With 3 days you can venture outside of Auckland to take in a little Maori culture. Head to Rotorua, famous for the sulphur hot-springs and where you can see and learn about all that is Maori, followed by the mountainous inner region of Lake Taupo, the largest volcanic crater in the world. Here you can try trout fishing from a boat or on land, your fishing-guide can fillet and smoke your catch on the spot! Hire a car, or request your very own  Amazing New Zealand chauffeur can pick you up from the airport or your accommodation. Price per day for a guided chauffeur-driven tour is NZD $445 per day, this includes transport of up to 7 persons, fuel and the chauffeur's accommodation and daily expenses. Gratuities are always appreciated.

Day 1 Auckland - Rotorua 240kms

0kms - Head south on SH1, direction Hamilton. After the Bombay Hill, turn left onto SH2, direction Coromandel and after 36kms turn right onto SH27, direction Matamata and Tirau.

64kms – Matamata makes a great coffee stop – try the Workmans Cafe on the left just past the tourist office (which is on the right just over the railway tracks.) Lord of the Rings fans may like to take a 2 hour tour to the film set of Hobbiton. Adult $50. The set has been allowed to return to its natural state, so the tour requires quite a bit of imagination! However the Party Tree at least still stands. Semi-fans may be contented with a photo of the ‘Welcome to Hobbiton’ sign on the traffic island in front of the tourist office. Continue south on SH27, direction Tirau. 

174kms – SH27 goes left and immediately right. For the imaginative, or for those not wanting to do the LOTR tour, you can picture Hobbiton hollows and Bag End Row in the hills on the right immediately after this intersection.

184kms – Tirau - hard to miss with the giant corrugated iron sheepdog housing the tourist office and a giant sheepdog next door which houses the Big Sheep Wool Gallery. Other tourist shops worth at least a peek at are the Funky Gift Shop which has some, well, funky souvenirs, the Jade Factory next door specializes in Maori Koru necklaces. For something really unique try the Natures Touch Gallery. The town has a bit of a love affair with corrugated iron, there are quite a few other imaginative signs right the way along the main road. Change to SH5 two kilometers further. You will soon encounter the unusual terrain of the Mamaku district where mini volcanic cones dot the landscape, some showing their solidified lava core.

228kms - The Agrodome’s principle attraction here is the Sheep Show, a highly entertaining explanation of sheep and, the caring of said sheep – the mainstay of New Zealand’s exports. Other attractions invented by enterprising New Zealanders on site include Zorbing (rolling down a hill in a giant plastic ball), Swooping (a glorified swing), bungee jumping (jump from a massive height with an elastic cord tied to your ankles), farm tour (on the back of a tractor) and jet-boating (the art of speeding in a tiny boat over very little water).

238kms – As you come into Rotorua, follow the city centre signs. The Kuirua Park will give you your first taste (or I should say smell) of the volcanic area around Rotorua. The area is still very active with sulphur escaping from the earth’s crust (think rotten eggs). Don’t worry, you will get used to the smell. The city lies on a beautiful lake, actually a flooded volcanic crater - the surrounding hills are the remains of the rim of the giant volcano. Rotorua sits squarely on the Pacific Ring of Fire, so volcanic activity is part of the city’s past and present.

Rotorua has become New Zealand’s second largest tourist centre – so there are no shortages of establishments willing to take some cash away from you and quite frankly many of them are a bit of a rip-off. But if you’d like to make the most of what Rotorua has to offer and all that is thermal, then my stay would go something like this:-

-          Kuirua Park has the largest display of steam and mud pools….and it’s free! An eruption took place here as recently as January 26^th, 2001 when mud, steam and debris were thrown 200m into the air. Springs regularly just appear, resulting in families being forced to move and the land having to be given back to nature.

-          Wander around the original Maori settlement at Ohinemutu. The church is worth a look at, as is the Marae (Maori meeting house) across the courtyard. Wander the tiny streets where everyone has their own private hot-water bore to fill their bath in the out-shed….just follow the steam and, stay on the paths!

-          If you have time, soak in the reputedly therapeutic thermal pools at the Polynesian Spa, a delightful but busy public pool. If you wait until tomorrow morning the spa is less crowded. It is a wonderful way to start the day - relaxing with serene views across the lake.

-          The excitement junkies can take the Gondola up Mount Ngongotaha for awesome views, interspersed with hair raising rides on a luge (3 levels available, so suitable for children).

-          This evening don’t miss the excellent Tamaki Brothers cultural show followed by a traditional Hangi (earthen cooked meal). Pickups from your accommodation in a waka (war canoe) cleverly disguised as a bus, followed by a fun evening superbly hosted and entertained by local Maoris.

Day 2 Rotorua - Taupo 90kms

0kms – Departing from the tourist office, drive up Fenton Street direction Taupo. At 29.4kms turn left at the Wai-o-tapu Tavern and 400m further left again onto the Loop Road and take a look at the thermal Mud Pools (free). Don’t forget to lock your car - the bubbling mud can keep you mesmerized for hours!

Follow the Loop Road to the main attraction Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland, the best thermal reserve in the area. It really is a wonderland of orange, green, yellow, blue, white and black pools, the highlights being the exquisitely coloured Champagne Pool, Oyster Pool and the Devil’s Bath - you’ll be amazed how nature can conjure up such colours. There are 3 self guided walks, the short, the medium and the long – the latter takes about 2 hours which I recommend as it takes you all the way to the green lake of Ngakoro, with great views en route of the blue lake Whangi-o-terangi - meaning `colour of the sky’.  The track is uneven at times so you need walking shoes. Continue on this road back to SH5 and turn left.

52kms – The Ohaaki Geothermal Power Station provides 5% of the country’s electricity. The Kaingaroa Pine Forest that you are driving through is the largest man-made forest in the world. You will also be passing the superb Wairakei Golf Course, mentioned on the 'Top 100 Golf Courses in the World' list! The best time to visit is in August and September when the trees behind the clubhouse are full of the native tui birds.

78.2kms – Turn left for the mighty Huka Falls, Volcanic Activity Centre and Prawn Park.

• If you first go left, you will come to the freshwater Prawn Park, apparently the world’s only geothermal prawn farm. The informative tour leaves every 30 minutes, after which you are encouraged to munch out in the Riverside Restaurant.

• The Activity Centre is well worth a stop. You are in the middle of one of the most active volcanic spots in the world, so it’s good to know what lies beneath your feet. There are hands on interpretive displays of local volcanoes, up to the second earthquake Richter scale readings, even a room where you can experience a simulated earthquake.

• The Honey Hive also has interesting interpretive displays, a glass fronted live beehive and the Beez Kneez Café.

• The Huka Falls are not very high, but are certainly spectacular (free). Here the sedate Waikato River is forced between a 15m gap before roaring over a 7 metre drop. There is a lookout just past the Helistar Helicopters, but the falls are much more impressive from below, where there is a walkway across the river.

• There is another free attraction called the Craters of the Moon volcanic reserve, that is if you’re not all ‘thermalled out’ yet. To reach the reserve after visiting the falls, return up the hill to Helistar Helicopters, turn left towards the SH1 intersection, then cross straight over. Follow the road for 1.5kms to the car-park. From here a 40 minute stroll along a boardwalk will take you through steamy billowing clouds and hissing escaping gases – you really do feel as if you’re walking on the moon.

Return to SH1, go right to Taupo. After 4kms turn left for the lookout over the huge Lake Taupo, actually the world’s largest volcanic crater, created in one giant explosion. The ash cloud floated all over the world. Ice samples from as far apart as Antarctica and Alaska have determined the explosion to have occurred in 186AD. The effects of the ash were even recorded in China and Rome. You can gather your own free volcanic souvenir from the shoreline in the form of very light pumice stones (great for cleaning off rough skin) which were spewed out in that eruption. Just about everywhere you look in the Lake Taupo region, you'll see a volcano. The mountains to the south of the lake are popular for skiing in the winter and walking in the summer. Return to the highway, in Taupo go right at the first roundabout towards the lake front and City Centre, where most of the eating and accommodation establishments are situated. The trout infested lake and rivers are a fisherman's delight!

Day 3 Taupo - Auckland 280kms

0kms - Head back to Auckland on SH1 via pretty Cambridge and Hamilton. Cambridge lies in the heart of champion horse breeding country. The charming town has streets lined with exotic trees, antique shops and a pavement featuring mosaics of hometown horses that have done well - Sir Tristram and Zabeel to name just a few.

280kms - Return your rental car and utilize the Hop-on, Hop-off bus which can take you to as many of Auckland's highlights as you can fit in. Start your tour at the Waterfront where you can find the extremely informative Maritime Museum - the displays are chronological, so you begin with the Maori migration across the seas, step back in time on board a European immigrant's ship, then appreciate New Zealand's proud yachting history including the Whitbread Round the World race and of course the America's Cup. After all, Auckland is known as the City of Sails. Continue east along the waterfront to Kelly Tarlton's, he was the inventor of the undersea walkway where you can view the fish from below without getting wet - the Antarctic Encounter  and Penguin Encounter are worth stopping here on their own. The revamped old homes of Parnell are a shopper's dream - the brick paved alleyways are full of boutique clothes stores, art galleries and specialty shops. You can't help but notice the Sky Tower. Admire the sunset and panoramic view, climb the mast, bungee jump from the tower or just have dinner in the revolving restaurant.