Rotorua tourist information

Rotorua is a district located on the southern shore of Lake Rotorua in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a population of 53,000 half of which are Maori.

The district is located 60 km south of Tauranga, 105 km south-east of Hamilton and 82 km north-east of Taupo.

Rotorua is well-known for the geothermal activity in the area. There are a number of geysers (notably the 20 m Pohutu geyser at Whakarewarewa) and hot mud pools located in the city, which owe their presence to the Rotorua caldera.

Rotorua is home to not only geothermal interests, but botanical gardens and some interesting historic architecture. Known as a spa town and major tourist resort for more than a century, many of the buildings hint at this history. The formal Government Gardens close to the lakeshore at the eastern end of the town are particularly worth of note.

Kuirau Park, to the west end of the central city, is also remarkable - hot bubbling mud pools dot the park, lending a surreal air to the setting.

Thermal activity is at the heart of much of Rotorua's tourist appeal. Geysers and bubbling mud-pools, hot thermal springs and even a village buried by a major volcanic eruption, Te Wairoa, are all located within easy reach of the city.

Another of Rotorua's attractions is the mountain biking, Whakarewarewa (also known as the "Redwoods") forest has been described as 'the disneyland of mountain biking' and has some of the best mountain bike trails in New Zealand. Rotorua has been chosen to host the 2006 UCI World Mountain Bike Championship, in August.

Rotorua was prominently featured in a music video by The Beastie Boys for their song Gratitude. Rotorua is also near many lakes, the number and quantity of which dwarf even the Lakes district in England. All these lakes are formed from huge volcanic activity which affected this region. The largest lake is Taupo which 45 minutes' drive from Rotorua. All these lakes are famous for their abundant stock of Rainbow Trout, a fish introduced for its sporting value. Unfortunately, many of the lakes have algal bloom problems in summer caused by excess nutrients from farming in the area, but this is being rectified.

Rotorua is commonly known amongst the locals as "Rotovegas" due the abundance of hotels and motels on Fenton Street which resembles "The Strip" of Las Vegas, but to non-locals as "Rottenrua" due to the rotting egg-like odour of the Hydrogen Sulphide gas produce by the prolific geothermal activity. The odour is most noticeable on cooler and rainy days,especially when there is low cloud, although most locals are immune to it and are usually unaware of its presence.

The especially pungent smell in the central-east 'Te Ngae' area is due to the dense sulphur deposits located next to the southern boundary of the Government Gardens, in the area known as 'Sulphur Point'.

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