Jean Batten of Rotorua
by allikat
I admit, I hadn't heard of Jean Batten until fairly recently, and maybe you haven't either. Well, Auckland International Airport is named after her, and she was born in Rotorua in 1909.
Jean Batten was the first woman to fly solo from England to New Zealand, which is about as far as you can fly without coming back on yourself! The tiny Percival Gull plane she flew in (which honestly doesn't look big enough!!!) now hangs suspended from the International terminal at the airport. She made this epic flight in 1934 and set a new world record which held for a further 44 years. She died in obscurity, in Majorca in 1982, and was buried in a paupers communal grave. New Zealand and the rest of the world didn't learn of her death for another 5 years.
This picture shows leafy Jean Batten Square, Rotorua's memorial to her, set behind the tourist information building.
Waitomo Caves
by b1bob
What sets these apart from others is the presence of so-called glow worms. I don't believe in glow worms. I believe they are really thousands of points of light at the end of a long, narrow stick (like they sell at Disneyland). In 1991, George Bush the elder was president. Therefore, all I could think about in the silent trip by boat through the caves was his "Thousand Points of Light" speech.
Buried Village
by DONBURGESS
This was a very intresting place to visit, to learn what had happend to the village before and after the eruption of the volcano.
Violent and unexpected, the erution of the Tarawera volcano, during the early hours June 10th 1886, was New Zealands gratest natural disaster.
For more then four hours, rocks, ash and mud bombarded the village of Te Wairoa. The eruption destroyed the eighth wonder of the world - The Pink and White Terraces, and buried the staging post for travellers to the Terraces.
Very moving experince and well worth it.
Boiling land!
by BurgerQueen
Te Puia is one of the most popular geothermal parks in central NZ north island.
Rotorua is sourrounded by different parks like Te Puia, which makes it hard to decide which one to choose!
After a stop at the tourist board and hundreds of leaflets, we chose Te Puia to be sure to see geysers and kiwis (the park i also includes a kiwi house) and I must admit that we were satisfied with our choice.
Te Puia is very close to Rotorua city centre (the steam coming from geysers is visible from everywhere) and offers a comfortable car parking.
The entrance costs 40NZ$ and you can also buy tickets from the tourist board to save 5NZ$ and avoid queues (that we actually did not find). The ticket includes a guided tour of the park. Guides are Maori and provided us with interesting information on the Maori culture and knowledge of their land. The park is actually the "backyard" of a Maori village and they know it cm by cm. Beside the geysers (the guide will take you there a few minutes before they activate) and kiwis, the park offers some mud pools, boiling streams and little lakes, craters, Maori cultural performances and the recostruction of an original Maori village.
It is possible to stroll around the park without guide, the entrance ticket comes with a park map.
a MUST in Rotorua!!
by BurgerQueen
You HAVE TO try zorbing while in Rotorua!
Just think there are only 2 places in the World where you can do it: Rotorua and the Smoky Mountains in the USA and it would be absolutely a shame not having a go!
Zorbing means rolling down a slope inside a plastic ball, with or without water (if the weather is hot enough, I definitely suggest the water one, it is much more amusing!). A van takes you up the slope, and all you have to do is jump into the ball and go down!
The Rotorua site offers 2 traks, a straight trank and one with bends... try both!
Unfortunately, zorbing is quite expensive (40NZ$ per ride) and we cannot spend all the day there :-(
Geyser watching :)
Big ram at the entrance
Champagne pools = steamy
The coolest flavor!
