Hot and Steamy (Rotorua)

Member Name: Pilotgavw

Product:	Rotorua
Date:	16/09/09 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Geothermally active

Disadvantages: smells a bit

As a former resident of New Zealand, I have visited Rotorua on several occasions and was never disapointed. I lived in Hamilton also known as 'The Tron' which is about 45 minutes drive from Rotorua. It is a fairly large town located in the central east part of the North Island of New Zealand on the edge of the large Lake Rotorua which has a high elevation above sea level as it was originally the crater of a volcano, and its this unique location which gives it is geothermal activity, making rotorua a very special place to visit.

Rotorua is full of areas with naturally bubbling hot steam pools throughout the town, it is these pools which give Rotorua its unique odour of sulphur or rotten eggs everywhere you go. At first it is very strong and off-putting, but you soon get use to it.

While there I visited the Thermal Wonderland which was fantastic! It is a large park filled with geothermal mud pools, streams and even entire lakes. It will take about 2 hours to walk through completely depending on how long you stay at each site.

There is also the mountainside Luge, which is a downhill dry bob-sleigh run which was very good fun. There are three different difficulty runs to choose from, but if your like me, its the hard run everytime.

There are several therapeutic spas found all over Rotorua for those of you who wish to be pampered for a bit where you basically immerse yourself in a naturally hot mud pool, take a dip in the Jacuzzi or hot swimming pools.

Overall, this is a very interesting place to visit, it was the first geothermally active place that I had ever been too and I found it an unforgettable experience and will visit there again in the future.

Summary: A Great place to visit