An amazing day spent in this Volcanic valley wandering around the steaming lakes and natural bubbling waters- quite a unique experience. We also took the boat trip in the flooded crater known as Lake Rotomahana, the deepest lake of the North Island. This whole area was created solely as a direct result of a volcanic eruption - the Tarawera Eruption of 10 June 1886. The history is fascinating and the whole tour (walk, bus & boat) I would recommend as a must do...

An early morning start catching the Intercity bus from Auckland to Rotorua, stopping briefly in Hamilton. A pleasant journey with the exciting prospect of meeting up with our good old friends, Treza & Sean, at Rotorua. They say you can smell Rotorua (sulphur) before you arrive, however we didn't experience this so maybe the wind was blowing in a different direction? Plenty of geothermal activity though to see in the area with steam pouring from rocks and vall...

Arrived in Auckland after a 3 hr 10 min flight with Virgin Australia. Good flight with hot meal & drinks included. Sat next to a Kiwi who was travelling home to the Bay of Plenty, an hours connecting flight from Auckland. We chatted about the rugby world cup and he tried hard to convince me that England would get through the group stages- he was adamant that we would beat the Aussies! Time will tell! Talking of "time"- not on my side at the moment- 'time' has...