Easter Holiday to Rotorua

We decided to head south to Rotorua for a four night camping trip during the Easter break. It worked out really well because I had just finished a set of night shifts and had five days off. The summer weather has extended well into the Autumn here.

I don't think they really have an Autumn or a spring as we know it in England. There is really only a summer and what they call a winter, but in reality it is more like an English Autumn.

We were warned that the roads would be really busy heading south for the Easter break and that we would need to allow loads of extra time for the trip. It is about 200km south from Pukekohe and should take anywhere between 2-3 hours to get there.

We left at three in the afternoon, which allowed us five hours to get there before dark. We ended up reaching the campsite by six. The journey was very pleasant and the roads were quiet. I spoke to a friend who had also made the trip and he thought it was busy! I guess that is the difference between here and the UK roads. I don't think they really know what a traffic jam is here!

A New Zealand Traffic Jam!

The town of Rotorua

Putting up the tent

Rotorua is situated pretty much in the middle of North island and there is a lot of volcanic activity in the area. It is famous for its hot pools and mud baths. Tarawera volcano overlooks the area and it had a violent eruption in 1886 which killed lots of people.

Boiling mud pool in the local park

Mt. Tarawera

And again form the other side

The town itself has a population of 65,000 people and is very clean and pretty. Rotorua lake is one of the main focal points and it is basically an old volcanic crater that has been flooded. The lake is very large and is about ten miles in diameter.

Hot pools at Lake Kairau

Rotorua is geared towards outdoor pursuits, therefore we were very interested to see what was on offer. There is the chance to do tandem parachuting, river rafting, power boating, tramping, mountain biking, adventure racing..........the list goes on! Needless to say, if you are an adrenalin junkie, then this is the place to visit.

We managed to visit the local Maori village, where we were shown the famous Haka by the locals. Quite intimidating when you see it close up!

Pronounce that one after a few beers!

Trying the Haka with the locals

Hmmmmm....been out in the sun for too long!

The ducks on Lake Rotorua

We also drove around Tarawera volcano and went up the Gondola to have a go at Luge racing.

The chair lift to get to the Luge

Charlie in the lead

Rotorua is a great place, although it does smell of rotten eggs! We will be heading back there again in the future. Our next trip will be down to Taupo in the Tongariro National park at the end of April.