Tongariro National Park Explained

Tongariro National Park is the oldest national park in New Zealand.

Three active volcanic mountains sit in the centre: Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro. The famed Tongariro Alpine Crossing crosses this terrain.

Ngāti Tūwharetoa ancestor climbed the volcanoes long ago.

Some Māori view the mountains as ancestors, with peaks representing their heads.

In 2017, officials asked tourist operators to stop referring to Mount Ngauruhoe as Mount Doom. Visitors were advised not to climb the summits.

Chief Horonuku Te Heuheu Tūkino IV conveyed the peaks to the Crown on 23 September 1887. A protected area was the condition.

When Parliament passed the Tongariro National Park Act in October 1894, the park covered about 252.13 square kilometres. Extensions enlarged it later.

Today the park spans 795.96 square kilometres. It remains home to temperate rainforest, alpine ecosystems, and one very complicated movie nickname.