🇳🇿 North Island Day 5｜Rotorua – A City Full of "Character"

Rotorua has been the most fascinating town I’ve visited on the North Island! 🎪 With its thriving tourism scene, there’s so much to eat and explore. If you’re touring the North Island, a day trip to Rotorua is a must! ⛲️ Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland Our first stop was this geothermal wonderland—a must-see in NZ! ✅ The park is filled with surreal geothermal activity, from colorful hot springs to bubbling mud pools. There’s even a morning geyser show (though we missed it). We took Route 2, which took about 1.5 hours. Honestly, after a while, the sulfur smell got pretty intense! 👃💨 🐑 Agrodome Farm Show I’ve always dreamed of visiting a Kiwi farm, and Rotorua made it happen! 🐏 We booked the farm show + tour—it was hilarious and interactive! Sheep shearing demo 🪒 Audience participation (extroverts, sit in the front row! 😆) Farm tour by tractor, with stops to feed super-friendly sheep (they’re total camera hogs 📸) Honey tasting (not Manuka, but still delicious!) 🍯 🚠 Skyline Rotorua After the farm, we rushed to Skyline Gondola (just a few minutes' drive). 🚡 Panoramic views of Rotorua from the top 🌄 Luge rides 🛷 – SO fun! Multiple tracks to choose from. ♨️ Polynesian Spa Ended the day with a geothermal hot spring soak under the stars! 🌟 We booked the Pavilion Pools (8 pools, great value). After days of hiking and exploring, this was pure bliss—my soul felt cleansed (well, kinda 😂). 🏡 Te Puia Māori Cultural Village No NZ trip is complete without experiencing Māori culture! The next morning, we joined a guided tour + cultural performance. Geothermal sights (cool, but less impressive after Wai-O-Tapu) Māori cultural show – HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! So engaging and powerful. Why is Rotorua a "city full of smells"? It’s not just the geothermal parks and hot springs—even our Airbnb had a faint sulfur scent! 😅 I’m genuinely curious how locals get used to it. #NorthIslandNZ#NZRoadTrip#RotoruaTravel #RotoruaEats