Taupo, Turangi & Tongariro - Useful Information

Doctors, banks, internet, visitor information centres... even hangover cures and sun burn prevention! You'll find what you are looking for in the Taupō region. Check out our list of services:

Churches

Below is some information on church services in the Great Lake Taupo region.

Church Services
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Emergency and Medical Services

For New Zealand Emergency Services (Police, Fire & Ambulance): Dial 111. If in doubt about whether to ask for ambulance, police or fire (such as in the event of a multi-vehicle traffic accident), always ask for the Fire Service. The fire crews have trained paramedics and can arrange for the other emergency services as required, including organising a rescue helicopter.

Taupō Coastguard: Phone 07 377 0400
Taupō Police, Storey Place: Phone 07 378 6060

Medical Services

Taupō Hospital, Kotare St: Phone 07 378 8100
Taupō Medical Centre, 117 Heuheu St.

Pharmacy

Main Street Pharmacy, cnr Tongariro & Heu Heu Sts
Opening hours: 8.30am - 8.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-8.30pm Sat-Sun
Phone: 07 378 2636

Dentist

Taupō Dental Centre, 127 Spa Road: Phone 07 378 8005

Optometrist

Visique Taupō Optometrist, 32 Heuheu St, Taupō: Phone 07 378 8770
Taupō Vision Care, 66 Ruapehu St, Taupō: Phone 07 378 7529

Banks

Banking hours in New Zealand are 9am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday.
ANZ Banking Group 42-46 Horomatangi St: Phone 0800 180 921
ASB Bank Ltd Horomatangi St: Phone 0800 803 804
Bank of New Zealand Tongariro St: Phone 0800 800 468
National Bank of NZ Tongariro St: Phone 0800 808 908
WestpacTrust 27 Horomatangi St: Phone 0800 400 600

Visitor Information Centres

All the centres are extremely helpful and can make bookings on your behalf. Call in for advice, information, maps and brochures:

i-SITE Taupō, Tongariro Street: Phone 07 376 0027
i-SITE Turangi, Ohuanga Road, Turangi: Phone 07 386 8999
Tongariro National Park Visitor Centre, Whakapapa Village: Phone 07 892 3729
Experience Taupō, Tongariro Street: Phone 07 377 0704

Gay & Lesbian Travel

Gay and lesbian travellers might want to check out Gay and Lesbian Tourism New Zealand PureGayNZ.com, an information gateway for travel and tourism to, from and within New Zealand. Plan, find, book and review your vacation and holiday experience in Pure Gay NZ.

Internet & Email Facilities

Global Gossip 11 Tuwharetoa St
Central Plateau REAP 73 Titiraupenga St
Computer Shop 15 Tamamutu St
Contact Cyber Cafe 10 Roberts St
Cybershed 117 Tongariro St
Log On 71 Tongariro St

Lock It or Lose It

If you're travelling around in a vehicle ALWAYS take your valuables with you when you leave and ALWAYS lock your vehicle.

Sun

Thanks to a big hole in our ozone layer, spending all day in the New Zealand sun without protection will mean some serious sunburn.

SLIP - on some protective clothing
SLOP - on some sunscreen (SPF 40+)
SLAP - on a hat

Telephones

0800 numbers are free, 0900 charge by the nanosecond and New Zealand's area codes couldn't be simpler:

09 - Auckland and Northland
07 - Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Coromandel Peninsula and Central Plateau (including Taupō)
06 - East Coast, Hawkes Bay, Manawatu, Taranaki
04 - Wellington, Kapati, Hutt Valley
03 - South Island

For international calling, dial 00 + Country Code (i.e. 00 44 = Britain). New Zealand's telephone companies are very generous in offering capped national and international calling charges at weekends. It's worth asking a friendly Kiwi if you can use their residential phone. You can talk for hours and it's only going to cost you a few dollars. Be warned though: calling overseas during business hours costs a fortune. It's worth buying a pre-pay mobile (especially if you're going to remote places) and selling it on to someone when you leave.