Tongariro National Park

Tongariro became New Zealand’s first national park in 1887, and just over one hundred years later was awarded dual UNESCO World Heritage status (for both its cultural significance to the Māori people and its outstanding natural features). Three volcanoes – Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro – mark the southern limits of the Taupo Volcanic Zone, the horseshoe-shaped series of volcanic phenomena that make up the Pacific Ocean’s ‘Ring of Fire’.