4 Salisbury Avenue
4 Salisbury Avenue, Mount Maunganui 3116, New Zealand
The meeting point for passengers off the cruise ships is on the grass by the flag poll just outside the port pedestrian exit gate on Salisbury Avenue. If you are not travelling on a cruise ship then this is still the meeting point unless you have made an alternative arrangement with us.

Start time

Confirm time with the local provider in advance of your experience.

Opening hours

6/1/2022 - 5/1/2024
Monday - Sunday : 09:00 AM - 12:00 PM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Kuirau Park

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Sulphur Point

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Government Gardens

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Redwoods, Whakarewarewa Forest

45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Rotorua

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Tauranga

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Mount Maunganui

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Te Puke (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Family friendly tour
Not wheelchair accessible
Tour departure time may change due to early and/or late ship arrivals and departures
Stroller accessible

Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately. We suggest layers with hats and sunscreen
You must provide your own infant/baby seat if required.
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 22 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Traveler Tips

Would have liked maybe 5 minutes to take photos at the Government House and/or Sulphur Point but understand that sometimes places are busy and parking can be an issue, so that was no big deal really.

It's too long drive out to Rotorua in my opinion, at least an hour and a half.

Reviews

4.5

164 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 164 reviews

Super tour

marlene1966, May 2023

This was an amazing tour and we had the best tour guide. The sites were amazing. Hvng a small group tour is the best way to enjoy the excursion.

Brilliant Brian !

Claudia_P, Apr 2023

Loved the tour and would echo what most reviewers have said. Content and length of tour great. I felt happy and enriched at the end of it. Thank you !

Response from Host, Apr 2023

So pleased you enjoyed the tour wiyj our wonderful guide Brian, he will be pleased to know you enjoyed his services.

Learned a lot!

Velda_H, Apr 2023

We very much enjoyed our day wih Simon, our most knowledgeable tour guide and intrepid driver to boot. The thermal areas were fascinating, and the redwood grove was simply wondeful. Simon was a wealth of information on things natural, cultural and historical. We came away with a new appreciation for Maori people, and this trip has piqued our interest to learn more about their culture and history.

Response from Host, Apr 2023

Thanks for your very kind review, Simon does have a lot of information and really enjoys showing our guests around our region.

Fun day with friendly guide

Jeanne_D, Mar 2023

Simon was a great guide. Loads of information and a friendly and outgoing personality. Simon was prompt to pick us up and start the tour. Good signage and easy to find meeting place. We enjoyed seeing the area like a local instead of commercial thermal tours.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Thanks for your very kind feedback, this is the type of service we aim for with all of our tours.

Fantastic!

Karen_S, Mar 2023

The tour guide really made this tour special. It was such a fun day and interesting experience. The cost was very reasonable when compared to other options on the ship. Thanks for a great day!

Response from Host, Mar 2023

So pleased you had a great day on tour with us, we aim to offer great value tours and it seems this was achieved for you.

Educational relaxed tour

Pamela_K, Mar 2023

The red gum forest was amazing. The tour guide was very good and could talk about everything. Very friendly

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Pleased you enjoyed the tour.

Great Tour

Joyce_S, Feb 2023

We had a great tour and got to see so much. Brian was a wonderful tour guide that brought the beauty of New Zealand to life!

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Thanks for your feedback, Brian does a great job for our company here at Shore Trips and Tours in Tauranga

Rotorura trip

Graham_B, Feb 2023

Ritchie was a very informative guide. A thoroughly enjoyable day and got a good view of Rotorura and surrounding area.

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Pleased you enjoyed this shorter lower cost tour.

Disappointed

Jon_W, Feb 2023

Too many aspects of the tour were either not open or not included in the tour. Things we couldn’t do because of road closures or things closed. The geysers and kiwi farm were omitted. As the only tour going to Rotorua it was disappointing.

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Sorry you did not enjoy the tour but you need to read the tour description when you make a booking. The Kiwifruit Country site that we used to visit pre covid back in 2019/20 closed in 2020 and this destination is NOT listed in the tour details. You will not see the geysers on this tour as to do that you have to book the tour that includes the $100 entry fee to get into either of the geothermal parks where the geysers are located. You booked the lower cost tour, so dont expect to get the high cost components that we include in other tours you did not want to pay the money for. We can do nothing about the road closures as you may understand if you had looked at the news NZ has been hit by a cyclone which has caused a lot of damage. There was nothing "either not open or not included" in this tour. You got exactly what you paid for. We have 2 other more expensive tours that you could have booked. If you pay for a mini then please dont expect a Rolls Royce.

Beautiful and Informative Trip

George_G, Feb 2023

I really enjoyed the views of the New Zealand country side, the mud pots, the views of Lake Rotorua, walking through the redwood forest, the view of Okere Falls, and seeing the Kiwi farms. Simon, our guide, was especially knowledgeable and provided interesting historical insights to all the places we visited. I left the tour with a greater appreciation of New Zealand.

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Thanks for your very positive review, Simon does a great job.

Well worth the ticket price

Lorie_C, Jan 2023

Great tour with Simon. He was very knowledgeable and took us to Rotorua, Redwoods and Māori village past Kiwi fruit

Response from Host, Feb 2023

So pleased you enjoyed our shorter lower cost tour to Rotorua, regards Ian

Was interesting and a...

Harley, Jan 2023

Was interesting and a good day. Even though we were late leaving because of some people were over half an hour late joining the tour. Because we had to wait. We missed out a couple of things at the end of the day which is a little disappointing but had to get back to the ship.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Thanks for the review and sorry you felt you missed out one some things due to the late arrival of some of the group. In fact on this day we had 3 coaches doing the tour to Hobbiton and we loaded people onto the buses as they arrived, from 9.30am through to 10am, the buses all left within 5 minutes of the scheduled time. The things at the end of the day that were missed was the drive up to a scenic viewpoint as the weather as atrocious and you would not have seen anything. We are always aware of the need to be back at the ship in good time, especially when the weather is bad. Regards Ian

Highlights of Rotorua with Simon

Lynn_A, Jan 2023

Simon was great in making the most of the short time we had at the port. Managed to cover a lot of points of historic significance on the trip. Simon is very knowledgeable and we left with an enriching experience of the Moari heritage. Highlight was definitely the Thermal park.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

So pleased you enjoyed the tour with Simon who really goes the extra mile to make your tour an interesting and enjoyable trip.

Fabulous, friendly and fun

Jen_A, Jan 2023

We loved this tour and would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Tauranga. Simon was so informative, friendly, and made everyone feel so welcome. Not one of your 'big' tours which made it so personal and engaging. Highly recommend!

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Pleased you had a good time, we also prefer to offer smaller group tours as these are always better than large coach tours.

Excellent tour

Ramon_M, Jan 2023

Brian our tour guide was extremely informative, adaptable, with great local knowledge and of Māori culture. The tour had a good variety of stops (thermal springs, forest, waterfalls). Although we hadn’t paid for the tour which included entry to the main attractions at Rotuara, Brian took us to all the little known spots where you could still see some of the same things. The mini bus was comfortable and air conditioned. We enjoyed being on a small group tour rather than a large group. Very satisfied with the whole experience and very good value compared to Cruise Line excursions.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Thanks for the very positive feedback. ON this tour we do try and show you as much of the geothermal sights as possible without paying the almost $100 to get into the two main geothermal parks.

Excellent guide who...

Leslie_S, Jan 2023

Excellent guide who covered a wide range of topics on life in New Zealand. The redwoods were beautiful too.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Thanks for youre very positive review on this tour.

Surprising sight in Rotorua

Diane_S, Jan 2023

The redwoods area of Rotorua were unexpected and amazing. Our guide, Simon, was a great source of information for this tour.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

So pleased you had such a good time on our tour. Regards Ian

Wonderful tour, but...

Maxine_M, Jan 2023

Wonderful tour, but driver overloaded us with history, & kept people standing in the rain while he talked

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Sorry that you felt the guide gave you too much information, usually our clients like to have as much info as possible but can understand that on a rainy day you would rather be sitting in the minibus, will pass on your feedback to our guide, regards Ian

All of it and our guide...

Frances_D, Jan 2023

All of it and our guide Simon was extremely knowledgeable He made the tour extremely interesting despite it being a tropical thunderstorm !!

Response from Host, Jan 2023

So pleased you enjoyed the tour despite the weather being so aweful. Regards Ian

Rotorua excursion

mira_e, Jan 2023

The tour covered so many beautiful things near Tauranga. Simon, our tour guide, was excellent. He was so informative and made the experience exceptional!! Loved it and highly recommend this tour.

Response from Host, Jan 2023

So pleased you had a great time on the tour. Regards Ian

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