Rotorua is a haven of fun-filled activities and there is so much to do here. The area lies within the Taupo Volcanic Zone, a highly active, young volcanic area. This makes it famous for its geothermal sights including geysers, bubbling mud pools, and hot springs. In this Rotorua itinerary, I will take you through how to spend 2 days here and take full advantage of everything Rotorua has to offer.
Camping spots:
The app Campermate is really useful to find camping spots, it is free and easy to use. There are only 4 free campsites in the region which all fill up very quickly, especially in summer. Rotorua is actually the only time while in the North Island that I paid for a campsite!
We paid $10 per adult to stay at the Lake Okaro campsite which is located a 20 minute drive outside of central Rotorua. We had tried the Hamurana Reserve free spot as we drove down from Matamata but it was closed, so this was our best option. There are 2 long drop toilets on site, and access to the walking track around the lake which was lovely. It was a great campsite and we chose to stay there again for our second night too.
Day 1:
Visit Kairua geothermal park
Your first taste of geothermal activity! Kairua Park is a 25 minute drive from Okaro campsite and is located in central Rotorua. This makes it a great place to start the day if you needed to go grocery shopping or grab a coffee.
If you visit the park on a Saturday then a local farmers market is running, with lots of food vendors open from 6am-1pm it would be a great place for some breakfast or lunch.
There is a large car park with a toilet and Kairua Park is actually New Zealand’s only free geothermal public park! There are several walk ways which lead you through bubbling mud pools, hot springs and the crater lake. Beware, the sulphur smell is very strong here, I walked through post of it holding my breath!
Stroll through the Government Gardens:
From Kairua Park, the Government Gardens is only a 16 minute walk (or 4 minute drive) away. A walk through this beautiful public gardens shows you perfectly-manicured flower beds, Māori sculptures, geothermal pools and much more.
The local Māori tribe gifted 50 acres of land, including the Government Gardens, to the Crown in 1883. In 1898, it was turned into an area where the thermal waters could be used as a health spar. The Tudor-style bath house opened in 1908, but is currently closed for viewing. You can learn more about the history of the gardens here. We had a late lunch sitting in the gardens which was lovely.
Explore the Redwood Tree Forest
In the afternoon we visited the Redwood Tree forest, which is only a 9-minute drive from the Government Gardens. It spans 5,600 hectares and has a huge variety of walking and cycling tracks. We wandered through the giant Californian Coast Redwoods for well over an hour and it was truly breathtaking.
If you wanted to be even closer to the Redwoods, then you could pay to do the award-winning treetop walk. It is 700 metres long, spans 28 suspension bridges and 27 platforms, and takes about 40 minutes to complete. The walkway ranges in height from 9 to 20 metres, and gives you a unique perspective of the forest below and the treetops above. The walk costs $42 per adult and $26 per child, with deals for families.
Personally, my budget could not justify doing this activity as well as Wai-o-Tapu Thermal Wonderland, so I decided to just do the free walk along the ground, but it did look really fun!
There is also a visitor centre with a gift shop on site, as well as a few small food stalls with hot dogs and ice creams.
Evening:
In the late-afternoon we headed back to our campsite, and did the 40 minute walk round Lake Okaro. We were also treated to a spectacular sunset to end a jam-packed day.
Day 2:
Visit Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland
This was the absolute highlight of our time in Rotorua. The park is open 7 days a week from 8:30am – 4:30pm, with last entries at 3pm. It is a cashless site and you can either pre-book online or pay at the visitor centre when you arrive. The area is part of a 18 kilometre square geothermal zone in the northern edge of the Reporoa Caldera (a collapsed volcanic crater). It was formed 230,000 years ago within the Taupo Volcanic Zone.
Lady Knox Geyser:
It is certainly best to go in the morning so you can catch the Lady Knox Geyser which is presented daily at 10:15am. A geyser is a rare type of hot spring that intermittently ejects water and steam into the air. The team at Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland set it off by pouring soap into it, which reduces the water surface tension and triggers the eruption.
The people presenting are super friendly and informative and the geyser was very interesting to watch. It is worth getting there around 9:45am so you can park, buy tickets if necessary, and then get a good viewing spot as it does get really busy.
The geyser is in a separate part of the park with a different car park so after the presentation is over you then need to drive to the main park. You can buy tickets at the geyser and then just walk straight in to the main park. We spent around 2 hours there, marvelling at bubbling mud pools and hot springs. Our favourite parts were the vibrant Champagne Pools and lurid green Devil’s bath.
This was such a great morning, and I learnt a lot about geothermal activity and it is just incredible. There is a gift shop and cafe on the way out so you can get lunch here if you want to. I chose to drive to the car park of the Rainbow Mountain and had a picnic there before the next activity.
Walk the Crater Lakes track
The car park is only a 6 minute drive from Wai-o-Tapu thermal wonderland. The walk to the Crater Lake is an easy 1 kilometre and took us 12 minutes each way. We were the only people at the lookout so could properly admire the view. The water is so blue it doesn’t look real.
Swim in Kerosene Creek
It is a 12-minute drive to the last activity of the day. The track down to the car park for the creek is full of potholes and throws you around a bit so be warned! From there it is about a 10 minute walk along the stream down to the waterfall and swimming area. The stream is perfectly safe to swim in, but keep your head above water to avoid Naegleria Fowleri (a rare, sometimes fatal, brain-eating amoeba present in warm freshwater) – nice!
The water is an unappetising brown colour and reaches between 35°C and 38°C (95°F and 100°F). Stepping into the water felt strange, as I’m so used to streams being icy cold. Instead, this one felt more like a warm bath. It was amazing to experience a naturally heated stream, although next time I think I’ll stick to the cold ones!
Thank you so much for reading this Rotorua Itinerary, I hope it was useful.
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Below are some of my other posts, have a look:
The Ultimate Wanaka Guide: Top 10 things to do
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10 things to do in The Catlins (Complete Travel Guide)
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