We’ve put together a few family friendly activities to do in the rain to keep the kids entertained during the school holidays. 

1. Rotorua Canopy Tours zipline tour

Rotorua Canopy Tours is one of the best family friendly activities in Rotorua. Minimum age is six on the Original Canopy Tour so the whole family can join in. The awesome guides make the tour very fun and educational. The learning can then lead to some awesome conservation projects that the kids can do at home. The ziplining tours are awesome in the rain as the forest looks lush and beautiful, and the best part is that the canopy will keep you very dry. Rotorua Canopy Tours will give you all the gear to keep you warm and dry, so it is a great activity for those rainy day especially if the kids have been stuck inside for a few days already.

Photo: Kids having fun at Rotorua Canopy Tours during their school holiday break

2. Experience optical illusions at the 3D Trick Art Gallery

The 3D trick Art Gallery in Rotorua is New Zealand’s first of its kind. There are over 50 different artworks that were created by professional 3D painters.  Have fun pretending to be a penguin like Rotorua Canopy Tours Team members Pip and Nicki (below) or pose as the newest All Black and pretend to ride a dolphin or an alpaca! This is one of the cool things to do in the rain with the family and it's fun for everyone!

Photo: Pip and Nicki at the 3D Trick Art gallery. Credit: Rotorua Canopy Tours.

3. Roll down the hill with OGO

Climb into a large inflatable ball and roll down the hill at OGO another of the great things to do in the rain. You can choose to have water in your OGO or go for the Dry-ride. We recommend doing it with water. The water inside the ball is warm and there are hot tubs at the bottom and top of the tracks so you can keep warm and relax in between rolls. Better yet - do the Zip and Roll combo, and you can save money if you do both Canopy Tours and OGO!

Photo: Zip and Rolling with the Canopy Tours team. Credit: OGO

5. Make a movie at home

Making a movie is a cheap and a time consuming activity that is great for kids of all ages and an awesome activity to do when it's raining outside. There are lots of options for this - role play, puppets or videos taken from an adventure you have done in the past. Most cameras and phones have video capabilities, but if you don't take lots of photos then make a time lapse video or download some different clips from the web and make your own doco with voice overs. Video editing has been made easy with programmes like Gopro studio or iMovie.