In New Zealand, agriculture is the number one industry where people are greatly outnumbered by sheep and cattle by 1 to 7. There are several options for a farm tour in Rotorua because is one of the many places in NZ where there's abundant wildlife and natural resources. We visited Agrodome, a very popular working family business farm in Rotorua where you can have close encounter with the farm animals in their 350-acres of lush farmland.
We availed the Farm Tour which costs us NZ$48 (2017 price). It's expensive but worth it especially if you love animals and if you want an educational and entertaining kind of tour.
There will be a time slot per tour because capacity per train/ tractor ride is limited. I'm impressed with our guide for the day as she was super knowledgable and friendly. She's a tour guide in the morning and farmer in the afternoon.
You will have the opportunity to pet the baby lambs, sheep, llamas, alpacas, and cows. The tour guide will give you a handful of feeds so animals can go near you. They are all friendly and used to interact with humans--well except for the alpacas! Be careful not to annoy the alpacas too much as they can spit on your face when they are in distress or they feel fear. Alpacas spit to show dominance.
Aside from the farm tour, you can also watch the Farm Show where the farmer will introduce all 19 breeds of sheep, you'll get to witness a live sheep shearing demo and you can also feed the baby lambs via bottle and milk a cow. They will also demo how farm dogs (like Kuri!) herd sheep.
The farm tour is family friendly. Great if you have your toddlers and young children with you because they will be able to pet real animals and run around the lush grass. It's a great opportunity to teach your child lessons on animals, nature, etc. The farm is stroller friendly BUT if you're availing the farm tour, you may leave your stroller behind first and you can just bring your carrier with you since you will be riding the train and not walk the entire property.
Before the tour ends, the tour guide will bring you to a facility where they produce their very own kiwi fruit juice and honey. You can only buy those delicious and refreshing products from Agrodome. We purchased the honey at the souvenir shop because it's so delicious! It tastes like caramel but not too sweet plus, their honey was cultivated from a fruit and not from bees.
After the tour, you need to proceed to the foot bath to wash your shoes because it will be full of animal poop and mud. Then you can now go to the souvenir shop at the Woollen Mill or if you availed the sheep show, you must proceed to the barn hall immediately to secure your seat.
Overall, I highly recommend going to Agrodome (for all ages!) if you wish to learn more about farming and animals especially about sheep. It's a bit pricey but it will surely be entertaining and informative. Check out their official website and look after their promos and group packages as you may be able to steal some good deals.
コメント