New Zealand volcano tour

Off the north coast of New Zealand’s North Island, visitors can take a walking tour of the active White Island Volcano with White Island Tours (15 The Strand East, Whakatane, New Zealand; phone +64 7 308 9588, www.whiteisland.co.nz). 

The 6-hour tour, departing Rotorua daily (weather permitting), takes visitors across the volcano’s caldera, where they will see hot springs, bubbling mud pots and fumaroles. A tour costs NZD199 (near $145), adult, or NZD130, child (minimum age, 8); book in advance.

Visitors must wear closed-toe shoes with a good grip, but all other safety equipment is provided, including hard hats and gas masks. White Island’s volcanic activity is constantly monitored, and tours do not take place if an eruption is anticipated. Eruptions typically consist of ash and steam.