Rotorua, New Zealand

In November 2014, I traveled around New Zealand and Australia with my husband and two terrific friends. We started our journey by flying into Auckland and making a beeline for Rotorua. This area has some amazing geothermal sites to visit. We visited both WaimanguVolcanic Valley and Wai-O-Tapu. For the money, I really enjoyed the latter more because visitors have closer access to the geothermal activity in Wai-O-Tapu. The admission costs $36 NZD and $32.50 NZD, respectively. Both sites can be accessed by car or by day tour. We had a limited amount of time for this trip, so I cannot comment on public transportation options. If you are in the area but do not want to spend the money to enter these sites, visit the mud pits that are just outside of the gates of Wai-O-Tapu.

There aren't a lot of restaurant options in the area of Wai-O-Tapu but we popped into the Wai-O-Tapu Tavern. It's just a little snack shop with a pool table but it was good, basic food (sandwiches, burgers, and the best wedges we had on the trip) at around $13 NDZ per meal.

The town of Rotorua itself was lacking in character and people when we were there. I would guess this is because Rotorua is more of a day trip by tour bus than a town to spend time in. This might also be the case because the sulfurous odor from the geothermal activity can be smelled everywhere.

Outside of town is a great thermal bath called WaikiteValley Thermal Pools. While this type of attraction is not usually a big draw for me, this location had seven pools heated to different temperatures which made the experience much more appealing. For an entrance fee of $15 NZD, I found it to be a good deal especially after walking around in the cold and rainy weather all day.

Renting a car in Jordan

We rented a car from Thrifty at the Amman airport for just under $300USD for a week. Gas for all of our driving around cost approximately $125USD. Gas stations in Jordan are cash-only and full-service. Overall, our driving experience was positive as the roads were in good condition and usually well signed. Our primary point of concern was other drivers. It seems that very few drivers use turn signals, pulling into oncoming traffic at 5 miles an hour is not considered a hazard, and there is a lot of seemingly random horn honking. 

There are frequent checkpoints along the main highways. A police officer will hold up a stop sign and wave you to the side of the road. When we were chosen to pull over, I would hand over my driver's license (my U.S. license, as I did not get an international driver's license) and the car registration card that Thrifty provided. Most police officers spoke some English and would usually ask us where we were from and maybe where we were headed and then we'd be on our way. 

My general advice for others would be that if you are going to drive in Jordan, don't speed, drive defensively, and know that Google maps is not complete for Jordan. While GPS worked very well, the road map itself was not up to date and many places in Jordan do not use street addresses. If you're unsure of where you're going, it's best to get directions before setting off.

We would not have seen this amazing view of Jordan and the Dead Sea
if we had not rented a car and wandered off on our own.