Exploring Mt. Taranaki with Kids: Family-Friendly Trails and Activities

Embrace adventure on this epic journey to what is known as New Zealand/Aotearoa’s most perfectly formed volcano: Mount Taranaki. With over 120,000 years of history in its soil, this dormant volcano and its surrounding area makes for the perfect day out with the whole family.  

Your Thrifty rental car, a car-load of adventure-hungry kids and a craving for beautiful scenery is all you need to get going on a trip to Mount Taranaki. With Egmont National Park/Te Papakura o Taranaki encompassing the area around the great ancestral volcano, you just know that there are plenty of family-friendly adventures on offer on this thrilling journey. Let’s go! 

Gaze in Awe at Dawson Falls 

What better place to begin your adventures around Mount Taranaki than at the majestic Dawson Falls/ Te Rere o Kapuni. Head toward the Dawson Falls Visitor Centre to begin your walk, leaving your rental car safely behind as you traverse the lush landscapes that Egmont National Park is home to. First, pay a visit to the historic Dawson Falls hydro electric power generator, one of the oldest continuously operating of its kind in the world! After you’ve absorbed this slice of history, follow the signs to the Dawson Falls waterfall and prepare to drop your jaw to the floor. This whopping 18 metre waterfall is as majestic in reality as it is on paper. The gush of fast water is sure to deliver a thrill or two, while the beauty of the lush green forest that frames the waterfall is picture-perfect. Don’t forget to bring your camera—family selfies with the waterfall in the background are pretty much mandatory! 

Walk Through a Fairytale World in the Goblin Forest 

If the name Goblin Forest springs to mind images of mossy tree trunks, majestic ferns and fairytale-like scenery, then get ready to watch this mystical landscape come to life before you on the Kamahi Loop Track. This walking trail is a great one to try with kids of all ages, both because of its relative ease and short loop (only a 15 to 30 minute return trip, depending on your speed), and because of its magical nature. The incredible rainforest that frames the walking trail has been dubbed Goblin Forest because of its lush greenery and twisted kamahi trunks that are covered with ferns and mosses—like something straight out of a fairytale book! Let the kids’ imaginations run wild as they burn off steam on this fantasyland trail. 

Make a Splash at Wilkies Pools 

After all this adventuring, you’d be forgiven for wanting to cool off somewhere. Well, lucky you, because Wilkies Pools is up next on the agenda! Also located in the Dawson Falls area, Wilkies Pools is about 20 minutes past the Goblin Forest and over the bridge that runs above the Kapuni Stream. Once you get there, you can either return the way you came or continue the loop for an extra dose of thrilling adventure. The pools themselves are a refreshing slice of crystal-clear water amongst all the greenery of the forest that surrounds them. While this is a great spot to go for a dip and cool-off after some epic adventuring, make sure to always watch the little ones around the water. The pools themselves have interestingly formed because of 20,000 year old lava that scoured the earth. In other words, you’ll be swimming in a 20,000 year old natural swimming pool! 

Settle Down for a Picnic with Mount Taranaki Behind You 

While this gem isn’t technically in Mount Taranaki or Egmont National Park, it’s the best hidden location to enjoy views of the volcano from afar. About a 20 minute drive north of Mount Taranaki and a 15 minute drive from New Plymouth (making it a perfect place to stop by on your way back to town), Lake Mangamahoe delivers sweeping views of Mount Taranaki that are almost too good to be true. After exploring the vibrant environment of the volcano up close all day, this is the perfect way to cap off your adventures with a serene view. Bring a picnic and settle down with some refreshments as you enjoy one of the best views in all of the North Island—and maybe even the country! If you’re lucky, Mount Taranaki sometimes even reflects off the surface of the lake on a clear day, adding a cherry on top to a beautiful image. 

From majestic waterfalls to fairytale forests, pools to have a splash in to lakes to picnic by, there is plenty of family-friendly fun to be had as you journey through the sensational Mount Taranaki in your Thrifty rental car.