Hell's Gate (Tikitere)
Hell's Gate Te Tihi o Tikitere
An active geothermal park with the Southern Hemisphere's largest hot mud volcano and a hot-water waterfall, where visitors can also take geothermal mud baths.
Hell's Gate (Māori name Tikitere) lies about a 15-minute drive northeast of Rotorua. It got its name in 1934, when the British writer George Bernard Shaw visited and called it the ‘Gates of Hell.’ About 20 hectares of walking trails link bubbling mud pools, sulphur vents, the Southern Hemisphere's largest hot waterfall, Kakahi Falls, and a mud volcano that keeps growing taller. The most distinctive features are the geothermal mud baths and sulphur hot springs, which Māori have used for healing for centuries and which are said to benefit the skin. The park also offers Māori woodcarving workshops. Entry (trails only) costs about NZ$50, and mud-bath combination tickets start at about NZ$120 and must be booked in advance. Remove silver jewellery before bathing, as sulphur will tarnish it.
Opening hours
08:30–20:30 (last entry to trail approx. 17:00)
Nearby sights
- Okere Falls & Kaituna River Rafting
- Lake Rotorua & Mokoia Island
- Hamurana Springs
- Government Gardens & Rotorua Museum
- Polynesian Spa
- The Redwoods, Whakarewarewa Forest
- Eat Streat
- Ohinemutu & St Faith's Church