Hot Water Beach

Finally, it was time for our free fish and chips (which was admittedly very tasty) and our nighttime excursion to Hot Water Beach. We were provided with shovels and we dug through the golden sand to create small, thermal pools of water, being careful not to sit in them immediately as the water temperatures were known to reach 64 °C. I actually found it easier to steal somebody else’s hot pool once they left, as then the water had cooled enough for it to be comfortable and not too hot. It really was like sitting in a natural Jacuzzi and this intriguing phenomenon is caused by two underground hot springs.

Stopping briefly at a supermarket for supplies, we then arrived into Waitomo ready to begin a caving adventure amongst the glowworms.

Waitomo

Once we were confident with the equipment and had gone through the necessary safety procedures, we began the adventure. I opted to go first because I was excited to get started. I abseiled 35 metres into the cave and the drop felt bottomless as I continued downwards into the black abyss.

Don’t disturb the eels living at the bottom of the cave!

Rotorua

Though I have embarrassingly never watched The Hobbit or Lord of The Rings, I knew this was a must see (and I vowed to sit through the films when I returned back home).

We were guided around the 12-acre set, being told all the intricate details and how the movie magic was created (there were 300 hobbits on set for example!). We viewed the family sheep farm that director, Peter Jackson fell in love with, saw all 44 hobbit holes and the famous Green Dragon Inn, where we sampled a Hobbit Southfarthing beverage to finish our experience.

I remember this day being one of the highlights of my New Zealand adventure as after Hobbiton, we visited the Tamaki Māori Village for an overnight stay and this was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, learning the rituals, stories and history of the Māori culture within their own sacred grounds.

Situated within a 200 year old Tawa Forest called Tawa-ngāhere-pā (the beautiful Tawa trees are native to New Zealand), the experience began with a traditional welcome song. The Māori people leading the tour asked us to sing back to them, so we chose to sing a Christmas song (it was the 21st December so this was an apt choice, but we weren’t nearly as good as they were!).

We learnt some games that Māori children would play in order to learn the imperative skills they needed to survive and hunt years ago, and we were taught a song we would be singing to guests at dinner later that evening. We also witnessed traditional ceremonies, powerful performances of song and dance and interactive activities (such as the haka and poi spinning) and these were combined with fascinating stories of the Māori customs, traditions and ways of life.

We were shown a glimpse of the Māori people in the pre-European era and we then feasted on a traditional, geothermal hangi meal (the hangi is a pit in which food is cooked on heated stones and theirs was cooked on geothermal steam vents). It was delicious!

After the dinner guests departed (those who had chosen to come for dinner rather than for the overnight stay), we rounded the day off very nicely with a trip to the bar and the hot tub, before sleeping in our carved wharemoe (a communal house of the Māori people traditionally carved with stylised images of the tribe’s ancestors).

A Māori welcome

Spinning poi

The following morning, we had a filling breakfast before saying goodbye to the lovely Māori guides. I could see why this was New Zealand’s Most Awarded Cultural Experience, and it was one I would certainly never forget (and in fact, I still remember the catchy, Māori song we learnt).

Join me for the next blog post to find out about my last few days on New Zealand’s North Island and check out my 360° tour of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing for a sneak preview of what is to come…