We cruised north from Wellington and arrived at Tauranga, a scenic port located next to Mt.Maunganui, a dormant volcano.  The highlight of our stop was going to be a trip to the Te Pui Thermal Reserve, which was located just outside the town of Rotorua.

     We boarded the bus and headed out into the countryside past rolling hills and kiwi plantations.  We arrived at Te Pui, which is a part of the Whakarewarewa thermal valley. Our guide led us along the accessible paths to locations where we saw hot springs, mud pools and the Pohutu Geyser, which is the largest geyser in the southern hemisphere.  The spectacular attractions reminded us of  Yellowstone.  We attended a lively show and concert at the  Maori Cultural Center on the site.

     The next stop on the tour was Lake Rotoroua, where we stopped for lunch and explored the grounds of the park.  We continued on to a kiwi plantation and had a tour of the orchard.  We were surprised at the wide variety of the kiwi products at the gift shop.  We returned to Tauranga and explored the shops along the harbor.  I had some energy left, so we decided to follow the path that went up Mt. Maunganui.  We made it up about halfway, where we enjoyed the spectacular view and a beautiful sunset.  We agreed that it was the most interesting day of our cruise.