I'd give it 6 stars if I could. For anyone wanting to learn the ancient art of the Blacksmith or just have a fun day and go home with something you've made and a great story to tell, this experience is well worth it. Rob is always willing to pass on his wealth of knowledge and experience. His enthusiasm for the craft is contagious and the full day experience is honestly not enough for any avid fan of crafting glowing hot metal. I could have spent a week there. Arja's authentic, home cooking was phenomenal and really added to the whole experience. You can't learn on an empty stomach. I will definitely be going back to Kowhai Forge.

There are not many most do in Nz but this is definitely one. Just go for it. You wont doubt it. I did it with my father and we both enjoyed it really much. Together with the waitomo caves the two best things on the north island. It is just awesome, Rob is funny, friendly and knows and loves what he does. The food is good and so are the drinks. It came out that the knife in the end was just ,,Das Sahnehäubchen" as we would say in Germany. Hands down that's a 5/5 without any hesitation.

Rob & Arja were very welcoming and the course was awesome. I did full day course so i was available to forge my own kitchenette knife i'm so grateful to have a knife i'll carry for all my carrer. I'll not forget to tanins Arja for the beautiful lunch. (And thank's again for the receipe!!!!) well if you want to spend a good day and learning some blacksmith that's definitly the place to be Cheers Seb

Set high in the hills this workshop is a great place to spend the morning. Very welcoming and friendly atmosphere. With no past experience we crafted a piece of artwork under Rob's skilled guidance. Enjoyed a scrumptious morning tea and left with a great sense of achievement. Even got to keep our prized creation! Amazing to see the skill and passion Rob has for blacksmithing Thanks Rob and family

This was such an awesome experience. Blacksmithing is SO HARD! But Rob makes it look so easy, bringing life into steel! So good.

I would highly recommend this activity to anyone. Nicole is a great teacher and makes you feel welcome and safe from the very beginning. The horses are beautiful and very friendly. Not to mention the track gives you access to the most surreal, relaxing scenery. 10/10, we loved it!

It was the best ride I've had in a long time. The horses were awesome, the nature incredible (there are some spots where they shot a scene for The Hobbit) and Nicole was really nice. When you book through this site and are an experienced rider make sure to give Nicole a call before you go do you don't end up in a beginner's group. This way you'll be able to trot and race up the mountains as well. You definitely leave with a smile on your face

This was the most wonderful experience you can imagen! With Nicole and Shawn who told us about their life and about NZ history while riding in beautiful the surondigns we couldn´t have wish for more. The horses were very nice and we loved their dog, Luk who came with us on our tour. Thanks a lot and an extra tanks for the cold and lovely milk!!!

A MUST DO if you like crafting! It's the most enjoyable and rewarding activity I've payed for in 5 months spent travelling around New Zealand! You'll know everything about the blacksmith job and how a forge works. Rob and Arja take a great care to make sure you feel good, the atmosphere is familial and the food was absolutely delicious! I've spent a full day with Rob, We've made a fantastic sturdy Khukuri knife and I really did a lot of it myself. It's greatly rewarding to leave with your own creation.

My partner and I were total beginners, but Nicole made sure we both felt comfortable and knew what to do. The farm is beautiful and there's some nice variety on the track (hills, bridges, etc.) to keep things interesting for two hours. We stopped for a snack, including fresh spring water and homemade bread. Overall a really lovely experience. Would definitely recommend!

Thanks for an awesome trek. Definitely recommend and we will be back!

It was one of a kind experience, the views were amazing, we were the first time kayakers the team made it real easy for us.

What a treat! Novice kayakers well taken care of and given an informative river tour by friendly and knowledgeable guides. It was cloudy so no stars were visible but the glow-worms more than made up for it. Would do it again without question and highly recommend to others. Just remember that you may get wet - it is a river after all!

This was the highlight of our trip in the north island. Our guide was knowledgeable, friendly and funny. Cannot say enough good things about the experience, our guide or the company itself. They went above and beyond to make our tour memorable. Seeing the glow worms on a kayak, at night in a stunning gorge is definitely a must do if you are on the north island. We had the most wonderful time. Thank you so much to the team at Riverside Adventures. Mike and his SIL were the best!!!!!

Highly recommend. Professionally guided, conscientious of safety and a wonderful experience in nature. Tandem kayak tour was fun and informed us of the river's history. Our guide was kind, funny and pointed out many unique landmarks or rather "former" landmarks in the river and surrounding areas. He told stories that helped us better understand how very special that area of NZ is. We debarked at a mid-point for sunset, small snacks and more educational sharing. Our evening kayak returning through the silence of the dark canyon was magical. It was sprinkled with glow worms glowing and several small mountain drips/waterfalls that added musical ambience. Our evening was a clear sky, and filled with stars and their reflections. Only caution... we were misguided by both Apple and Google Maps. Neither got us to the correct location. Team was helpful when we called, but there is limited cell reception and our inconvenience set us back in time and miles of gas to drive for reception for instruction. Do keep going 1/4 +mile past the point map says you have arrived. Vendor Sign is tasteful, but not large on opposite side of launch off road.

We absolutely loved the kayak tour last night! Steve was a brilliant guide - very knowledgable and friendly and made everyone feel very safe throughout the experience. Others on the tour were good fun too and the glow worms themselves were spectacular - a truly memorable experience! Would recommend to anyone. Thanks a lot!

That was the best kayak tour I (We) 've had so far. Not only was the route beautiful, it was a perfect mix of stops, paddling and information. The tour leader was more entertaining than my companion (no offense) and made the experience perfect with his jokes and knowledge. If i could, I would give 6 star! They are also providing everything you could possibly need, so even if you d show up in a sports bra, you ll be fine!

This place is awesome for some adventure, we had only booked for the 4wd safari but the lady st the front counter was very helpful and we ended up doing the go karts as well, we did a 10min go kart ride 1st there were 3 others in this group which made it allot more fun, the karts were great the instructors were great to Franky was learning the ropes but did a great job!! The go karts were awesome great speed and handled well only complaint is I want more!!! Then we went and did the 4wd safari We had Franky again learning and Cori both these guys are great Cori’s knowledge was fantastic and if you listen and do as the instructors say it’s a lot better experience as they know what the cars can and can’t do, great bunch of guys awesome and thanks allot we’ll be back!!!! They also have a clay bird shooting range and a 4wd monster safari were you are the passenger

Bloody brilliant . Perfect Peter and Terrible Tanya had 2 goes a couple of days ago. Was soooo good but Perfect Peter felt the need to improve his time .so we went back again yesterday. The guys gave him advice which he took and improved his lap time by 6 seconds. ( with metal wrists) 1.17 seconds ??

Awesome experience for beginners. Wife and kids loved it.

Make sure it is on your to do list. My daughter enjoyed every climb, hang, and splash although she did close her eyes on the luge haha. The instructor was great too. We were greeted warmly and they knew who we were when we walked through. Off roading can be for males and females so def give it a go. I was mesmerized with the monster 4 x 4 that I will do next trip around. The course isn’t too extreme but there are other options it was just right for my daughter and myself to have some fun.

Our 4 grandsons were buzzing after this amazing experience. Thanks Dom for giving them the amazing ride.

Absolutely awesome experience. It is a must do! I will be back for sure.

We had the pleasure of being the only ones in this group and it was ALOT of fun for us! Big thanks to Curtis for his good humour top bloke. Well worth the short drive out of town for.

Best experience on karts I've had. The staff were awesome, informative and let you go hard. You knew they would take care of things if they got out of hand, so that safety precaution was good to know they're there if needed. The quality of the karts were great but then I can only compare them to indoor carts, where there is NO comparison in the end. I recommend to EVERYONE to get out there and have a blat!

Great fun on the bush safari, couldn't wipe the smiles off the boys faces!

I had an amazing time on this activity, it was great fun and the trail just kept getting better and better. I would highly recommend this activity ?

It was a great experience. Friendly staff. Very entertaining driver.

We thoroughly enjoyed the Rotorua Rail Cruising. It was well run by enthusiastic staff who took very good care of everyone. The scenery was stunning and the commentary informative. A unique experience.

An experience for the young and young at heart. We had so much fun and the commentary was informative. Thank you Aidan for your wonderful attitude and sense of humour, you put a smile on all our faces.

A really interesting way of travelling through the countryside around Lake Roturua in the peace of your own Rail cruiser with only the sound of the birds and track. Such a brilliant way of making use of an old railway track taking us into the hidden depths of the woodland, farms to view the different indigenous species of plants and trees. Perfect for all ages in all weathers protected from direct sun but open at the sides but should it rain you can just drop the sides. The organisers are very welcoming inviting you to have tea,coffee or chocolate before you depart whilst sitting watching a video showing the development of the project.