Tongariro National Park for beginners and families: 6 things to know before visiting

New Zealand’s Tongariro National Park offers dramatic volcanic landscapes and breathtaking scenery, along with beginner‑friendly and family‑friendly walks that let you experience its beauty without the demands of more challenging hikes.

If you’ve read my earlier post on the Hobbiton Movie Set, you’ll know our New Zealand trip has been something of a Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit pilgrimage. From Auckland, we drove south towards Wellington before flying on to Queenstown, making detours along the way to visit filming locations from both trilogies. One of those stops was Tongariro National Park.

On this leg of the journey, we travelled from Rotorua to Tongariro National Park, a drive of about two hours. Here's a view of a beautiful field of flowers on our way there.

We chose to stop at Tongariro because several sites in and around the park were used during the filming of LOTR and The Hobbit. But the park is far more than a destination for movie fans. Its dramatic scenery, walking tracks and diverse natural landscapes make it a highlight in its own right. If you’re planning a self-drive holiday in NZ's north island, we highly recommend adding Tongariro National Park to your itinerary. Here are 6 few things to know before visiting.

1) What's at Tongariro National Park?

Tongariro National Park is New Zealand’s oldest national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is famed for its three active volcanoes—Mount Tongariro, Mount Ngauruhoe, and Mount Ruapehu—as well as its scenic trails that showcase striking landscapes and alpine vegetation.

For Lord of the Rings fans, Mount Ngauruhoe is iconic as it was used to depict Mount Doom. The park’s surroundings also stood in for Mordor’s bleak terrain, including the Rangipo Desert (Mordor’s plains and battlefields) and the dramatic cliffs of Mead’s Wall (Emyn Muil). In The Hobbit, Mount Ruapehu was used as a stand-in for Mount Doom and the Tūroa ski fields on its slopes appeared in The Desolation of Smaug as Hidden Bay, the entrance to the Lonely Mountain (Erebor).

Tongariro also offers plenty of outdoor adventures, from skiing on Mount Ruapehu in winter to river rafting and mountain biking, but we didn't explore these, so I won't be covering these here.

2) What's suitable for beginners and families with young children?

Tongariro National Park’s website lists 17 walking and hiking trails, ranging from short 15‑minute walks to multi‑day treks. The most famous of these is the 19.4 km Tongariro Alpine Crossing, which typically takes 7–8 hours to complete.

The park describes this as the best one‑day hike in New Zealand. It’s a rewarding yet challenging trek across an active volcanic landscape. A good level of fitness is required, and with proper preparation, it can be completed independently between November and May. Guided trips are also available and recommended for those who prefer not to tackle rugged terrain on their own.

If you’re planning to attempt the Alpine Crossing, this post won’t cover it in detail. We didn’t take on the hike ourselves—it seemed too challenging for the time we had, and we weren’t equipped with the right gear. That said, the Tongariro National Park website provides excellent information on how to prepare and what to expect. If we return to New Zealand, this hike will definitely be on our list, but next time we’ll make sure we’re properly prepared.

These are the less challenging and time-consuming tracks we went on:

i) Mounds Walk

This is an easy walk of about 360 metres, taking roughly 20 minutes return. The track leads along a gentle path and up a short flight of steps to the top of one of the mounds. Along the way, you’ll already catch sight of Mount Ruapehu.

At the end point, you'll get fantastic views of the volcanoes and surrounding landscape. The mounds are believed to have been formed by debris avalanches during Ruapehu’s periods of volcanic activity thousands of years ago.

ii) Tawhai Falls Walk

This is a 15‑minute return walk of about 800 metres, following a track and descending steps through mountain toatoa and beech forest, before arriving at a beautiful waterfall that cascades over the edge of an ancient lava flow.

This spot is also known as Gollum’s Pool, the filming location of the Forbidden Pool in The Lord of the Rings. It was here that Gollum was caught fishing, and Frodo lured him out to save him from being shot by Faramir’s soldiers.

iii) Ridge Track

This 1.5 km return walk takes about 35 minutes to complete. It begins with a short climb through low beech forest before the track opens into alpine shrublands.

When you reach the end, you'll get panoramic views of Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and the surrounding landscape.

iv) Whakapapa Nature Walk

This easy loop track is 300–600 metres long and takes about 15 minutes to complete. Along the way, you’ll encounter the unique alpine flora of Tongariro National Park.

You’ll also pass a quiet, lovely stream along the way. While the scenery on this walk is less dramatic than some of the others, it is still undeniably beautiful.

v) Taranaki Falls

This is the most "challenging" track we took on. It's a 6km loop track and requires around a 2 hour return. The upper and lower tracks form a loop with the waterfall situated around the half-way point. Both the upper and lower track entrance/exit are at Ngauruhoe Terrace.

Although it takes about an hour to reach the waterfall, the walk is pleasant, with lovely views and well‑maintained tracks and, when we visited, comfortably cool weather in the low 20s Celsius.

As with most trails in Tongariro, there are sections that can be muddy or rocky, with gentle uphill climbs and occasional stairs. But like I mentioned, the view is lovely along the way, and there is also shade when you're walking through the forest. Here's a smaller waterfall we encountered on the way.

And we're finally there!

Taranaki Falls tumbles 20 metres over the edge of a large lava flow, which erupted from Ruapehu 15,000 years ago, into a boulder-ringed pool. The sight is truly spectacular!

If you're up for it, you can actually climb down to get a closer look of the waterfall but be warned that it can be a bit rocky and slippery!

Thereafter it was another one hour track back to our starting point. This was probably the longest walk my girls and I had ever been on. We were knackered at the end of the day, having walked so much in the afternoon but we all enjoyed it and it was truly a very memorable experience at Tongariro National Park.

One of the best things about visiting New Zealand in late spring (November) and summer (December) is the long daylight hours. The sun rises just after 5 a.m. and doesn’t set until after 8pm (sometimes as late as 9pm) giving you plenty of time to explore and enjoy walks.

We didn’t attempt any other tracks (apart from one the following day, farther from this area—more on that later) as most were at least two hours long, and we simply didn’t have the time. If you feel that you or your kids may not have the time or stamina for the longer hikes, I’d recommend sticking to the shorter tracks mentioned above.

3) How do you get to the tracks?

To reach the tracks mentioned above, drive along State Highway 48, where all the trail entries are accessible. The first stop you’ll come across is Mounds Walk, followed by Tawhai Falls. After these, the next three tracks are about a five‑minute drive further on, near the Tongariro National Park Visitor Centre. I’d suggest visiting Mounds Walk first, then Tawhai Falls. At each trailhead, you’ll usually find a small parking area, or you can park along the road shoulder.

Once you’ve completed these two walks, continue towards the Visitor Centre and park in the free car park just opposite. From there, the Ridge Track, Whakapapa Nature Walk, and Taranaki Falls are all within walking distance.

If you plan to explore other trails, it’s best to shortlist the ones you’re interested in and use Google Maps to plan the most convenient route to their entry points.

When we visited in mid‑November, it was off‑peak season, so parking was easy, the roads were quiet, and the tracks weren’t crowded. In contrast, during the peak summer months (December to February), the area can get much busier.

4) Is it free to visit the national park?

Yes, access to the park is free, and so is parking near to the track entries. However, if you are attempting the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, you will need to separate fees for optional services like shuttle transport or parking for the Crossing. Starting in 2027, international visitors will need to pay a new Conservation & Tourism Levy (NZ$20-40) for the Crossing.

5) What else is there to do in the area?

The Tongariro National Park Visitor Centre at Whakapapa Village is well worth a visit. It offers hiking information, Māori cultural exhibits on volcanic history, a 3D model of the park, and a small retail store. The centre is open daily from 8:30am to 4:00pm.

Beyond the Visitor Centre, the area is generally quiet with limited dining options. We stayed overnight in the Waimarino area, also known as Whakapapa Village, where most of the accommodation is located. There isn’t much happening here, and dining choices are few, but I highly recommend Camo Kai—a family‑run takeaway spot serving burgers, fries, fish and chips, and drinks at 13 Carroll Street. It’s open Thursday to Monday from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

As mentioned earlier, there's another track we visited though it is not near the tracks I mentioned earlier, and that's Mangawhero Falls, also known as Gollum's Pool & Ithilien. Mangawhero Falls was also used for overhead shots where Faramir watches Gollum, for the "Forbidden Pool" scene in LOTR and also where Gollum fishes when he was taking Frodo and Sam to Mordor.

Mangawhero Falls is near Ohakune on Ohakune Mountain Road, about a 50-minute drive from the Tongariro National Park visitor centre. We visited this when we were leaving Tongariro the next day on our way to Wellington. You can still see Mount Ruapehu on the way there!

The Mangawhero Falls Walk is about 300m long and takes only 5 minutes to complete. And here we are!

The river continues into the waterfall.

And this would be our last stop at Tongariro National Park and it was off to Wellington from here!

6) What to bring and wear?

Good walking shoes are essential. While most of the tracks I mentioned are well‑maintained, some sections can be muddy or rocky, so sturdy footwear is important.

Also, don’t forget sunscreen, hats, and sunglasses, as not all areas are shaded.

OK, that's all for Tongariro National Park. This is probably the last NZ attraction I'm sharing in detail. I've share some of the places we visited in NZ in my social media as I don't think they need a lot of emphasis. So do visit my IG page and my IG highlights at Vivianteowriter for more pics and vids! I'll share one last general blog post on things to know if you're visiting NZ soon!

Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored trip, and all opinions are our own.

©Vivian Teo. All content and photos are copyrighted to Vivian Teo unless otherwise specified.