11 Mar 2025

Exploring the Art Deco city of Napier & the thermal wonderland of Rotorua

The last two days of our New Zealand Coastal Odyssey adventure ended in style. After visiting Napier City yesterday with its distinctive Art Deco architecture, we headed north, sailing up the eastern coast of the North Island, heading for the Bay of Plenty. In Napier, we enjoyed visiting the local wineries, observing Gannets at the Cape Kidnapper’s colony and undertaking a walking tour of the city’s Art Deco architecture.

Sometime between midnight and 1 a.m., we passed White Island in the distance, a dark, moody volcanic island shrouded in steam that glowed eerily in the moonlight.

Both this active volcano and yesterday’s Art Deco architecture, in different ways, a sign of tremendous tectonic activity in the area we are now moving through, as Napier’s distinctive 1930s Art Deco Architecture was a direct result of the great Napier earthquake of 1931, which destroyed many of that city’s original buildings. 

We were reminded of the area's tectonic activity again today when we visited Te Puia, in the thermal heartland of Rotorua, where we marvelled at the many steam vents, bubbling mud pools with splatters of mud jumping like frogs in a pool, and the magnificent geysers. All of this was enriched by the cultural experience of a Māori village with its strikingly decorative carvings and woven panels, each telling part of the historical story of the Māori people.

We headed back to our ship in the Port of Tauranga, our minds full of the rich cultural experiences of the day, contemplating another cruise north tonight to Auckland to finish our incredible New Zealand Coastal Odyssey adventure.

Images © C. Finch & S.Todd, Heritage Expeditions