Rotorua for those who like it hot

There is no hiding the fact that Rotorua smells, so the city gets right to the heart of the matter and calls itself Sulphur City. First impressions may be somewhat offensive, but very soon you won''t even notice it. In the meantime, you will be enjoying the great accommodation, restaurants, and attractions of this fun family place.

You should not go to Rotorua without experiencing the hissing geysers, plopping mud pools, or belching vents. There are some in the public gardens, on the golf course, and better still, at Te Whakarewarewa thermal valley at the edge of town. For a different experience, try the attractions in the Around Rotorua journal.

Quick Tips:

Rotorua is a tourist city, so it comes with all the pluses and minuses of such places worldwide. The pluses are a huge range of accommodation, good restaurants, and plenty of things to do. The minuses are higher-than-normal prices for some things, parking difficulties in peak periods, and a "we don''t know you, so you must be a tourist" attitude in some places. Just live with this.

The city has a large Maori population, so this is a good place to see and understand some of this culture. There are traditional earth-oven hangi meals and Maori concert parties, complete with the menacing-looking haka challenge, to visit. Don''t miss the Maori Arts and Craft Museum, with its fine artifacts, and the thermal village where Maori live and work.

Catch up too on European history. The original 1908 bathhouse is today the Museum of Art and History, while the Spanish deco Blue Baths House has been restored to its former glory and is now reopened.

Best Way To Get Around:

The central part of the city is small and suitable for walking, but a rental car is useful for visiting the Maori Arts and Craft Museum and the gondola/luge rides.

Lake Plaza is the largest hotel in Rotorua with arguably the best location. It is situated on the shores of Lake Rotorua, and some of the 250 rooms have good views of the lake and nearby thermal areas. We were booked to stay two nights but extended for a further night because we enjoyed the hotel and found plenty to do in the region.

Rotorua is only a small city, so walking is a good option. From the hotel we walked to the Polynesian Spa, the Government Gardens and Museum, and the city centre. The hotel is only two blocks away from the city centre and a large, new shopping complex. The spa complex is even closer.

The hotel sprawls over the site. Because it was not all built at the same time, the result is less than perfect. Our room was one of the furthest from reception, and we had to go outside while walking between buildings. This is the downside of a low-rise building, but it was great to be on ground level and to have the car close by the room.

The room we had was fairly standard for a four-star property. It was larger than average and the standard of fittings was good. (Get more from web site.)

One of the attractions for many people will be the daily Maori hangi and concert. This commences at 6:45pm in the Baycrest Room. Reservations are essential. We did not go to this because we had previously been to two such events on previous visits to New Zealand.

If you just want conventional food, the Lakes Restaurant is the ‘go’. This opens for breakfast 6:30-10am and from 6pm-10pm for dinner. Mallards Bar is located on the lake side of the foyer and is open from 4pm until late. 24-hour room service is also available.

There are the usual hotel features. Business services are available. A nice touch is the internet and email computer, which is available for personal use. There is a naturally heated pool and private spa pools. Therapeutic massage is available in the therapy room. Many guests will appreciate the guest laundries, which open from 7am to 11pm.

Lovely India proved to be a very pleasant surprise. From outside, the restaurant is unassuming, but once inside, the ambience, service, and food projected this into the "better-than-average" category. All staff were Indian, and this gave it an authentic feel. The fact that about half of the diners were also Indian (most were obviously locals) helped to further justify this perception.

The restaurant is fully licensed, but you can also bring your own bottle of wine (BYOW). The latter will generally save you money. We settled for a beer and a lassi, that wonderful Indian/Nepalese mix of yogurt, milk, and fruit. We sought help with the menu. There were 80 items grouped in various sections - entrees, side dishes, breads, rice, vegetarian delights, banquet, mains from Tandoor, and desserts. Each had a name and description, but we needed advice on any specialties.

After much debate, we settled on the Maharaja Banquet at NZ$25 per person, and what a great choice that was. The first dish was a mixed entrée platter for two. There were delicious samosa subtly flavoured with spices, chopped vegetables dipped in butter and deep-fried, chicken tikka, and lamb seekh kebabs, served with both tamarind and mint sauces.

Next came four curries. We had the choice of mild, medium, and hot. We chose two medium and two hot. The butter chicken was half-cooked in tandoor and then finished in a creamy tomato-flavoured sauce. The rogan josh (lamb) was diced lamb cooked in traditional North Indian style. The beef vindaloo was a spicy curry straight from the beaches of Goa and was probably my favourite. The navaraton korma consisted of vegetables cooked in a creamy gravy. All were accompanied by basmati rice, ice water, and delicious naan bread.

We enjoyed everything we had. There was certainly plenty of variety and we could not finish it all. The thought of dessert never crossed our minds. Looking back on it all now, this was probably the meal we enjoyed the most on the entire trip. Lovely India opens for dinner 7 days a week from 5:30pm and for lunch Tuesday-Saturday 11:30am – 2pm. It also does take-aways with free delivery in the city area.

This is the place to discover the essence of Rotorua; its people, culture and volcanic landscape. The museum takes you on a journey though history, exploring the rich cultural heritage of Maori and European in this region. The building is set in the peaceful Government Gardens, which were created in the 1890s. This ambitious undertaking transformed a scrub-covered geothermal area into an oasis of Edwardian charm.

The first attraction, of course, is the building. It is quite spectacular. The building was originally named the Bath House and opened in 1908. It was designed along the lines of European spas and represents the New Zealand Government’s first major investment in the tourism industry. In one part of the museum, this heritage is preserved. You can investigate the story of the Rotorua spa in the north-east wing of the building. You can walk into bathrooms as they once were and delve into bizarre treatments that were practiced over time.

The next major attraction is the Rotorua Stories Cinema. A film is screened every 20 minutes, and you will be introduced to the great stories of Rororua in this high impact film. Don’t miss this and enjoy the many sensations. The other area that particularly impressed me was the Tarawera Mountain Gallery. The disastrous eruption of the mountain in 1886 changed the course of history for the people who lived in its shadow. This exhibition dramatically traces the tumultuous events of that night.

There is plenty more including the Treasures of Te Arawa, an exhibition that tells the proud story of the people who settled here some 20 generations ago. Then there is the Bath House Café with coffee, drinks, and food as well as several other galleries which have a changing program of exhibits.

If your timing is right, I strongly recommend the free guided tours of the museum that leave from the foyer daily at 11am and 2pm. This service is included in the price of your admission. Your admission ticket also gives you entry to the historic Blue Baths and helps with their preservation. No cameras are allowed inside the museum.

Tel: (07) 349 4350, Fax: 647-349 2819, Email: rotoruamuseum@rdc.govt.nz

We have all be on gondola rides somewhere around the world, and this is not a world-beater. Each gondola seats four people. The trip is not particularly steep or particularly scenic compared to many. Nevertheless, it was very popular the day we visited. It’s probably what is at the top that is the big appeal here.

First is the restaurant. There is a good view over the city and Lake Rotorua, and the food is a ‘Best of New Zealand Seafood Buffet and Grill". We were reminded of the wonderful restaurant on Bob’s Peak in Queenstown, but the view in Rotorua cannot compete. The buffet offers chowder, prawns, oysters, salmon, mussels, carved roast, steak, chicken and lamb cutlets. If all this sounds too much, the food court and café has a selection of snacks and meals from traditional bakery items to fish and chips, burgers and pies.

Next is the luge. This is claimed to be a ‘world-first’ and it certainly is fun. The luge is a gravity ride on 3-wheel carts which give you full control over your direction and speed. We tried the 2-kilometre scenic track, which winds through Redwood trees and has pull-over rest areas at locations suitable for photographs. There were two other options for those seeking more thrills. At the end of the ride you return uphill via a double-seater chairlift, which, in my opinion, rivals the gondola for enjoyment.

There is also a selection of other rides. The Skyswing provides a thrilling ride of up to 150 kph. The Venturer Simulator allows you to simulate super bikes, flights, a roller coaster, and more. Sharp shooters can try their hand at the Slug Target Range using pump action rifles. Mountain bike rides are offered with a choice of two tracks, neither involving uphill pedalling. That’s my style of riding.

For those looking for simpler pleasures, there is a good walking track with a gradual climb and descent from lookouts providing good views over the region. If even this seems too strenuous, there is a helicopter for flights over nearby attractions, which offers the chance to land on Mokoia Island.

Skyline operates 7 days from 9am.
Tel: (07) 347 0027; Fax: 647-348 2163; Email: enquiries@skylineskyrides.co.nz

Because on a previous visit to Rotorua my wife had enjoyed this place so much, a visit here was mandatory. This time it proved somewhat of a disappointment, but that didn’t stop us from visiting every day we were in Rotorua.

The reason for the disappointment was the closure (perhaps temporarily) of the Radium and Priest hot springs, which was the section of the complex which my wife had previously enjoyed the most. This required us to reassess the options, and we selected to use one of seventeen private pools, which are rented out by the half-hour and have their own shower and carpeted changing area. The temperature of these pools can be regulated by the user and we found them to be ideal. Thirty minutes was about the right length of time. Each pool is large enough to accommodate six people.

Polynesian Spa is a privately owned mineral spring spa that has been developed on land where there has been spa development for 120 years. The spa offers bathing in public and private pools, a luxury spa, and a family spa. The water that fills most of the pools is a soft alkaline water which has a very soothing effect on the skin. The temperature is controlled by the addition of various amounts of town water. The Radium and Priest springs, however, are acidic and many users attest to the remedial effect these waters have on such ailments as muscular complaints, arthritis, and rheumatism.

Basic entry to the complex gives you access to the adults pool (38C or 100F) and normally the eight Radium and Priest pools. Because these later pools were closed, the large adult pool was crowded with people and was unattractive to us. Children are not allowed in this area, so the atmosphere is generally quiet. Children are catered for in a fresh water pool in another part of the complex and accompanying adults have two hot mineral pools to use while supervising the children. There is no access between these two areas of the complex.

The Lake Spa Retreat is the up-market part of the complex. Here, there are four shallow rock-pools of graduated temperature from 36-43 degrees Celsius. The pools overlook Sulphur Bay on Lake Rotorua and the mood changes dramatically from day to night. There is also an indoor spa for those wishing to bathe with a greater degree of privacy. The changing rooms contain security lockers, soap, shampoo, towels, and hairdryers. A relaxation lounge overlooks the lake and has a refreshment bar.

The Lake Spa retreat also offers a range of spa therapies. There are three wet massage rooms and five dry massage rooms. You can choose to have a massage done under water jets with coconut oil, using mud treatments, or try the hydrating and healing properties of Manuka honey. Therapies are available from 9am to 9pm daily and must be pre-booked.

Costs are: