Tongariro National Park

Tongariro National Park

 

On a clear day, Tongariro National Park is the most beautiful place in the North Island. New Zealand’s first national park, it contains three volcanoes: Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu. You can go skiing on Ruapehu, but the best thing to do in the park is the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It’s a medium-level hike you can do in one day. The scenery is unbelievable.

Tongariro Crossing

This is my sister, photo courtesy of my dad. Here are the best pictures they got of the crossing:

Ngauruhoe
Mount Ngauruhoe
Red Crater
The Red Crater
emerald lakes tongariro
The Emerald Lakes

There are shorter, easier walks to do in Tongariro as well. Last time we were there, my partner and I did the two-hour Taranaki Falls Loop Track.

taranaki falls tongariro
Taranaki Falls

It was the middle of winter and the park was shrouded in mist. This meant we couldn’t see any of the peaks, but we were compensated with another kind of beauty…

Our view from the top of the Taranaki Falls track
Misty Tongariro
Misty Tongariro
Misty Tongariro
Misty Tongariro

The loop starts and ends in Whakapapa Village, right at the foot of Ruapehu. Here, you’ll find a grand, old, Art Deco hotel called the Chateau Tongariro. I had the best high tea of my life there.

High Tea at the Chateau Tongariro
High Tea at the Chateau Tongariro

We didn’t stay at the hotel, though. We were, of course, in a campervan. Here it is in front of Mt Ngauruhoe:

By Abigail Simpson, author of Poms Away: A British Immigrant’s View of New Zealand