Saturday 9th April 2011:
Koka Lagoon Cruises 2011 V12 Corporate Oe vaka champs
In its first time entering the event, Koka Lagoon Cruises took out the 2011 V12 corporate oe vaka event.
Made up of Koka crew and family including youngest paddlers on the day 13 year olds Tehana and
Chelsea Hunter, the Koka Lagoon Cruises team won all its races to go through to the finals taking
out the title in a super fun day on Muri lagoon.
http://www.cinews.co.ck/2011/April/Wed13/sports.php#1104111006
Saturday 26th March 2011 CI News
Koka celebrates birthday on lagoon
Rarotonga’s newest lagoon cruise operator Koka Lagoon Cruises celebrates its one-year anniversary this week.
Over the past year, the business has worked to establish itself as a reputable tour operator and to give the tourists that come aboard a set of invaluable holiday memories to take away with them.
Koka is a family-run business, small and intimate – giving tourists the feeling that they are getting an authentic local experience. Its owners, Conrad and Bobby Hunter, grew up in Muri and always dreamed of starting a business in their home village.
With backgrounds in the steel industry, Conrad and Bobby built the glass-bottom boat themselves – without plans, using construction tips they found on the internet. The end result was a 35-foot glass-bottom boat, adorned with local motifs, Tangaroa statues and natural roof thatching, which can host up to 40 people. The boat’s on-board sound system and lighting enable it to run evening specialty cruises, against the backdrop of a Muri sunset.
Koka Lagoon Cruises also makes an effort to give back to the environment – it donates two percent of all sales to a trust set up to protect and preserve the Muri lagoon. “This is important to us, being able to put something back. It’s building up to a nice little fund to put to good cause,” manager Avera Hunter said.
The business also supports all lagoon education efforts. Often it takes students on school trips, and last year it lent its boat and staff to the two-day Lagoon Day function.
Hunter says the Koka Lagoon Cruises staff plays a key role in making the business a success. The guides play ukuleles and keep guests entertained throughout, and paddler Papa Jack thrills tourists with an impressive coconut tree climbing act. “We aim to give visitors an all round taste of Rarotonga, with the lagoon life and also cultural aspect,” Hunter said.
Koka has no immediate plans to expand – it will carry on as a family-run business, continuing to offer visitors an intimate, enjoyable experience. “We’re here to make sure people have a good time, and I think we’re doing that,” Hunter said. “It’s been a great learning curve for us, getting into the tourism industry, but I think word of mouth from people who have been on our tour has been very good for us.”
Rachel Reeves
