Rotorua Walks To Get Away From It All

Walks are great! A walk can clear your mind, reconnect you with nature or be part of your workout routine. Rotorua New Zealand has an abundance of shorter and longer walks what will blow you away, I promise! These are just some of the many Rotorua walks, the ones we have explored so far.

ROTORUA WALKS

Rotorua Central

Personally, I like Rotorua’s town centre. Granted, from afar it still looks a bit impersonal but Rotorua Council is updating and upgrading the face of the town heavily and you can already see the efforts. The project they’re currently tackling is the lakefront and it’s going to look even more amazing once it’s done than it has before (because, frankly, I liked it just as much).

There are also some really nice walks from Rotorua central, starting with a real highlight:

Kuirau Park and Ohinemutu Village

If you read my other posts about geothermal Rotorua, you know my absolute favourite park for walks in Rotorua is Kuirau Park. Together with Ohinemutu Village, the park is one of my must-visits every time I’m in Rotorua New Zealand.

The park and the non-commercialised Maori village make a great loop from the town centre. Walk down Haupapa Street, you’ll automatically end up at Kuirau Park Rotorua. From here, it’s literally a walk in the park, albeit a very special one. There are free thermal foot baths, a lot of steam, bubbling mud pits and colourful lakes.

At the end of the park is the biggest thermal lake in this free park and from there, just cross the road onto Lake Road and make a beeline for Lake Rotorua where you’ll find Ohinemutu Village. Members of the local Maori community live here in between geothermal activity.

The Marae can only be marvelled at from outside unless you’re invited by a local. But you can visit the Anglican Church nearby which shows beautifully how two cultures can melt together.

one of my favourite rotorua walks: kuirau park (this is the tame part)

Sulphur Point Walk

The geothermal walk takes you from Rotorua Waterfront around the little peninsula past Sulphur Point to Polynesian Spa. The first part leads you along the lake and through wetlands to the Hatupatu Drive car park. From there, the landscape changes from bush to more geothermal activity. Follow the road for a bit until you see the pathway leading closer to the lake.

As you walk, Lake Rotorua changes from a regular blue colour into milky yellow-green. This comes from the sulphur that’s released from underground into the lake. You’ll also be able to spot bubbling water and steam rising. The walk ends at Polynesian Spa, right next to Government Garden. The garden is a destination in itself to explore.

where regular lake water meets sulphur water

Rotorua Geothermal Walk

If you want to keep going at Polynesian Spa, the walking path continues alongside Sulphur Bay. Walk past rising steam, bubbling mud and a moon-like landscape. Follow Huarenga Stream until it drops you at the main road in Huareng Park. From here, you either follow the main road to get back into town or you continue your walk in the Rotorua Redwood Forest.

Government Gardens

Government Gardens Rotorua is a lovely place for a short stroll. Gifted to the Crown in 1880, the garden does look very British. The lawn is perfectly green, not one flower out of place. The Rotorua Museum in the backdrop adds to the colonial charm, even though it’s currently closed due to construction to make the building earthquake-proof.

Stroll through the garden, marvel at the perfection of the flowers, watch the petanque players and spot the occasional geothermal bubble pond (it is still Rotorua, after all).

playing petanque at government gardens rotorua

Outside Of Rotorua Central

The greater area of Rotorua is amazing when it comes to nature! There’s an abundance of lakes, forests, hiking and biking paths. It’s literally heaven for outdoor activities, on top of all other tourist attractions in Rotorua!

A lot of visitors tend to stick to the CBD and the geothermal parks and never get to explore Rotorua’s true beauty from up close. I strongly suggest looking behind the facade of the tourist city and explore these outer Rotorua walks.

Redwood Forest Rotorua & Tree Walk

There’s a lot to discover at the Redwoods Rotorua (also known under the Maori name Whakarewarewa). For one, there’s a free mountain bike park in the forest. Then there’s also the famous Redwoods Treewalk where you get to wander between the treetops on a net of connecting swing bridges.

But did you know there was also a network of walking trails in the Redwoods Rotorua? It starts with an easy short walk on even, soft ground, perfect for an hour of walking in nature but can be extended into an 8-hour tramp! And the walk wouldn’t be in Rotorua if it didn’t have at least a little bit of geothermal activity! Take a closer look at the stream on the Waitawa Walk.

Blue Lake Track

Out towards Lake Okareka, Blue Lake and Lake Tarawera is by far my favourite corner of Rotorua. Everything seems just a little bit wilder and more real. Plus I really love lakes (a lake doesn’t have freaky rip currents and tides or waves, they’re just there looking pretty), so this really is my place.

After Lake Rotorua, Blue Lake Rotorua (or Lake Tikitapu in Maori language) is the most famous and popular lake in the area. When the sun is out the lake takes on a deep blue that’s similar to the ocean.

Blue lake walk is an easy 5.5km walk and takes around 1.5 hours, not counting any stops for a swim. The walk starts at the far end of the main beach. It’s best done anti-clockwise I’ve been told by the campsite staff.

The first half of the walk leads through forest and native bush. The path continuously ascents as you go but never gets steep. At the southern end of the lake, there’s a lookout that lets you glance over to Green Lake (there’s no access though as it’s private) before descending some steps to a secluded beach. If you brought your togs (swimwear), now’s the time for a swim!

Walking on, the path will lead you into a natural wetland, close to the water’s edge.

The last third of the walk isn’t quite as pretty as you get dropped out roadside. Keep to the side of the road for about 10 minutes before you arrive back at the main beach.

Lake Okareka Scenic Reserve

So there are two walks on Lake Okareka. Unfortunately, they’re not connected with each other (yet?). There’s Lake Okareka Walkway, another 5.5km walk (10km return as it’s not a loop like Blue Lake) and there’s Lake Okarek Scenic Reserve.

Lake Okareka Scenic Reserve connects Lake Okareka DOC campsite with Boyes Beach Reserve. It’s not a long walk, maybe 30 minutes each way, but it boasts amazing views high over Lake Okareka. Wildflowers and ferns line the path and make way to a wetland as you approach Boyes Beach.

Along the path are at least two turn-offs that lead to exposed rocks where daredevils jump off the rocks into the water (it’s not crazy high but still way too scary for me).

Tarawera Trail

This is really more a hike rather than a walk but I wanted to include it here anyway. Tarawera Trail leads alongside Lake Tarawera for about 15km one way and sports a couple of hot pools, perfect to relax.

If you want to do this Rotorua walk one day, I suggest you start off by taking a water taxi from The Landing, the jetty and cafe at Lake Tarawera. Totally Tarawera brings you to the start of the walk at Hot Water Beach (not to be mistaken with Hot Water Beach in the Coromandel). There’s also a DOC campsite at the beach, in case you feel like staying for the night.

The walk itself will take you through an undulated bush landscape (and by this I mean it’s mostly either going up or down). It’s not a technically difficult walk but the constant up and down got me quite a bit. The landscape seems to be changing every time we entered another valley. About 1 hour into the walk there’s an unimposing turn-off that leads you to a hot pool. Enjoy it for a while but remember as you get lazier, you still have about 4 more hours to go.

Once the hills are behind you, it’s a picturesque, mostly flat walk along the lake.

Mt Tarawera Walk

Mt Tarawera Crater Walk is guided walk on private land but it belongs to the Rotorua walks like the others above.

Kaitiaki Adventures is the only company who has the blessing by the local iwi (tribe) to take their customers to the mountain. The walk on and inside the crater of the volcano which violently erupted in 1886 takes about 4 hours, including transfers from/to Rotorua, the walk itself was probably about 2 hours. The guide takes to through the absolutely unreal desert-like landscape while teaching you a lot about the mountain as well as Maori life and beliefs.

When we did the Mt Tarawera walk, we had the worst weather imaginable but still loved every minute of the tour. Read more about Mt Tarawera Crater Walk here.