DAY SEVEN
What to do?
Jet boats are another Kiwi invention. I’d describe the ride with New Zealand Riverjet as lite adventure, especially good for a family with children of multiple ages. It’s not too intense for little ones but offers enough thrills to keep older kids engaged. Located about 45 minutes south of Rotorua, New Zealand Riverjet (corner of State Highway 5 and Tutukau Rd.) offers several itineraries. We chose The Squeeze. Expert driver Marty zooms you up the Waikato River into the Tutukau Gorge, lands that native Maori tribes once warred over. The boat then anchors at an entrance in the cliff face. As a group, you wade through knee-deep, warm water until you reach The Squeeze, a place where the rock walls are extremely close together. Suck in your gut and proceed. At the end of the crevasse, you emerge into a hot water waterfall, heated by a hot spring. Climb up a small hill above the waterfall to find a secret, natural hot tub. Well, it used to be a secret! We ended up sharing the pool with our group of 17 plus a dozen other people. The ride back has more thrills, as your driver does several 360° turns in the river, coming oh-so-close to the shoreline. That part will be your kids’ favorite, for sure. The entire trip takes about three hours. The Squeeze cost: Youth (15 & under) $64; Adult $121; Family $327; must be at least 6 years old.
KidTripster Tip: The only part of this tour that I didn’t like was the amount of time that we spent at the hot springs. It was close to 45 minutes; my boys got pretty antsy.
KidTripster Tip: The driver takes photos along the way, but I’d recommend bringing your own waterproof camera, as well.
On another note, Rotorua is home to three major geothermal attractions. If you look on review sites, you’ll see them ranked highly. To be honest, I can’t tell you why. These attractions welcome tour buses full of visitors, but for my family, these visits were our least favorite of the entire trip. Especially if you’ve been to Yellowstone National Park and seen Old Faithful and the surrounding thermal pools, I’d recommend skipping these sites and saving yourself some money. The geysers here are not nearly as large as Old Faithful and the thermal pools are not nearly as numerous or colorful. Plus, no one is really a fan of the smell of sulfur in the air.
DAY EIGHT
What to do?
If you have more time to explore the North Island, head to the ocean. You have countless coastal towns and beaches to choose from. If it’s not a holiday weekend, you may consider heading where Aucklanders love to vacation – the Coromandel Peninsula. It’s three hours from Rotorua, so you may want to overnight here before returning to Auckland.
If you haven’t gotten enough of New Zealand’s hot springs, head to Hot Water Beach near Hahei. Rent a shovel at Hotties Cafe and dig yourself an oceanside hot tub. Best to go two hours before or two hours after low tide.
Then hike to picturesque Cathedral Cove. The parking area is just a 10-minute drive from Hot Water Beach. Here you’ll find a gigantic arched cavern that passes through a white rock headland to join two secluded coves. From the parking lot on Grange Road, it’s about a 1-1/2-hour hike round-trip.
DAY NINE
Getting there
As you drive back to Auckland, you’ll find ourself promising to visit New Zealand again. Next time, the majestic South Island will be your destination. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll decide to take the plunge and add bungy jumping to your list of accomplishments.
Me, not so much.
This writer received some complimentary activities and meals for the purpose of this review. However, all opinions expressed are solely her own.
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