Rotorua Respite

Our next stop was on the interior of the North Island at Rotorua. This is the most active geothermal area in New Zealand and the heart of the Maori tribal culture.

We went to Te Puia to see the geysers which erupt up to 25 times a day and shoot over 60 feet in the air. The Te Whakarewarewatangaoteopetauaawahiao site includes boiling hot springs, bubbling mud pools, and live Kiwi birds. Later in the evening we experienced a Maori ritual session and had a traditional Maori meal.

While in Rotorua we stopped by the remaining Maori village area to learn more about the history. We also went to the museum which is located in the picturesque Great South Seas Spa estate, a world-famous bath house for natural healing during the early 1900s.

Here are a whole bunch more pics from Rotorua.