Thermal Explorer, Auckland To Hawkes Bay

A vital credo when travelling around the food-packed highways and byways of New Zealand is 'always leave room for dessert', and in Hamilton be sure to include a flavourful diversion across the Waikato River to Duck Island Ice Cream. Innovative flavours from Duck Island's huge range include roasted white chocolate and miso, or maple honeycomb and smoked almond. Our tasty recommendation? Go for scoop of each. After all, you're on holiday.

Whilst it’s slight off the beaten track on our Thermal Explorer route to Napier, a detour to Waitomo Caves is very much worthwhile. Waitomo has an array of adventures to suit any traveller, young or slightly less young, fit or slightly less fit. There’s something for everyone - magical or thrill inducing.

If you’re in need of an adrenalin hit on your volcanic roadie, then you need to seek out the Black Abyss. The Abyss is a 35 metre abseiling descent into the seemingly endless depths of Ruakuri Cave. You then shoot along a zipline through a gallery of glowworms as well as climbing underground waterfalls in this awe inspiring setting.

If plummeting the depths isn’t quite your thing, then you could opt for the Black Labyrinth, black water rafting tour. Float along the underground river in your inner tube beneath a canopy of glow worms before leaping into cascading waterfalls.

For those interested in a more leisurely experience, you can join a walking tour through the beautiful native forest, learning about New Zealand’s unique flora. Then climb aboard a boat to glide through the magical glow worm grotto before wandering the maze of stalactites, extraordinary rock formations and coming up close and personal with the prehistoric and strangely endearing weta colony who live just inside Aranui’s clandestine entrance. Aranui is a magical, mystical place that is steeped in Maori myth and legend. The other walking tour visits the Glowworm Caves and then into the enchanting Ruakuri Cave which feels almost like a fairy tale with its spectacular spiral entrance, shawl like limestone formations and crystal tapestries.

You've seen the movies (probably more than once), read the books, and just maybe had a dream where you've battled orcs or sat down to a goblet of mead with Bilbo and Frodo. Now here's your chance to get up close and personal with Middle Earth in the South Pacific. The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit-inspired film sets at Hobbiton near the rural town of Matamata are one of New Zealand's most popular attractions, and no journey Down Under is complete without negotiating the flower-festooned hobbit holes of Bilbo Baggins and his hairy-footed mates, or enjoying an only-available-in-Hobbiton Oatmartin Ale at the lakeside Green Dragon Inn. And just between dedicated Tolkien fans, here's a handy tip. Make sure you include enough time for plenty of selfies with Gollum along Matamata's main drag.

While you're out near the Agrodome, take time to go zorbing down a grassy slope. It's not everyday you get the chance to bounce down a hill ensconced in a see-through, water-filled inflatable globe. Only in New Zealand, right?

You choose. Two legs or two wheels? Either way, exploring this forested labyrinth of tall timber on the southwestern edges of Rotorua is a great half-day adventure. Shaded walking tracks weave through the forest, but the most spectacular option on two legs is to ascend the Redwoods Treewalk, a series of 21 raised platforms in the forest canopy. Better still, come back after dark to see the Treewalk illuminated by more than 30 massive lanterns. On two wheels, the Redwoods Whakarewarewa Forest is one of the southern hemisphere's best spots for mountain biking, and visiting around March's international Crankworx festival is our recommendation for action sports fans.

You'll definitely notice Rotorua's geothermal credentials soon after arriving in town – those wispy clouds of steam and the telltale aroma of sulphur are pretty hard to miss – and the road south from Rotorua to the lakeside tourist town of Taupo has three spectacular examples of the earth's volcanic might. First up, and formed by the massive eruption of Mt Tarawera in 1886, Waimangu Valley combines otherworldly thermal features like Inferno Crater Lake and Frying Pan Lake – when you're imagining a hostile alien planet you could do worse than think of these seething and steaming spectacles – and the walk on well-marked trails concludes with a 45-minute boat trip taking in rugged cliffs alive with geothermal steam. This is where you definitely need to set your recording device of choice to video.

Just ten minutes' drive from Waimangu – today's adventure packs in lots of volcanic action in a relatively small area – Wai-O-Tapu is where you'll find the colourful Champagne Pool. Sorry, there's no imbibing of the bubbling expanse but the intense colours range from incandescent orange to mysterious blues and greens, and your photo will make a great laptop screensaver when you get home. Translating from Maori to 'Sacred Waters', Wai-O-Tapu is also home to the Lady Knox Geyser. Make sure you're onsite by 10am as the spectacular display – apparently aided and abetted by the sly addition of liquid soap – kicks off punctually at 10.15am.

Then experience the intense natural theatre of the Huka Falls. The ten-metre drop of the Waikato, New Zealand's longest river, can be seen from above the ravine, but it's worth going the extra few hundred metres and viewing the falls from a closer footbridge. If it's a windy day, you may wish to pack a raincoat for the inevitable (but enjoyable) drenching by the torrent that local Maori call Hukanui (Great Body of Spray).