Rotorua

Tudor Style Bathhouse from 1908

Rotorua is a city of geysers, mud pots, and hot water spas….the Yellowstone of New Zealand – with the Sulphur odors to prove it!  Steam can be seen coming out of holes in the curb on the way into the center of town. The City has been a spa resort since the late 1800s.  It is also the home of the largest concentration of Maori residents in the country. 

We spent some time in Government Gardens which contains the Tudor Style bathhouse built in the early 1900s.  Along the shores of Lake Rotorua, one inlet is known as Sulphur Point Wildlife refuge where the birds pick their way through the white milky Sulphur smelling steam.  The white of the inlet gives way to the blue of the lake at one point – reminding me of the meeting of the waters on the Amazon.

Our next stop was Te Puia in the Whakarewarewa thermal area just outside the town.  We visited the boiling mud pots and the famous geyser Pohutu – Big Splash as some call it. It erupts 20 times a day up to 100 feet in the area.

The site, like many in Rotorua, is a private enterprise business.  There are no government national parks or monuments preserving these natural resources.  The Maori run many of these business – similar to the Glow Worm Caves we visited a few days ago. Our hosts on the sheep and cattle farm explained that only Maori can be hired to be guides in the Caves – and we assume in many of the attractions Rotorua.

The weather was beautiful – another amazing day in New Zealand.