Cook Islands

The Cook Islands are Polynesia at its most laid-back and visually stunning. Aitutaki's lagoon is the showpiece — an almost impossibly turquoise ring of water dotted with tiny motu islets, best seen from a lagoon cruise or the top of its one modest hill. Rarotonga, the main island, wraps a lush volcanic interior in a single coastal road, with drumming, dancing, and church choirs still central to daily life. It's a gentler, more intimate alternative to the region's better-known island chains.