Rotorua Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoeu (Māori)
Nickname(s): Sulphur City,[1] Roto-Vegas [2]
Rotorua
Coordinates: 38°08′16″S 176°15′05″E / 38.13778°S 176.25139°E / -38.13778; 176.25139Coordinates: 38°08′16″S 176°15′05″E / 38.13778°S 176.25139°E / -38.13778; 176.25139
Country	New Zealand
Region	Bay of Plenty
Territorial authority	Rotorua District
Settled	pre-European
Founded	1883
Borough status	1922
City status	1962
Electorate	Rotorua
Government
• MP	Todd McClay (National)
• Mayor	Kevin Winters
• Deputy Mayor	Trevor Maxwell
Area
• Territorial	2,614.9 km2 (1,009.6 sq mi)
Elevation	280 m (920 ft)
Population (June 2011 estimate)[3]
• Territorial	68,900
• Density	26/km2 (68/sq mi)
• Urban	56,200
Time zone	NZST (UTC+12)
• Summer (DST)	NZDT (UTC+13)
Postcode(s)	3010, 3015
Area code(s)	07
Local iwi	Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Ranginui

Rotorua (from Māori: Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe, "The second great lake of Kahumatamomoe") is a city on the southern shores of the lake of the same name, in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. The city is the seat of the Rotorua District, a territorial authority encompassing the city and several other nearby towns. Rotorua city has an estimated permanent population of 56,200, with the Rotorua district having a total estimated population of 68,900^[3]. The city is in the heart of the North Island, just 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Tauranga, 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Taupo, 105 kilometres (65 mi) east of Hamilton, and 230 kilometres (140 mi) southeast of the nation's most populous city, Auckland.

Rotorua is a major destination for both domestic and international tourists; the tourism industry is by far the largest industry in the district. The city is known for its geothermal activity, and features geysers – notably the Pohutu Geyser at Whakarewarewa – and hot mud pools. This thermal activity is sourced to the Rotorua caldera, on which the city lies. Rotorua is home to the Waiariki Institute of Technology.

History[link]

The name Rotorua comes from Māori, the full name being Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe; roto means lake and rua two – Rotorua thus meaning 'Second lake'. Kahumatamomoe was the uncle of the Māori chief Ihenga, the ancestral explorer of the Te Arawa.^[4] It was the second major lake the chief discovered, and he dedicated it to his uncle. It is the largest of a multitude found to the northeast of the city, all connected with the Rotorua Caldera and nearby Mount Tarawera. The name can also mean the equally appropriate 'crater lake'.^[4]

The area was initially settled by Māori of the Te Arawa iwi. The first European in the area was probably Phillip Tapsell who was trading from the Bay of Plenty coast at Maketu from 1828. He later married into Te Arawa and became highly regarded by them.^[5] Missionaries Henry Williams and Thomas Chapman visited in 1831^[4] and Chapman and his wife established a mission at Te Koutu in 1835.^[6] This was abandoned within a year but Chapman returned in 1838 and established a second mission at Mokoia Island.^[4][6]

The lakeshore was a prominent site of skirmishes during the New Zealand Wars of the 1860s. A "special town district" was created in the 1883, in order to promote Rotorua's potential as a spa destination. The town was connected to Auckland with the opening of the Rotorua Branch railway and commencement of the Rotorua Express train in 1894, resulting in the rapid growth of the town and tourism from this time forward. Rotorua was established as a borough in 1922 and declared a city in 1962 before becoming a District in 1979.

The Rotorua Museum of Art and History

Pictured as a bath house in the early 20th century

Hot springs present in much of Rotorua

Māori meeting house in Rotorua, January 2001

Geography[link]

Climate[link]