Tag Archives: Rotorua

Fabled Terraces the Birthplace of NZ Tourism

Fabled Terraces the Birthplace of NZ Tourism

“Although New Zealand’s Pink and White Terraces were destroyed in a volcanic eruption in 1886, travellers can still explore this bubbling, boiling landscape today,” Dani Wright reports for the BBC in a series called,…

Emma Rigby First New Zealander to Win UK Award

Emma Rigby First New Zealander to Win UK Award

Rotorua woman Emma Rigby, 41, has become the first ever New Zealander to receive the British Citizens Award, which she was presented with at the Palace of Westminster in London last week, Stuff reports. The award…

Maori Hāngi in Rotorua One of World’s Top Experiences

Maori Hāngi in Rotorua One of World’s Top Experiences

A Maori Hāngi in Rotorua has been recognized as one of the world’s best experiences in TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards for Experiences. Travel Daily News reports. “Experiences are often the highlight…

Spectacular Sinkhole Opens Up In New Zealand

Spectacular Sinkhole Opens Up In New Zealand

“A spectacular sinkhole the length of two football fields and the depth of a six-story building has opened up on a New Zealand farm” near the North Island town of Rotorua, writes Guy Birchall in…

Rotorua the Southern Hemisphere’s Yellowstone

Rotorua the Southern Hemisphere’s Yellowstone

“The Rotorua region, one of the world’s most geothermally active areas, is the Southern Hemisphere’s take on Yellowstone – minus bison, bears and backed-up crowds,” journalist M.L. Lyke writes for The Washington Post. “Gases and…

Rotorua a New York Times 2018 Must-Visit Place

Rotorua a New York Times 2018 Must-Visit Place

“Come for the mud baths, stay for the beauty,” the New York Times says of Rotorua in its annual ‘52 Places to Go in 2018’ list. Rotorua is included in the annual list alongside New…

Alluring Scenic Spots All Over the Place

Alluring Scenic Spots All Over the Place

“New Zealand’s North Island stands up to its southern sister with its own unique attractions,” Tay Suan Chiang writes for Singapore’s The Business Times. “For adventure-seekers, the South Island lures with many adrenaline-pumping opportunities to…

Power of Nature at Wai-O-Tapu Geothermal Park

Power of Nature at Wai-O-Tapu Geothermal Park

“A visit to the sacred hot springs of the Wai-O-Tapu Geothermal Park will make you feel like you are in an entirely different world,” writes Anoop Menon in an article…

Four Ways to Discover the Wild Side of Middle Earth

Four Ways to Discover the Wild Side of Middle Earth

“Long before director Peter Jackson selected his home country as the filming location for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogy, New Zealand was known for its raw wild beauty,” writes Debbie…

New Zealand’s Bronze Māori Storehouse Destined For UN

New Zealand’s Bronze Māori Storehouse Destined For UN

“A significant cultural gift from Aotearoa New Zealand to the United Nations is a step closer with the unveiling of a bronze whatarangi (storehouse) at Te Puia New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute…

Rotorua: A Backpacker’s Playground

Rotorua: A Backpacker’s Playground

If you are an adventure freak, Rotorua on New Zealand’s North Island should be at the top of your wish list, as reported in an article in The Indian Express. Rotorua is…

Masking Tape Saves Endangered Kiwi

Masking Tape Saves Endangered Kiwi

“Using nothing but tape, a fragment of shell and MacGyver-like ingenuity, nature park worker Claire Travers patched up a badly damaged egg sufficiently for the baby kiwi to survive,” as reported in an article…

Rotorua: North Island Adventure Capital

Rotorua: North Island Adventure Capital

Rotorua on New Zealand’s North Island has “re-invented itself as the adventure capital of the North Island,” writes Sandra Smedhall for CNN. Its “unique combination of forests, lakes, geothermal activity and Maori culture…

What to Do in New Zealand

What to Do in New Zealand

21-year-old Taylor Gleason has travelled to 65 countries, “documenting it all — in classic millennial fashion — on an Instagram account that has amassed an impressive 65,800 followers,” writes Brittany Kriegstein in…

Nine Wonders of New Zealand

Nine Wonders of New Zealand

“With natural splendours that include stunning marine wildlife and geothermal springs, to culinary adventures taking in cutting-edge restaurants and tours of award-winning vineyards, New Zealand is a country that knows how to amaze the…

Must-Visit Destinations in New Zealand

Must-Visit Destinations in New Zealand

It is New Zealand’s glorious, spectacular and diverse scenery that has long inspired many travelers to visit the country. In an article for Living + Nomads Hai Chuyen reveals the 10 most…

Butcher’s Bangers Win Gold in UK

Butcher’s Bangers Win Gold in UK

Originally a butcher in Rotorua, Karl Jelley has set up shop in the British town of Harpenden and is winning accolades for his sausages, and despite offering judges an over-sizzled sausage in a recent…

NZ Is One of The Places to Feel Like a Kid Again

NZ Is One of The Places to Feel Like a Kid Again

Rotorua and Queenstown are featured in a list of holiday destinations where you can feel like a big kid again. Rotorua, “the birthplace of Zorbing has plenty of other ludicrously fun things to do aside…

Getting into Character with Cliff Curtis

Getting into Character with Cliff Curtis

Cliff Curtis wasn’t the first choice to play Genesis Potini, admits Dark Horse director James Napier Robertson, who was in Washington recently to promote the film to US audiences. Robertson says he never even considered…

Crankworx Rotorua Slopestyle Finals

Crankworx Rotorua Slopestyle Finals

Step into Brett Rheeder’s shoes and experience his final run through of the 2016 Crankworx Rotorua Slopestyle Finals in New Zealand. Crankworx has pushed the boundaries of mountain biking by creating a…

Actor Manu Bennett Returns to TV Roots

Actor Manu Bennett Returns to TV Roots

Rotorua-born film and television star Manu Bennett, 46, one of the big drawcards at the recent 2016 Supanova Pop Culture Expo, cut his teeth as an actor on the Gold Coast back in 1993 as…

One Man. One Wheel. One Epic Trip Across NZ.

One Man. One Wheel. One Epic Trip Across NZ.

Take a look at 100% Pure NZ’s video on New Zealand’s top Freeride mountain biker Conor MacFarlane as he pulls a ‘wheelie’ through Queenstown’s stunning mountain vistas, Christchurch’s urban…

Discovering Maori Culture With GoPro HD

Discovering Maori Culture With GoPro HD

Rodrigo’s HDTV takes his GoPro HD around New Zealand to discover the amazing sights and see what the Maori culture is all about. Follow Rodrigo through Auckland, Piha, Rotorua,…

Iconic New Zealand Lodge Introduces ‘Estate to Plate’ Culinary Safari

Iconic New Zealand Lodge Introduces ‘Estate to Plate’ Culinary Safari

Rotorua’s iconic wilderness luxury lodge Treetops Estate is promoting a new premium food experience styled as ‘The Estate to Plate Safari’, as reported in an article on Robb Report. The safari begins with…

Rotorua: Hot Pools to Hangis

Rotorua: Hot Pools to Hangis

See what amazing experiences Rotorua has to offer with whitewater rafting, rolling down a hill in an inflatable ball at Ogo, soaking it up in a natural hot pool,…

This is Piki: Behind the scenes to new Māori drama series

This is Piki: Behind the scenes to new Māori drama series

Take a look at s new Māori drama series ‘This is Piki’ currently being filmed in Rotorua. Kereama Wright went behind the scenes to ‘This is Piki’ and met…

Indiana Jones in Real Life!

Indiana Jones in Real Life!

devinsupertramp have a bit of fun at the Zorb in Rotorua as they recreate an Indiana Jones scene. Have a bit of fun during this summer with Zorb! Filmed…

New Zealand Geothermal Attractions

New Zealand Geothermal Attractions

Take a look at a video guide by My Destination New Zealand to the very best geothermal attractions in New Zealand. The visits include White Island, Tongariro National Park…

Feel the Heat in New Zealand’s Healing Heartland

Feel the Heat in New Zealand’s Healing Heartland

“Just follow your nose and it will get you faster than any GPS can to Hell’s Gate, the most active geothermal park in Rotorua, which earned its memorable moniker from George Bernard…

Living A Kiwi Life – Ep.33 – Zorb

Living A Kiwi Life – Ep.33 – Zorb

Deciding that they wanted some more fun, the couple, and a few of their friends decided to take on the mighty Zorb when they traveled to Rotorua.

Living a Kiwi Life – Ep.24 – Tarawera Trail Hot Water Beach

Living a Kiwi Life – Ep.24 – Tarawera Trail Hot Water Beach

This time the couple took on the Tarawera Trail which is a beautiful 4-5 hour trail around Hot Water Beach just outside of Rotorua. While the walk was a…

Portrayal of Genesis Earns Cliff Curtis Best Actor Accolades

Portrayal of Genesis Earns Cliff Curtis Best Actor Accolades

Cliff Curtis has won best actor at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards for his portrayal of Genesis Potini in The Dark Horse, ahead of veteran Australian actor David Gulpilil, who won the prize…

Maori Culture Experience in New Zealand

Maori Culture Experience in New Zealand

Rotorua is recognized as the Maori cultural centre of New Zealand, and there are many reasons to visit, Mike Watt explains for the Epoch Times. “For well over 100 years an infusion of culture has…

BBC Announces Cop Drama “Bay of Plenty”

BBC Announces Cop Drama “Bay of Plenty”

Two female detectives will be the lead characters in a new BBC drama set in Rotorua. Luther creator Neil Cross will return to BBC as the creator of the drama, provisionally titled Bay of Plenty. The show will focus on…

Living a Kiwi Life – Episode 9: Skyline Luge

Living a Kiwi Life – Episode 9: Skyline Luge

In this episode, the couple race down the Skyline Luge track in Rotorua and Queenstown. Living a Kiwi Life is a series of youtube videos about a Canadian couple…

Living a Kiwi Life – Episode 8: Rotorua Hot Pools, Mud Pools and Thermal Activity

Living a Kiwi Life – Episode 8: Rotorua Hot Pools, Mud Pools and Thermal Activity

In this episode, the couple visit the thermal activity around Rotorua, New Zealand including The Living Thermal Village, the Wiaotapu mud pools and the Waikite Valley Thermal Hot Pools. ….

Kiwi Completes 40km Scottish Loch Swim

Kiwi Completes 40km Scottish Loch Swim

David Dawson has become the first New Zealander to swim solo the length of Loch Lomond in Scotland, the largest inland stretch of water in Great Britain. The ex-pat did the swim as…

Telling the Story of People Connected to the Land

Telling the Story of People Connected to the Land

While taking in the sights of New Zealand’s “Maori heartland” Rotorua, the Toronto Sun’s Ian Robertson stops in at Te Puia: New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute in the Whakarewarewa Geothermal…

Exceptional Mountain Biking Trails Abound

Exceptional Mountain Biking Trails Abound

New Zealand “boasts exceptional mountain biking” according to Men’s Journal, which includes a feature on our best trails, saying that local “fat tyre offerings are too often overlooked by adventure-seekers rushing toward the beach…

Much More than a Film Set

Much More than a Film Set

“There’s so much to this beachy, mountainous, rugby-enthused nation ,” Laura Morrison writes for CNN Travel. Morrison suggests ten other reasons why New Zealand is worth a visit, including for the coffee, for…

New Zealand’s Yellowstone

New Zealand’s Yellowstone

“When I read about Rotorua’s Lady Knox Geyser that erupts at 10:15 every morning, I knew this was something I wouldn’t see in Yellowstone,” Pat Bellinghausen writes for the Missoulian. “While Lady Knox erupts…

24 Hours In Rotovegas

24 Hours In Rotovegas

Rotorua set itself up as a tourist destination in the 1800s; its pink-and-white terraces became New Zealand’s first attraction with people having to pass through sleepy Rotorua to reach them. “Today, Rotorua receives 3.2…

Kawa Kawa Infused

Kawa Kawa Infused

Fine-dining Mokoia Restaurant at Rotorua’s award-winning Wai Ora Spa is reviewed by Australia’s favourite food blogger, Not Quite Nigella for Business Spectator. She begins with rewana, served with whipped garlic butter and a mango and…

Underworld Holistics

Underworld Holistics

Rotorua’s Tikitere looks so much like a trip to the underworld that when Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw set his eyes on the area he immediately dubbed it “Hellsgate”. “It is said that Shaw,…

Planning Christmas Capers

Planning Christmas Capers

Now living in Rotorua, Canadian Jill Campbell, from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, is looking for other Capers so they can to get together for a céilidh or a drink at the pub over Christmas….

Jumping Back On Court

Jumping Back On Court

Rotorua-born basketball player Taki Te Koi plays as a senior for California’s Dominican University women’s team and after a torn ligament injury “is ready to put it all out on the court again in…

Geothermal Goodness

Geothermal Goodness

“When I first see Shane Beattie engulfed in clouds of steam, sweat running in rivulets from beneath his white chef’s cap,” Wanda Hennig writes in an article for South Africa’s Independent Online, “he looks…

Jango Fett Has a Ball

Jango Fett Has a Ball

Actor Temuera Morrison surprised Rotorua high school students recently when he made an appearance at their Star Wars-themed ball. According to the New Zealand Herald Morrison — who played bounty hunter Jango Fett in…

Countryside in Collage

Countryside in Collage

Cruising through New Zealand, marvelling at the breathtaking natural environments that define this country, Savannah artist Laura Adams returned to the US and had an “explosion of creativity”. “I worked non-stop,” Adams said. “It…

Republic of Waiver Forms

Republic of Waiver Forms

“It’s perfectly normal to jump off buildings, planes, canyons and bridges in New Zealand,” writes the Globe and Mail’s Robin Esrock. “No other country compels visitors — of all ages — to push their…

German for Float

German for Float

“With its eagerness for wacky rides and a steady stream of adventure-seeking human guinea pigs, New Zealand was the obvious location” for the 2m monorail Swheeb track, writes the Financial Times’ Tarquin Cooper. “The…

Steamy sightseeing

Steamy sightseeing

Rotorua’s “Buried Village is a museum where you can walk around the excavations and see a Victorian gentleman’s hat and Sunday best crockery preserved in mud as perfectly as were the artefacts from ancient…

New face of Milky Bar

New face of Milky Bar

Hinetaapora Short, 8, from Rotorua is the world’s first female Milky Bar Kid, beating more than 15 entries in a nation-wide search scoring the highest percentage of more than 11, total votes received. Three…

FBI role for Curtis

FBI role for Curtis

Actor Cliff Curtis, 42, takes on the role of a top forensic consultant for the FBI in the ABC Dana Delany-led midseason drama Body of Proof. Rotorua-born Curtis — who also appeared as flight…

Chunder Champs

Chunder Champs

Rotorua was the host of this year’s Singlespeed World Championships (SSWC) held over Labour Weekend with some 9 competitors clad in fancy dress riding mountain bikes over the 4km course with the added bonus…

Back in the Saddle

Back in the Saddle

Michael Walker, 26, has returned to the race course after a life-threatening pig-shooting accident resulted in the Rotorua-born jockey suffering a serious head injury when he fell 7m down a bluff in 28. “As…