Largest lakes & reservoirs in North Island, NZ by water volume
The estimated volume of water that a lake contains is measured at the lake’s normal elevation. By this measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is Siberia’s Lake Baikal.Water Volume can be measured in acre-feet, in cubic miles, or in cubic kilometers. One acre-foot is the amount of water needed to cover one acre (43,560 square feet) to a depth of one foot. One cubic mile equals 3,379,200 acre-feet. One cubic kilometer equals 810,713 acre-feet. 1 acre-foot is equal to 325,851 US gallons. Siberia’s Lake Baikal contains about 6,276,367,740,000,000 gallons of freshwater – nearly 1 million gallons for every living person on earth.
The other – and more widely used – measure of a lake’s size is the lake’s surface acreage. By that measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is North America’s Lake Superior.
Note: In the United States, an acre foot is a unit of volume used to refer to large-scale bodies of water. It is defined by the volume of water needed to cover 1 acre of surface area to a depth of 1 foot.
You can find many of the the world’s largest lakes (by water volume) on LakeLubbers. Note: For some lakes, the water volume data is unknown or does not apply, so you may see fewer lakes than the total 14 articles we have published for North Island, NZ lakes.
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Below are lakes within New Zealand > North Island, NZ > Compared by water volume. This list does not represent all lakes in North Island, NZ, only the 14 North Island, NZ lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Water vol. in ac-ft |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Taupo, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Taupo Region, North Island, NZ) |
48,642,792 ac-ft | If you are making your first visit to New Zealand, Lake Taupo in the Taupo Region of the North Island is an excellent first choice. New Zealand’s larg … |
| Lake Tarawera, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Rotorua Region, North Island, NZ) |
1,843,318 ac-ft | Lake Tarawera in the Rotorua District of the Bay of Plenty Region is a highly prized vacation lake. This deep and clear volcanic lake lies in the Okat … |
| Lake Rotorua, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Rotorua Region, North Island, NZ) |
705,321 ac-ft | What greeting will you hear when you come to Lake Rotorua on New Zealand’s North Island? Kia ora!! Kia ora means ‘Be healthy’ or ‘well’ in the Maori l … |
| Lake Rotoma, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Rotorua Region, North Island, NZ) |
347,423 ac-ft | Lake Rotoma is a remarkable lake. The lake is the easternmost in a chain of three lakes northeast of Lake Rotorua. Here in the Rotorua Region of the B … |
| Lake Okareka, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Rotorua Region, North Island, NZ) |
51,556 ac-ft | One of four small crater lakes lying between Lake Tarawera and Lake Rotorua in the Rotorua District of the Bay of Plenty, Lake Okareka has always been … |
| Lake Rotoehu, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Rotorua Region, North Island, NZ) |
49,454 ac-ft | For the truly traditional New Zealand holiday, one must spend a week or two at Lake Rotoehu! Located in the Rotorua District of the Bay of Plenty Regi … |
| Lake Ferry, New Zealand (New Zealand, North Island, NZ, Wairarapa Region, North Island, NZ) |
7,297 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Onoke) Lake Ferry, also known as Lake Onoke, sits at the southern tip of New Zealand’s North Island. The waves of the Tasman Sea crash against a narrow grave … |