The Cook Islands are an unspoiled cluster of Polynesian islands in the Pacific, which were named by the great explorer James Cook. This nation is comprised of fifteen islands scattered over 2.3 million sq kilometers of ocean. The group lies in the center of the Polynesian triangle, flanked to the west by Tonga and Samoa and to the east by Tahiti. The Cook Islands offer rugged beauty, old South Seas charm, and Polynesian people that are warm and friendly and proud of their islands.