South Pacific Strolling
We'll take you to the places you'd rather be. Off the beaten track or amongst the urban jungle, these destinations share the ethos behind our brand. Pack your bags and enjoy the journey. The third leg is through the lens of Josh, our Head of Digital, as he journey’s through the Cook Islands, a small group of islands nestled in the heart of the South Pacific Ocean. Photos by: @byronwaves
Q: Where have you been?
Josh: A small group of islands in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean called the Cook Islands. It doesn't get much more remote or more beautiful - perfect beaches, deep jungle, coral lagoons and the clearest turquoise water you have ever seen.
Q: What was your favourite spot?
Josh: Definitely one of the islands we did a day trip to called Aitutaki, which translates to “A Little Paradise”. It’s home to the world’s most beautiful lagoon and is the closest thing to heaven you will ever see.
Q: Was it smooth sailing or run into a couple mishaps?
Josh: Nah no mishaps at all, I’m too old for that shit! Smooth sailing all the way. It was a very chilled trip. Lots of relaxing, reading, snorkelling, swimming with turtles and paddle boarding. Oh and of course eating and drinking!
Q: What kit did you pack?
Josh: Not a lot to be honest. Because its so hot there I was pretty much lids off the whole time and just lived in the Badge Tech Shorts. They’re so comfortable and versatile you can literally go from snorkelling straight to dinner without taking them off. When we did go out to some nice restaurants the Lace Shirt, Vine Shirt and Lounge Tee were my go-to options along with my trusty Birkenstock Bostons.
Q: Best food you ate?
Josh: Man, you can’t go past the traditional local food. When we visited Aitutaki they cooked up an island barbecue lunch on the boat and it was insane! Fresh caught tuna steaks, a massive selection of local vegetables and fruit and of course ice cold beers!
Q: Any hidden gems or must visits for the readers?
Josh: Its not really hidden but I highly recommend eating at the Muri Night Markets in Rarotonga - a great way to curate your own dinner from the various food trucks, stalls and stands all while mixing and mingling with the locals. The night markets offer a variety of food from local BBQ meals, seafood, fresh drinking coconuts, chicken curries, wok-fried noodles, pizza, desserts and heaps more.
Q: How do you keep your style on point while on the road? Any tips?
Josh: Keep it simple. Take some footwear that goes with everything, like the Bikenstock Bostons and go fairly tonal. I wear a lot of black so usually just pack a bunch of all black fits and a couple of lighter coloured tops to break things up every now and then.
Q: What's your go-to travel playlist or podcast to keep you entertained during long journeys?
Josh: I like to tune out while I’m on holiday so I’ll usually save up a few episodes of the “We Mean Well” Podcast and have a laugh. Its basically just two washed up Tik-Tokers trying to make sense of the world while talking absolute nonsense. They are absolutely hilarious and just what I need to listen to while I’m chilling out with a beer under a coconut tree.
As far as music goes, I listen to a lot of Punk, Hardcore, and Metal. These songs were on high rotation on this trip:
Theory of Mind - Kublai Kahn
Blinding Faith - Knocked Loose
A Pale Light Lingers - Boundaries
SYNC.wav - Moodring
Hideaway - Youth Fountain
The Tower - KnucklePuck
Small Talk - The Story So Far
Q: Beach bum or city explorer? Which do you prefer?
Josh: That’s a tough one. I’ve had great trips doing both but if I had to choose I’d say beach bum. I like to relax when I go on holidays and being a beach bum allows me to just switch off and reset so my body and mind are refreshed for when I return home.
Q: Any secret travel habits that you have while travelling?
Josh: I like to do as much walking as possible when I travel for two reasons: a) It keeps me active and helps me avoid putting on too many extra kegs from the extra eating and drinking and b) I find you discover places you wouldn't normally discover if you were to just rely on online research.
Q: How important is to travel with good people?
Josh: It's super important. It can 100% make or break a trip. We traveled with my wife’s family to celebrate a few big milestones and it was amazing. I got to spend some quality time with my niece and get to know my two brother-in-laws partners, who I don’t get to see too often. We all get along well and everyone is pretty laid back which makes planning things a lot easier.
Q: Any spots in the Cook Islands that exceeded your expectations?
Josh: Aitutaki for sure. I had pretty high expectations heading there as everyone who’s been says how incredible it is and they’re not wrong. It was easily one of the best days of my life.
Q: Where are you heading next?
Josh: Ha ha, probs no where for a while. In the last 12 months I’ve been to Bali 3 times, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia and now the Cook Islands so I should probably let someone else in the team have a holiday. But when I do travel next it’ll probably be to Japan as I’m yet to visit there.
