Rotorua via Kiwi/lakes country & a visit to iconic Whakarewarewa
Description
This tour is perfect for people wanting a full day sightseeing our diverse landscape incl. Mt Maunganui. Marvel at beautiful beaches and multimillion dollar homes, before a 45 minute drive from the coast slowly ascending up the central plateau, through Kiwifruit plantations (we stop at an orchard so you can see these vines in full foilage/fruit) and typical NZ pastoral farmland to our furthest inland destination, Rotorua Rotorua 8 lakes, with a focus on the geothermal area of Whakarewarewa Maori village (est. late 1800's) Enjoy a 30 min concert emphasising the rich Maori culture with song, dance and stories, as well as a mesmerizing walk through their geothermally active wetland where you get close up to bubbling boiling hot springs and mud pools. . Take in the most popular sites of interest - Blue & Green lakes, view Mt Tarawera (erupted 1886) across the most gorgeous lake, walk through NZ native bush full of ferns and tall podocarps like an 1800's pioneer or Maori warrior.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Stop and talk about this beautiful area, we tell how that James Cook discovered in 1769
Driving through 25,000 acres of Te Puke kiwi orchards, we give you a comprehensive and interesting narrative on the development of this fruit in our country, a brief rundown of the techniques utilised in growing it and it's importance to our local economy, as well as we stop at kurts 12 acre orchard for a closer inspection. You'll be impressed, I assure you
We head to Rotorua via a beautifully scenic route with excellent examples of native fauna of this region great views of the Pacific Ocean as we head down from the elevated central Plateau
Entry is included into this historic world renowned bubbling geothermal village where local Maori still live today. You will be impressed by a storming 40 minute cultural performance where you will be entertained by the local Māori entertainment troupe with their natural gift for music and dance and a stomping good version of the Haka, a once seen, never forgotten war dance. The Tūhourangi Ngāti Wāhiao village people have a proud history of sharing their stories, song and dance spanning over a century, being the iwi (pronounced “eewee” tribe) that originally guide tourists at the Pink and White Terraces before it was buried in the Mt Tarawera eruption. With our special agreement with iwi (tribe) we can have a peek at the famous Pohutu and Prince of Wales Feathers geysers which put on a natural display of hot gushing groundwater heated by the geothermal activity beneath it. Another highlight is a 30 minute walk through their very geothermally active natural wetland zone
An elevated spot where you are welcome to take postcard like photos with the idyllic Lake Okareka in the foreground and its many stunning lakefront holiday homes and the once lively and active Mt Tarawera (presently dormant) in the background.
Optional to soak in these soothing mineral waters or a mud massage only found in Rotorua. This is in a wonderful setting, but we really do recommend this as a winter attraction as most of the 10 or so natural hot mineral pools are at or close to body temperature. You can choose to sub out the Whakarewarewa concert and Geothermal walk for this if you choose at no additional cost.
Stop and enjoy the beautiful gardens and the iconic old architecturally significant Rotorua Bathhouse. We encourage you to walk from one side of these gardens to another which is 100 yards so you can get a better experience here, then we pick you up on the other side. Early summer is best here for the full bloom of flowers.
We will select one of 3 fine cafes to stop for lunch, one of which you will have a fine vista of the lake and the large intricately carved meeting house (whare nui)
You will enter an prime example of New Zealand native forest, the comments from our past clients range from beautiful to awe inspiring. Abundant with tall podocarps, dozens of different fern varieties including Jurassic Park tree ferns(Actor Sam Neil is from NZ) and to your benefit no poisonous snakes or spiders or scary creepy craw lies or tigers or leeches, so walk through and embrace without a trace of fear. You also have the opportunity to take a 300 m hike into this spellbounding natural space. By all accounts, you will love this stop
Lake Tikitapu (Blue lake), and lake Rotokakahi (green lake), are two gems in the middle of a beautiful native forest. Blue lake is open to everybody and is a nice destination to spend a week-end swimming, boating, barbecuing etc. while the green lake is “tapu” (taboo, forbiden) due to some historical conflict between local tribes… Nice panoramic photo to do in the lookout between these to lakes. Be amazed at the beauty of these Lakes.
Take in the breath taking view of Mt Tarawera and discover the History of the 1886 eruption. Photo stop extraordinaire. We stop at a very good photo opportunity lookout to view this lake and mountain that has had a large influence on this regions history and landscape, and together with the lake offers a wonderful sight, one of the best on your tour. Mt Tarawera erupted in 1886 and buried the most touristic attraction at the time the Pink and White Terraces as well as the local village. We can see the volcano on the opposite site of the lake. Bring your camera! We may omit travelling to this lookout if time limits us due to early departure of your cruise ship
This is the last of our stops (we, hopefully will have time) before our 50 minute journey back to the ship. Here, if you are fit and able, we will descend a 60 step walkway, where at the bottom you will be invigorated as you stand just a metre away from a roaring grade 4 river that drains the large Rotorua and Rotoiti lakes out to the ocean some 40 km away….Enthralling and a great photo opp site
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
After you disembark from your vessel, walk north from your gangway along the wharf for 150/200 yards, then exit the Port controlled customs gate. Just 20 m on the other side of this gate we will be waiting on a grassy knoll besides a flagpoles. We will be holding, or near, a sign with your name on it, and wearing black Polo short sleeved shirts. Because this is a group tour, we ask our guests to respect two requests: Please be considered in your questions of the Tour Guide, he/she will appreciate well considered enquiries that the answers the we give (if we have them) will be appreciated by all the other travellers onboard. Also there is a maximum of 15 pax aboard our comfortable 20 seater coach. We attempt to never squeeze you in. We want our guests to really enjoy their day, and also request that guests spend less than 5 minutes per 30 minutes referring to their devices, so that can fully appreciate, and immerse themselves in the visual feast that we aspire to show you.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Reviews(71)
Toby was an excellent, informative guide who took us on an ambitious itinerary to many interesting destinations, maybe too many to reasonably visit in the allotted time. Several drive-byes and no chance to get something to eat detracted from the tour but the stop at the kiwi fruit farm and tour in Maori village were great.
Hi Amy, thank you for joining me on a tour of this diverse scenic part of NZ and your fair review. Yes, I tried to squeeze too much in on that day, apologies.
Very nice activity with our guide Thierry. We loved our day. The experience in Maui village with geothermal sources was an experience in itself
We had a lot of fun on this trip! Toby did his absolute best to show us everything! It was a foul and interesting day!! Thank you Toby
We really like that the group was small and felt more intimate. There was a lot of interesting information but was more of a conversation than a monologue that was reherse. We arrived to all the advertise location on time and had ample time to explore. The lunch time was on a location with multiple choices for all tastes. The experience felt genuine and curated to explore the area and it's essence is all about. We felt a deep connection to nature and culture.
This tour was by far better than we could have expected - amazing stops to see beaches, kiwi farm, Maori village, thermal pools at Rotorua and trips to gardens, redwood trees and lakes - absolutely amazing trip - perfect in every way and highly recommend- thanks to Thierry our fabulous guide!
Terrible from start to finish! Dilapidated van with no shocks, barely any AC and halfway through no AC. Toby the guide/driver shrugged his shoulders and said the coolant must have leaked out. It was a very hot day! Very underwhelming and did not live up to hype on site
Gosh this customer is a tough one. Yes, in fact I was made aware that the air con was not working in the back of the coach halfway through our day. The refrigerant had just been filled up at an air con specialist two weeks prior and I have just taken it back there yesterday, where they found that an o ring had collapsed and they have now replaced and refilled. When I was made aware that the air con was not working, I was apologetic, and advised the 8 clients on the 20 seater modern bus to open their individual windows which they did do. This vehicle is certainly not dilapidated with comfortable velour seats, clean and tidy, quiet (petrol engine) and the suspension is in top order having only done 38,000 miles . I truly think this is an unfair and imbalanced review, and I cannot discern from their elaborate over convoluted profile name who the actual client was.
Surprisingly, we had our driver Steve all to ourselves. So we could experience many highlights without stress.
Toby of Arrow Tour made our day just perfect. He is very knowledgeable and patiently find toilet stop for us. The places visit was memorable and his deep knowledge made it more special.
Thank you for your kind words and positive review. Did you depart on our Sunday March 9 excursion, because this platform doesn’t give your name ?
A wonderful way to learn about Maori culture, see the geothermal pools, a geyser and walk in the NZ rainforest! Also got to see a Kiwi farm and 3 of the lakes in the Rotoura region. Toby our guide was very informative and passionate about NZ!
Thank you Sudha for the homai te paki paki (accolade/raving review) we had a large group the day you travelled but with smart respectful people like you and your spouse aboard, it makes it a lot easier and satisfying for myself as a guide. Thank you again and safe travels home
Toby took us on the best tour of Rotorua! He offered so much info about the area and even took us off the beaten path for great experiences! A short hike through the beautiful rainforest, drove us to the best view areas, visited an incredible kiwi farm, and a highlight was the Maori geothermal springs and Maori cultural performance. It was a great day and I can't say enough about how much we enjoyed this tour! Great experience!
Thank you for your kind words Julia, it was a pleasure to host you, and yes, we did have an enjoyable day, even though it was a group tour of 7 couples. The reason I like this job
