Rotorua

Rotorua is known for geothermal activity. There are hot springs and steam and sulphury odors all over the place. Because of this, some of the main attractions are geothermal themed tourist attractions. Everything I read said go to Waiotapu Thermal Wonderland, but it was not open on Tuesday when we were traveling, so Waimangu Volcanic Valley seemed like the next best option.

From the entrance to the lake, it’s about a 4km walk. It’s possible to take a bus partway or walk one way and bus back if you don’t want to walk the entire round trip. It seemed like most people walked down and took the bus back, which is also what we did. The trail passes fun geologic features like Inferno Crater which is stunningly blue.

And spurting hot water from one of the many hot lakes and streams running through the area.

After visiting Waimangu Volcanic Valley, we drove into downtown Rotorua and walked around town. There’s a pleasant walk along the lake and a couple parks to wander through.

Kuirau Park has mud pools and hot springs along with a foot bath with pretty hot water.

We parked our campervan at Rotorua Thermal Holiday Park, which was large and had everything from campsites to cabins along with hot tubs.

Our final activity of the day, was the Redwoods Treewalk Nightlights. A number of tree varieties were planted in the early 1900’s when New Zealand was searching for faster growing trees. The redwood forest remains and it’s possible to hike through the forest during the day or do the treewalk during either the day or night. I decided it would be fun to see it in the dark, and although the redwoods are not as large as they are in California, they were beautiful trees and I would have enjoyed walking during the day also. It was a popular activity and the line was long before it even got dark.