Tongariro National Park is situated in the central North Island belonging to New Zealand. The park is also very close to Auckland, which is the countrys biggest city. This park was established in 1887. It was in fact the first national park in New Zealand, It is also the fourth such park in the world.
Tongariro is a dual World Heritage area. Thus, its significant Maori cultural and spiritual links, and exceptional volcanic features are both recognized.
Tongariro is very diverse, there are many opportunities for any visitor here to explore and come upon numerous surprises. There are forests, volcanoes, winter snowfields, hot springs, plateau and herb fields providing a different experience art various places within the same park. Similarly the flora are also numerous; ranging from shrubs to massive trees. It is also home to a large number of animals. There are birds and mammals as well as insects of which some of them are indigenous. It has the countrys only native mammals, the long and short tailed bats. Some of the interesting birds to be spotted during the day would be the fantails, robins, parakeets and also the native pigeons known as kereru.
For the visitor there are lots of activities to do here, ranging from taking the long winding tracks or just to go for a short walk. There are a number of backcountry huts in the premises and they are all well connected by the many tracks. Or else the tourists can stop over at the waterfalls and explore the volcanic features that are found at many places here. Some parts of the reserve are even accessible by wheelchairs. It is a wonderful place for a family with young children to come and spend a day at as it would provide the young ones both education and a chance to get closer to nature.
For those who are coming to New Zealand from abroad to get to know this country there are varying
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New Zealand hotel packages are available for tourists to choose from and among the diverse hotels in the country some of the best would include Millennium Hotels and Resorts New Zealand.
