931 First dose administered

9,578 Second dose administered

They have 85%+ of the target population fully vaccinated so far...

https://covid19.gov.ck/vaccination

Yes. They had a "vaccination day" for each small island, and basically got everyone who wanted a vaccination to go to a clinic that day and got it done. On Raro they had a couple of weeks. I noticed on Raro that there were a couple of covid-19 clinics that appeared to be still open, presumably to catch stragglers and new arrivals. Two or three (maybe more?) clinics for a population of 7,000 makes it very accessible.

Presumably when they feel it's safe enough they'll want to open their borders to Australia and other "infected" countries, which will make it risky for NZ to maintain the bubble with the Cook Islands.

That page is a couple of weeks old, BTW.

PolicyGuy

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#2749902 26-Jul-2021 13:12

openmedia:

What was the issue with flying a 777?
We've been to the Cook Islands on 320s and 777s and I far preferred the 777

Both the 777 and the 787 are awful narrow and squeezy in Economy - Premium economy is quite nice.
The problem is that the beancounters have made almost all airlines, including Air NZ, put in one more economy seat per row than Boeing designed them for. The 787 was designed for eight-abreast, gets nine, the 777 was designed for nine-abreast, gets ten: you get 17" seats and narrow aisles.

To add insult to injury, the 777 is an old design and is relatively very noisy - the 787 is noticeably quieter.

For short-range flights such as trans-Tasman, I'd much rather take an A320 with 18" seats than either Boeing, unless I can afford Premium Economy. For long-range Economy-class flights, I'll choose another airline with more comfortable seating, despite having been an Air NZ Frequent Flyer member for over twenty years. If I'm flying Premium or Business, it's Air NZ all the way :)

For Economy-class comfort, IMO the pecking order is

A380 by a country mile
A350
The very rare 8-abreast 787 (ANA only, I think)
B767 (rare these days) and A330/340 - most airlines run them 8-abreast
A320
B787
B777
B737
A330 9-abreast (only a couple of Low-cost airlines do this, it should be a criminal offence)

Just my $0.02 worth