This entry is co-written with Kane…

After a day of traveling from Cathedral Cove and Hobbiton Movie Set, we finally had one full day in Rotorua.

First destination on our list is the Hell’s Gate Geothermal Park and Mud Spa and it was one interesting experience!

We reached the location quite early in the morning when the venue is still free from visitors and the weather was lovely and sunny. Since we can get to have the pool entirely for ourselves, we decided to go for it. Fewer people means can do silly stunt more personal time for us.

The took the Soothe Experience which costs us NZ$79 (RM213) each and it includes bathing in their mud baths, then soaking in the sulphur and cool plunge pool.

Proper attire and towels are available for rent for NZ$5 (RM14) each piece, and we chose to rent instead because we didn’t want to have the mud and sulphur to stain our clothes. The whole area really smells like rotten eggs and it’s very apparent even at the car park.

Firstly, we entered the boiling hot mud spa and covered our body with mud. The whole session was about 20 minutes and we were then expected to proceed to the sulphur pool next. According to them, if we stayed too long in the mud pool, our internal organs would start to be ‘cooked’ as well.

Once we stepped out from the mud pool, we rinsed ourselves in an outdoor shower and then headed to the sulphur pool which is just the next area.

The sulphur pool was not as hot as the mud pool, so it was more of a relaxation session. We could stay in there for an unlimited time, but since our pores were wide open due to the prolonged constant heat – we would be required to dip ourselves at the third and final pool, the cold plunge pool.

The cold pool wasn’t a pleasant moment because it was freezing cold! We couldn’t stay in there for long, so we quickly then alternate with the sulphur pool again.

Since the cold pool should be the last pool (for us to end the experience), we went to the cool pool again for the final time. Still super cold there!!

After all that, we washed up in the restroom. By the time we finished our entire session, the place has started to be crowded. Fortunately we were early and managed to have the place all for ourselves when we started.

I’d recommended trying this experience early in the morning!

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