Covid 19 coronavirus Cook Islands travel bubble: Travel agent sees 4000% surge in searches 4 May, 2021 12:38 AM 4 minutes to read New Zealand's quarantine-free travel bubble with the Cook Islands will begin on May 17. Kiwis are already rushing to snap up holiday packages and flights to the Cook Islands after a much-anticipated travel bubble was officially announced. Travel group Flight Centre has recorded a huge surge of interest on its website overnight - while resorts in Rarotonga reporting the phones going "crazy" since the announcement. Although figures for bookings via Flight Centre would not be known until later, a spokeswoman confirmed the company had seen a massive jump on its site overnight.