The well-known Gypsy Travellers Fair is a popular attraction in New Zealand. Although you will not find actual Romany gypsies in the islands, a number of New Zealanders have taken to the itinerant lifestyle, living on the road in modified trucks and ageing school buses. These Kiwis are known as gypsies and housetruckers, whilst some are also called hippies according to their lifestyle. However, generally these wandering folk are accepted and not isolated by those following more conventional lifestyles.

Many of these modern gypsies choose to live and travel in one of the old Bedford trucks. These ageing vehicles have often been extensively modified by the housetruckers to make them comfortable homes. Often these modern gypsies will remain in one location for extended periods of time, so that generally everyday comfort takes precedence over easy manoeuvrability. As there are many camping locations and dump sites for emptying tanks scattered around New Zealand, the country is an almost ideal environment for these wanderers. Some of the housetruckers follow the opportunities for fruit picking around the countryside, whilst others make their living from various cottage industries, producing a variety of artistic and craft creations. Notably there are two well-known gypsy fairs in New Zealand, and the Gypsy Travellers Fair is one of these. The fairs are organized as cooperatives by the wanderers and there is no entrance fee. Many people take the opportunity to investigate the carefree travelling existence for themselves, taking a first-hand look at the gypsy homes and conversing with the housetruckers.

At the Gypsy Travellers Fair, you will be able to enjoy various kinds of live entertainment, browse through homemade clothes, fabrics, friendship bracelets and gifts and watch exhibitions of glass blowing. As you might expect in a gypsy fair, there are tarot and palm readers. Visitors will see fascinating items like rasta gear, incense burners, expandable toys and merchandise from India and Tibet. You can even get tattoos, piercings and henna imprinting done. Rotorua is one of the sites of the Gypsy Travellers Fair. Visitors seeking a Rotorua hotel will be pleased by the Millennium Hotel Rotorua. This hotel in Rotorua offers comfortable accommodations with all the necessary amenities for a modern traveller on the go.

 

Pushpitha Wijesinghe is an experienced independent freelance writer. He specializes in providing a wide variety of content and articles related to the travel hospitality industry.

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