Tongariro National Park

Gollums Pool / Tawhai Falls: A movie set from the Lord of the Rings, which was edited so much, that you can barely recognise it. Still a beautiful waterfall and a nice walk.

Mount Ruapehu: The tallest mountain/vulcano on the North Island with over 2700m always snow covered. We drove up to 1600m enjoying the view, but Mt Ngauruhoe and Mt Tongariro were hidden in the clouds. There was a fire recently in this area and they blocked the road to get closer to the other mountains.

Lake Taupo: The biggest lake in NZ formed by a huge collapsed vulcano a long time ago. We had lunch next to it and saw some black swans. Really nice area to go kayaking, but we were quite exhausted after a the long day before.Read more