The Rotorua City Guides answer what every visitor wonders: which geothermal park is worth the ticket, where to eat a hangi cooked in the ground, which lakes are good for a swim and what is still open after dark in a town that eats early. Each guide is a short, opinionated list with the reason to go, what to order or book and one practical tip for every place, and it opens in your browser as soon as you have paid.
About the Rotorua City Guides
- 143 places
- 6 guides
- 13 languages
- Works offline
- Print or PDF
- Instant access
- Free updates
The six Rotorua guides
Food guide
24 places
Hangi steamed in the earth, Eat Street dinners worth booking, cafés with the best breakfasts in town and award-winning pies.
Things to do guide
24 places
Geysers, mud pools and Māori villages, the lakefront and its hot pools, redwood forest walks and a few adventures on top.
Family guide
24 places
Lakeside playgrounds, kiwi and farm animals, hot pools that suit small children and wet-day plans that really work.
Nightlife guide
23 places
Eat Streat bars, late venues with live music, Māori cultural evenings with a hangi dinner, the Thursday night market and free walks after dark.
Day trips guide
24 places
Geothermal valleys south of town, swimmable lakes and waterfalls, the redwood forest and longer days out to Taupō, Hobbiton, Waitomo and the coast.
Budget guide
24 places
Free geothermal parks and foot baths, a hot stream in the forest, lakes and walks that cost nothing, cheap pies and cheap beds.
Why an interactive guide beats a list
Tick places off
Mark each place as done and watch your progress, so you always know what is left.
Your own notes
Write notes on any place and add your own finds. They stay on your phone.
One tap to Maps
Every place opens in Google Maps, and the day route puts your picks in a sensible order.
Open now, near me
Filter by what is open right now or what is closest to you.
Works offline
Open the guide once with a connection and it keeps working without data.
Print it or save as PDF
On a computer, print any guide or save it as a PDF to take with you.
Three places from the guides
Atticus Finch
Tutanekai Street (Eat Street)
Eat Street’s most polished dinner, built on sharing plates that keep arriving: pulled pork roti, crisp halloumi and spiced lamb. Book ahead at weekends. From the food guide.
Waimangu Volcanic Valley
Waimangu Road, 25 min south-east
A walk downhill through the youngest geothermal valley on earth, born in the Tarawera eruption of 1886, past a steaming crater lake and hot streams. A shuttle brings you back up, and the crowds are thinner than at the famous parks. From the things to do guide.
Rainbow Springs Nature Park
Fairy Springs Road, 10 min north
Native birds, trout pools, a kiwi house and a short water ride, with play spots along the path to keep little legs going. Easy with a pushchair, and the guided tour is free. From the family guide.
Plan your days in Rotorua
Day one: breakfast in the centre, a free wander through the steaming vents of Kuirau Park and Sulphur Point, an afternoon at one big geothermal park, then a Māori cultural evening with a hangi or dinner on Eat Street. Day two: head out to the lakes for a swim at Blue Lake or Lake Tarawera, walk under the redwoods and end in the hot mineral pools of the Polynesian Spa. For a rainy or slow day, try the Blue Baths, the farm show at the Agrodome, the library and a pie from an award-winning bakery.
Questions about the Rotorua guides
What is in the Rotorua City Guides?
Six guides covering 143 places: food, things to do, family, nightlife, day trips and budget. For every place you get the reason to go, the area, notes on opening times and a practical tip.
Do I need a car in Rotorua?
Not for the centre: the town, the lakefront and the free geothermal parks are all walkable. For the lakes, valleys and longer trips, the guides tell you which places need a car, a shuttle or a tour.
How do I get the guides, and do they work offline?
The links appear on your order page the moment payment goes through and are emailed to you as well. Open each guide once online and it keeps working without a signal, ticks and notes included. Map links need mobile data.
Which languages are the guides in?
The guides open in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, Greek, Polish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Arabic. You can switch the language inside the guide at any time.
Can I buy a single guide?
Yes. One guide costs €4.99, two cost €8.99, four cost €15.99 and all six cost €19.99.
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