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After 4 days of listening to our wonderful speakers at the annual UCB Forum, I found myself terribly stressed out and suffering from a lower back ache that WOULDN’T go away no matter what position I assumed.
Thankfully, I had an appointment at the Polynesian Spa which was right behind the Roturua hotel we were staying at. Spas are known to be therapeutic, especially for stressed out aching bodies like mine, so I was looking forward to the visit.

Approaching the Polynesian Spa... will it be as good as I hope? Looks like it!
Greeting me at the entrance was the Cafe (serving sandwiches, paninis, salads and soup, cakes, muffins and veggie options) and the lovely little Spa Essentials store filled with pampering products like Polynesian Spa Salts (which I bought for pasalubong
, Rotorua Mud Masks, various luxury soaps, perfume, swimwear and other touristy favorites.
I was not TOO surprised to meet two Filipinas working at the store but was floored when one of them happened to be close to a good friend of mine! The Pinoy is not only global but also extremely NETWORKED!
Now, it was time for my Polynesian Spa tour and swim!

42 degrees... that's one HOT Priest Pool!
First, we checked out the Adult Pools and Priest Spas…
The miraculous Priest Spa was first discovered by a Catholic priest in 1878. Father Mahoney was suffering from severe rheumatism but after soaking in a warm hand-dug pool, he found relief! To this day, people suffering from conditions like rheumatism, etc. visit the Radium waters of the Priest Spas for therapy; there are even organized ‘arthritic tours’ for the elderly.

Heated Adult Pool filled with deep spring hot alkaline water... can't wait for my HOT swim!
Honeymooners and lovers can find alone time in one of the 13 Private Hot Mineral Rock Pools…
The temperature in the Private Pools are kept at a soothing 39 degrees and come with private changing rooms and a shower.
But since my hubby Ron was not with me (left him behind at the conference, LOL!) I was better off trying the other pools.

Private Pool with a VIEW!

Enclosed SUPER Private Pool...
Families also have pools they can bring their kids to!
Do you have active kids who might be little rambunctious? The Family Spa is perfect for your bouncy wee ones
It doesn’t have a view, but then again, if you’ve got children around, it’s best to keep your eye on THEM!
The main pool is chlorinated freshwater with a shallow section for smaller kids and a slide for the hyper-active. Behind the main pool you’ll find two hot mineral pools (37 and 40 degrees) where you can chill out (or boil yourself, LOL) while watching the kids.
Can children enter the hot pools? With caution and only for a short while – hot pools can make you VERRRY thirsty. Might be best to keep them in the main pool unless they’re older teenagers

The Family Pool! Wheeeeeee!!!
The Polynesian Spa also features several Spa Therapies that involve:
Getting down and dirty with a Rotorua Mud Body Polish (ngarrrr!)
A sticky situation with a Manuka Honey Body Wrap (yummmmy
A whole body massage for stress therapy (ooooh, I need this one!)
Super warm stones massaging your pressure points (do they know what buttons to press?)
A Kiwifruit Souffle Session that includes a salt scrub, some wrap time and a MASSAGE! (heaven on urrrth!)
There’s MORE if you click HERE!

The HydroMassage Room

One of the Polynesian Spa's luxury massage beds...

Lounge around one of Polynesian Spa's comfy chill out rooms before or after your Spa Therapy and Lake Spa swim...
AND NOW, the Lake Spa Swim… this is what I came to the Polynesian Spa for. My aching back needed relief and my tired eyes needed to see some envigorating scenes.
The Polynesian Spa’s Lake Spa consists of 4 pools that overlook the stretch of Lake Rotorua. The view is astounding – with giant steam clouds lifting up from the right end of Rotorua Lake. Fish avoid that area because of the high sulphuric content brought about by geothermal activity underneath. But even without that explanation, Lake Rotorua is a beauty to behold.
My first dip was in the 36 degree pool. It was between ‘just right’ and warm. I could have stayed in this one forever since the temperature was like my bath and the view was superb. Even better – there was nobody in the pool except for me!

The 36 degree Lake Spa pool...

Still can't believe the beauty of this place...
The best way to enjoy the Polynesian Spa’s Lake Pools is to move from a cooler pool to a warmer one. So after 10 minutes of soaking in 36 degrees I sashayed over to the 38 degree pool. It’s amazing how 2 degrees can make a big difference! It was clearly hotter but after the initial dip, it became very comfortable. Sigh… I could stay here FOREVAH and play among the ROCKS!!!

38 Degree Pool, here I come!!!

I can handle 38 degrees!!!
After another 10 minutes, it was time to move to warmer grounds – the 40 degree pool!!!
Boy, let me tell you, I could feel the heat! Thankfully the 36 and 38 degree dips helped my body adjust to the warmer temp and 40 degrees was fine as can be after I got in and lolled around.
I just have to say LOLLING is really the thing to do here. Lolling AND dipping and floating (if you are the bouyant type). And of course staring at Lake Rotorua and the sky. I could feel the stress of the past four days of conference sessions just being washed away. This WAS grand…

40 Degrees! I'm swimming in a FEVER!

Blogging Beauty Queen getting a little frisky in 40 degrees!
Last but not the least – the 42 degree pool. I felt toasty warm like a marshmallow on a bonfire. Okay, I’m exaggerating but you know what I mean.
I was warned to bring a big glass of water to keep hydrated but in my rush to experience Polynesian Spa’s Lake Pools I had FORGOTTEN to bring a water bottle. Duh!
So, I had to cut my 42 degree dip down to about 4 or 5 minutes because I was getting seriously thirsty.
Too bad! I did not want to leave so soon because out of all the 4 pools this one was my favorite – it had the best view of Rotorua Lake and felt more private than the other 3 pools.

42 degrees!!! I break into a sweat just THINKING about it!

I'm in HOT WATER now!

View of Rotorua Lake from the 42 degree pool...
After my Polynesian Spa adventure MY BACK FELT MUCH BETTER! I had even forgotten about it until later in the day when I realized my back was better.
All I can say is that I want to come BACK (LOLOL!) to Rotorua and visit the the Polynesian Spa AGAIN! Although it IS pricey, I think the value is worth it if you have the budget to burn.
The most expensive thing on the plate are the Spa services. Click here to see more…
Out of all the pools, the Lake Spa swim is the steepest at NZ$40. On the other hand, one might consider the private pools (with a view) the priciest since the NZ$25 per head is only good for 30 minutes.
As I said, if you have the budget to burn (and if you need a break from you vacation rush) then I totally recommend the Polynesian Spa!
All the prices mentioned above were in effect at the time this blog was written. Please check this page to see if any changes were made.

Hoping to stop by the Polynesian Spa again!!!
Check out Polynesian Spa’s Promotional Video…