Underworld Holistics

Rotorua’s Tikitere looks so much like a trip to the underworld that when Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw set his eyes on the area he immediately dubbed it “Hellsgate”. “It is said that Shaw, who was an atheist before visiting the site, converted his religion after spending a week there,” Jessica Festa explains for travel blog Gadling. “Hell’s Gate formed over 10,000 years ago when an ancient lake emptied into the sea. Despite the area’s resemblance to the nether world, the natural properties found in the geothermal features of Hell’s Gate actually make for a holistic and healthy experience. The sulfurous hot waters are good for healing wounds while black geothermal mud can help to cure arthritis and rheumatism.”