Hell's Gate is the most active geothermal field in the Rotorua area. Long before the 1840's when Europeans found and described the medicinal properties of Tikitere as having 'quite remarkable curative properties', Maori warriors returning from battle bathed to salve their wounds. All the water is ordinary groundwater that has been heated by huge quantities of steam flowing through it, and is not hot water that has come from any great depth. The result is that the chemistry of Tikitere's waters is very different from those of other geothermal areas in the district.

The Buried Village is New Zealand's 1886 eruption, excavation, history and gallery museum situated near Mount and Lake Tarawera in Rotorua. This piece of Rotorua history depcits volcanic devastation at Rotorua's Buried Village revealed through site excavations and displays. There are a number of small dwellings remain undisturbed beneath the heavy mud and ash. Violent and unexpected, on June 10, 1886, a volcanic eruption was New Zealand's greatest natural disaster. For more than four terrifying hours, rocks, ash and boiling hot mud bombarded the peaceful village.

White Island is an active andesite stratovolcano, situated in the Bay of Plenty. It is one of the four islands in the Olive island chain. The nearest mainland towns are Whakatane and Tauranga. Whakaari's eruptions have produced both lava flows and explosive eruptions of ash. It is New Zealand's only active marine volcano and perhaps the most accessible on earth, attracting scientists and volcanologists worldwide as well as many tourists. This volcano has some of the most spectacular views in all of New Zealand. Volcanologists continually monitor the volcano's activity via surveillance cameras.

The Franz Josef or Ka Roimata o Hinehukatere is a glacier located in Westland National Park. Together with the Fox Glacier 20 km to the south, it is unique in the fact that it descends from the Southern Alps to just 240 metres above sea level amidst the greenery and lushness of a temperate rainforest. The glacier area is one of the main tourist attractions of the West Coast. Guided and unguided walks up to and onto the glacier are possible. The glacier area is one of the main tourist attractions of the West Coast.