Farewell Rotorua. You’re low-key a tourist trap with a million “must-do” lists, but also a pretty cool window into Māori culture. We stayed kinda on the outskirts tho, and honestly didn’t even tick off that many of the main attractions. We thought about checking out Hell’s Gate (literal boiling mud and that strong rotten-egg sulphur smell 💀), but the entry price felt kinda wild for the short time we had.
So instead we just hit the road to Taupō, grabbed coffee by the lake (which was absolutely giving main character energy), then kept heading southeast. The Lost World Highway was actually insane — wild landscapes, thick rainforest, a sketchy unpaved tunnel, deep gorges, and those ridge roads between valleys. Felt like driving through a movie fr.
Then right at the end you see Mount Taranaki — this massive dormant volcano just casually poking above the clouds like it owns the place. The drive to New Plymouth was long ngl, but 100% worth it.