Things to do at Wai-O-Tapu

Wai-O-Tapu sits about 27 km south of Rotorua on SH5, roughly 30 minutes by car, and it is the most photographed geothermal park in the country for a reason: the Champagne Pool's orange rim and the sulphur-yellow Devil's Bath give you the postcard shot within the first 15 minutes of walking.

The Lady Knox geyser is fired at 10:15 am sharp every morning, when an operator drops a surfactant into the vent to break the water's surface tension and trigger an eruption that can run 10 to 20 metres for up to an hour. It is a genuine geological feature nudged into a schedule, not a natural event, and it draws a coach-tour crowd that thins out fast once the geyser settles.

5 to 2 hours for the main loop walk, longer if you arrive for the 10:15 show and stay on for the craters afterwards.