December, 2009: First time we tried out our newly purchased tent (check out: How We Survived Camping In A Broken Tent For 3 Months In New Zealand ) was a 6 days trip to Hanmer Springs and Kaikoura in the South Island of New Zealand. We returned to Nathan’s parents’ home after 6 days, so happy to have survived for SUCH a long time – if only we knew we were about to spend another 3 months in that tent… but that is another story…
There wasn’t much to see in this little village, as Hanmer Springs is located on basically only one street, but it has something pretty cool – natural hot springs.
When I heard about this I was amazed, but we were soon to discover (over the next 3 months) that hot springs are pretty much everywhere in New Zealand. “Not another f**kin one!” we would scream!
But this blog is about the happy days before we knew that, and at this magical place in Hamner Springs, these hot springs were the best thing in the world!
Don’t ask me how it works but they have designed a series of natural-looking rock pools and rivers which are fueled by this natural hot water coming out of the ground.
Lying in these pools was one of the most relaxing and amazing feelings in the world.
Perhaps you usually don’t enjoy swimming in the rain or snow, but when you have a dozen of small 40 degree outside pools to soak your tent-beaten body in – then it’s perfect – even if it did have a rather odd smell of rotten eggs….
Have you ever been to a natural hot spring like this? If so, what did you think.
Related Travel Articles:
- (Friday Flashback) How We Survived Camping In A Broken Tent For 3 Months In New Zealand
- Friday Flashback – Driving On The Wrong Side Of The Road, New Zealand
- Friday Flashback – Hot Water Beach, New Zealand (Video)
- Friday Flashback – Everything Is World Famous in New Zealand
- Friday Flashback – Exploring The Night Sky In Tekapo, New Zealand
