Rotorua Activities

Explore Rotorua 

Rotorua, a town set on its namesake lake on New Zealand's North Island, is renowned for its geothermal activity and Maori culture. In Te Puia’s Whakarewarewa Valley, there are bubbling mud pools and the 30m-tall Pohutu Geyser, which erupts many times daily. It’s also home to a living Maori village and the New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute, with traditional wood carving and weaving schools.  However, there’s more to Rotorua than its culture:

Check out The Backpacker Group to see what deals you can get with many activities in the region.   

The History Of Rotorua

Rotorua is unusual among New Zealand cities in being neither a port nor originally a farm service centre. Rotorua was built in the early 1880s by the government, as a town for tourists visiting the ‘hot lakes’. It was laid out on the Pukeroa–Oruawhata block, land leased from Ngāti Whakaue near the Māori lakeside settlement of Ōhinemutu. This arrangement with the tribal owners broke down, and the government became the sole owner in 1888. The arrival of the railway in 1894 spurred growth. The government developed a European-style spa with ornamental gardens, and bathing and therapeutic facilities. After the Second World War, growth was also fostered by forest, farm and hydroelectricity development.