January 8, 2009

Kia Ora !*FIRSTNAME*!,

Summer has arrived and Rotorua is ready to greet you with its 16 lakes, a host of water-based activities, picnic spots and shady trails on offer within a 25-minute drive of the city. It’s a great time to savour Rotorua's many outdoor experiences.

This summer Rotorua hosts a great mix of events from mountain bike and multi sport competitions to the Billy Connolly and Lakeside Concerts. The popular Raggamuffin reggae festival is back in February at the Rotorua International Stadium.

There’s simply no better time to experience New Zealand’s top tourist destination. To find out more or begin planning your summer getaway please visit rotoruaNZ.com

Rotorua Events

Rotorua has an exciting mix of events this summer to either take up the challenge and participate in or simply enjoy. For full list of Rotorua events please visit rotoruaNZ.com/events

Wild Moa Multisport Event
MULTISPORT RACE FROM LAKE OKATAINA TO THE REDWOODS
Date: Saturday, January 10
Venue: Race starts Lake Okataina

Bike Vegas N-Duro Summer MTB Cup #1
25KM OR 45KM MOUNTAIN BIKE RACES
Date: Sunday, January 11
Venue: Long Mile Road, Whakarewarewa Forest

World Invitational Superstock Champs
INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY ACTION
Date: January 16-17
Venue: Paradise Valley Raceway

Blue Lake Multisport Festival
THREE EVENTS, TWO DAYS ONE GREAT LOCATION
Date: January 24-25
Venue: Blue Lake, Rotorua

Lakeside Concert 2009
OUTDOOR CONCERT SPECTACULAR
Date: Saturday 31 January
Venue: Village Green, Rotorua Lakefront

Raggamuffin Festival
SUMMER REGGAE FESTIVAL FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
Date: Saturday, February 7
Venue: Rotorua International Stadium

Rotorua Festival of Arts - Te Ihi Te Wehi
AMAZING ACTS, EVENTS, STREET THEATRE AND EXHIBITIONS
Date: March 7-21
Venue: Various venues around Rotorua

2009 IFDS World Blind Sailing Championships
INTERNATIONAL CREWS COMPETE IN THIS PRESTIGIOUS EVENT
Date: March 12-21
Venue: Lake Rotorua

Rotorua Walking Festival
FANTASTIC WALKING TRACKS & GREAT HOSPITALITY
Dates: 21-22 March
Venue: Neil Hunt Park, Tarawera Road

NZDBA National Dragon Boat Championships
BRIGHTLY COLOURED DRAGON BOATS COMPETING FOR NATIONAL HONOURS
Dates: 28-29 March
Venue: Blue Lake, Rotorua

Family Leisure

Rotorua’s backyard is full of fun and adventure, there’s something for the whole family to enjoy. Walks, picnics & mountain bike rides in the beautiful Redwoods to endless water activities available from any of Rotorua's many beautiful Lakes.

New Rotorua mountain bike guide

Wanting to take the family out for a ride? Check out the new Rotorua Mountain Biking guide to help get you started. download yourself a copy here now.

Hot Deals

Take advantage of some of the following family Hot Deals & begin planning your Rotorua family fun holiday today!

K-Jet & Rotorua Museum
K-Jet & Rotorua Museum

Includes a thrilling jet boat ride on Kawarau Jet and free entry to Rotorua Museum.
View detail..

NZD $69.00
per person

Family Pass
Family Pass

Includes return Gondola ride plus 10 luge rides to share amoungst your family.
View detail..

NZD $95.00
per family

 

Skyline SkyridesThe Skyline Annual Gondola Card

Skyline Skyrides making it easy and economical for families to come and visit as often as they like.    

Benefits Include:

  1. Complimentary Gondola ride
  2. Buffet lunch at $25.00 incl per adult
  3. Buffet Dinner at $45.00 incl per adult
  4. 25% discount off full retail price on food (except packaged items) in the Terraces Café
  5. $5.00 luge rides
  6. Discounts for accompanying friends & relatives

10% off gondola, 15% off food in Cableway Restaurant & Terraces Café  maximum  three guests per Card holder.

The Gondola Card costs only for a full Year
$34.00 for adults
$22.00 Students
$29.00 Senior Citizens 
$17.00 for children

Gondola Cards can be purchased from the bottom terminal at Skyline Skyrides

Forest Activities

Escape into the beautiful Whakarewarewa forest, one of Rotorua most spectacular assets. Entry to the forest is free to enjoy & explore with many activities available from walks, picnics, mountainbiking and horse riding.

All tracks open

The current track status at the Redwoods show all tracks are open, great news for some summer exploration or a relaxing stroll in the shade.

There are tracks suitable for young children, the elderly, pushchairs and wheelchairs and some nice up hills for the more fit.

At this time of year when the sun is beating down The Redwoods is a great place to escape the heat under the shade of the majestic Redwoods.

Enjoy the fresh forest air and rejuvenate the spirit during the busy holiday season. Or bring the kids and the dog, tire them out on a decent walk, then enjoy a well deserved ice-cream on our front lawn under the trees.

Forest Events

Wild Moa Multisport Event
MULTISPORT RACE FROM LAKE OKATAINA TO THE REDWOODS
Date: Saturday, January 10    
Venue: Race starts Lake Okataina

Bike Vegas N-Duro Summer MTB Cup #1
25KM OR 45KM MOUNTAIN BIKE RACES
Date: Sunday, January 11
Venue: Long Mile Road, Whakarewarewa Forest

Kingsgate Hotel Rotorua Half Marathon
CHALLENGING OFF ROAD HALF MARATHON AND FUN RUN OPTIONS
Date: Sunday, March 8
Venue: Waipa Mill Car Park, Whakarewarewa Forest

For full list of Rotorua events please visit rotoruaNZ.com/events

Fishing, Lakes & Rivers

With 16 lakes – 14 of them publicly accessible - Rotorua is a year-round aquatic paradise. Lake Okareka and Blue Lake are popular swimming spots in summer, and both offer barbecue facilities, picnic tables, toilets and a playground for your enjoyment. 

Rotorua lakes hot

Fishing on the Rotorua lakes is hot right now. Fly and spin fishing are proving good options at the mouth of the Lake Rotorua tributary streams and all of the popular trolling runs on the lake especially off the Ohau and the North West corner. Now’s a great time to get a line in the water.
For Rotorua lake information and maps please click here.

Clearwater lands cafe

Clearwater has bought The Landing (café and launch services) at Lake Tarawera and will offer a range of new products in conjunction with other tourism operators. The range includes guided kayaking tours, paddle boat hire, luxury launch cruises, fishing trips, walking tours to Tarawera Falls and helicopter flights to the top of Mt Tarawera.
www.thelandinglaketarawera.co.nz

Lakes Events

Blue Lake Rowing Regatta
ANNUAL ROWING RACE ATTRACTING NZ’S PREMIER ROWERS
Date: January 17-18
Venue: Blue Lake, Rotorua

Parade of Classic and Wooden Boats
FUN FILLED FAMILY DAY
Date: Saturday, February 7
Venue: Lake Rotoiti, Rotorua

Noelex 25 National Championships
EXCITING YACHTING ACTION
Dates: 6-7 March
Venue: Lake Rotorua

2009 IFDS World Blind Sailing Championships
INTERNATIONAL CREWS COMPETE IN THIS PRESTIGIOUS EVENT
Date: March 12-21
Venue: Lake Rotorua

NZDBA National Dragon Boat Championships
BRIGHTLY COLOURED DRAGON BOATS COMPETING FOR NATIONAL HONOURS
Dates: 28-29 March
Venue: Blue Lake, Rotorua

Tagged Trout Tournament
TWO DAYS OF FISHING WITH GREAT CASH PRIZES
Date: April 18-19
Venue: Lake Rotorua

Geothermal Attractions

From the moment visitors enter Rotorua, they know they are somewhere unique. Steam rises from cracks, gardens, pathways and even residential streets. This, together with the distinctive scent of sulphur, signals to visitors that they are in the centre of an active thermal area.
Just minutes from city centre there are geysers, boiling pools of mud, silica terraces, mud fumeroles and volcanoes.

Kuirau Park still a favourite

Located next to the central business district, Kuirau Park is still a favourite site for visitors. Walk between bubbling mud pools, steaming holes, crater lakes and sulphur vents. There are also two hot pools where visitors can soak their feet. People are advised to stick to the tracks for safety reasons. The playground is a great place to take the children and a weekly farmers market (Saturday morning) offers the opportunity to buy fresh local produce.

Luxury on the lake

Hells Gate sister company Wai Ora Lakeside Spa Resort opened in September 2008. Featuring 20 superior rooms and 10 deluxe suites, as well as bar, restaurant and spa facilities.

The facility offers a resort day spa with eight treatment rooms, free-form private and public spa pools and saunas - and feature internationally-acclaimed Wai Ora spa products.

Please visit www.waiora-resort.com for more information.

Hot Deals

Take advantage of some of the following geothermal Hot Deals & begin planning your Rotorua holiday today!

Hells Gate Mud Bath & Spa
Hells Gate Mud Bath & Spa

Includes a Mud Bath and Spa and walk through the Geothermal Reserve.
View detail..

NZD $75.00
per person

Wai-O-Tapu / Waimangu
Wai-O-Tapu / Waimangu

Discover Rotorua's natural geothermal wonders with these two experiences.
View detail..

NZD $55.00
per adult

 

Adventure Activities

Looking for adrenalin-pumping action? Rotorua is the place to be. Rotorua's natural setting provides lots of thrill and adventure experiences, walk on a volcano, raft the highest commercially rafted waterfall in the southern hemisphere or try zorbing, the luge and the shweeb - all Rotorua 'world first' adventure options.

Double the fun in half the time

Skyline Skyrides in Rotorua has invested three million dollars in a second chairlift system. Visitors can now enjoy more luge rides in half the time, with capacity increasing from 935 to 1850 runs every hour.

Three new luge entry points have been created, including a suspended overpass when entering tracks. The scenic luge track has been extended by 500 metres.

skylineskyrides.co.nz

Hot Deals

Take advantage of some of the following adventure Hot Deals & begin planning your Rotorua holiday today!

Thriller Package
Thriller Package

Off Road NZ trill rides, Skyline Skyrides gondola ride, two luge rides and the Skyswing.
View detail..

NZD $119.00
per person

Triple Bypass
Triple Bypass

Select any three of the following four activities Agrojet,swoop,freefall ( 1 minute flight) & shweeb.
View detail..

NZD $114.00
per person

 

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We have collected your contact details. This information is collected to enable us to keep you up to date with tourism news pertinent to the Rotorua tourism market and keep you informed of the activities of the Destination Rotorua Marketing office. We will not disclose your contact details to third parties.

 

Craig Hammond
Domestic and Events Co-ordinator
Destination Rotorua Marketing
Private Bag 3007, Rotorua
Phone +64 7 349 7288
Fax +64 7 349 4133