Rotorua's Essential 50: Day 21 - Rainbow Springs

Rainbow Springs offers plenty of holiday entertainment and information from hydroslides to native fauna.

From getting up close to wildlife to the thrills of the big splash, Rainbow Springs has plenty to keep everyone in the family entertained.

Set in 8.9ha of native trees and streams the attraction has a wide variety of New Zealand creatures, but the experience is built around the country's largest and most successful kiwi conservation centre.

There are free-flight aviaries, a hand-reared kea that provides plenty of entertainment and some of the largest wild trout which you can feed by purchasing special bags of fish food from the reception.

Visits can be planned around the bird show that is held in a special auditorium and is currently on twice a day.

During the day people can head to see the kiwi and at night people can come back to listen to the bird calls and to watch the kiwi come out to play.

With no glass in the outdoor kiwi enclosure visitors can get pretty close to the iconic animal.
But it's not all about nature - Rainbow Springs is home to the popular Big Splash ride and a new laser maze challenge.

The Rotorua Daily Post Essential 50 lists our must-do and try activities and experiences thanks to reader nominations. We'll be highlighting one every day over summer.