Lake Tarawera is one of the many lakes that can be found in the geothermal town of Rotorua (around 3 hours south of Auckland). It is a favourite holiday destination for many New Zealanders for all manner of boating activities, swimming and hiking. It has also become a very popular spot for photographers due to the endless jetties along the lake shore and the resting volcano Mount Tarawera in view from many different angles.

From The Landing carpark the lake is surrounded by some stunning native forest, and the drive there is just as pretty as you pass by the Blue Lake along the way.

Famous for its eruption in 1886, Mount Tarawera has been dormant since, but there is a lot of history tied with both this mountain and lake, and its importance to Maori is significant.

Lake Tarawera is spectacular for viewing the night sky and astrophotography is definitely worth a try with very minimal light pollution.

Photography info: I have visited The Landing countless times and the best time for photography is at sunrise and golden hour. Take your wide angle lens for this spot to capture the entire scene.