Rotorua is at the heart of the volcanic/thermal landscape of New Zealand. What this means is that the air is thick with the smell of sulphur, or rotten eggs if that makes it easier to imagine.

The last time we visited, in 2007, the aroma was so pungent that I ended up stuffing tissue up my nose when trying to sleep. However, this time it wasn’t half as bad. Phew!

The landscape really has to be seen to be believed. Areas of it are where the earth’s crust is at its thinnest and all over you can see steam rising from the ground, and even through street grids. When you visit one of the thermal reserves and see the acidic water lakes and bubbling mud pools, you start to wonder what is going on underneath your feet.

Wai-O-Tapu is a thermal reserve just south of Rotorua and has a fantastic walking route of around 90 minutes through some impressive landscape. Smelly, but impressive. I’ll leave writing a wordy description and let the photos and video do the talking.

Once we checked into the holiday park, we enjoyed a cooling dip in the pool, followed by a soak in the mineral spa, before wandering into the town and sniffing out a local microbrewery pub called Brew (by the Croucher Brothers Brewery). Very tasty beers.

We didn’t stay out too late though, as we had some serious luging to do in the morning.