The Premium Debate: Subscriber views on Rainbow Springs proposed to close

Rainbow Springs Nature Park opened in Rotorua since 1932 and has been owned by the Ngāi Tahu Group since 2004. Photo / Andrew Warner

The future of Rotorua's "iconic" Rainbow Springs Nature Park is on a knife edge as owner Ngāi Tahu Holdings decides whether to close it for good, ending its pandemic hibernation. The business relied heavily on international tourism and it had not been seen as financially viable to open the park since April 2020.

Read the full story: Rainbow Springs owners propose permanent closure

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The Government is killing the tourism sector in New Zealand. Rotorua is transitioning from a tourist centre to a centre for the homeless and emergency homed.
- David S

Sad news, but you have to question whether Rainbow Springs made enough effort to adapt the business to the new environment with Covid. Most Rotorua destinations re-opened after the 2020 lockdown and adapted to a domestic market, which seemed to offer enough for many to keep going. Rainbow Springs didn't do that, choosing instead to stay closed, so it never really gave it a go in terms of adapting its business model. It has sat there since waiting for the world to return to normal - as we know, businesses that do that and don't adapt will not survive. Sad for the employees.
Erin R

This is sad news, and I remember going there as a kid in the 70s so I have nice memories of the place, but more recently I looked at taking my kids there but had to skip it because of the price. I couldn't justify it at the time on my pay. I think it catered a lot for the foreign market, at the expense of the domestic, and now it's come back to bite them.
Open up for domestic tourism and you might be surprised at how many would come, I for one.
Jeremy T

Sadly another victory for the "Fun Police", God knows there have been plenty in recent times. My guess is that NZ has achieved two remarkable outcomes, the highest vaccination rate and the number of community/entertainment events cancelled per head of population in the world. Can anyone explain why, as a once lively outgoing nation, we continue to hide under a rock?
Rowan K

We could turn it into "transitional housing". Seems the only growth in Rotorua is taking in other areas' social problems.
Steve M

Rainbow Springs should have lowered its prices to increase visitor numbers to cater for a domestic market. I visited a few years ago and thought the prices were excessive and clearly geared towards international tourists.
Ron P

No point shedding any tears. This is what many new Zealanders are happy to accept as collateral damage for keeping the borders closed for so long.
- Alan R

As a boy in Auckland in the early 1960s, we had no car so we never went out of town as a family. An uncle and aunt who had no children took my sister and me on two trips to Rotorua, the only childhood trips we ever had. Fairy Springs was the most amazing thing we had ever seen, and I think our enthusiasm for what we saw is why our uncle and aunt took us back for a second time. Very sad news.
- Brian M

Why has it remained closed for so long? We have been in the area twice since the pandemic began. Both Waiotapu and Rainbow Springs were closed, something we didn't find out until we saw empty car parks. No targeting the local market.
- Kirstie P

If it wasn't so expensive to visit many Kiwis would patronise it.
- Carol H

It would be such a shame to close such a beautiful place, as kids we visited it every month when we came to Rotorua to do our shopping - we lived on a farm in Galatea. We always looked forward to having a picnic lunch at this beautiful, spiritual place. Very sad if they have to close.
- Joanna G

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