New Zealand’s Most Exciting Glowworm Adventure
Glowworm Caves. Black Water Rafting. Steamy Cedar Hot Tub. All in 3 Hours.
Navigate underground rivers in warm wetsuits, adventure caves illuminated by thousands of glowworms, and emerge to steam yourself relaxed in a cedar hot tub, creating a truly unforgettable local escape.
an experience of a lifetime
Discover thousands of glowworms, unique limestone formations and float through a fresh, underground spring.
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Key features of the trip:
A three hour adventure
$229 per person
Hot showers and cedar hot tub
Minimum weight - 45kgs
Maximum weight - 130kgs
Minimum age - 13 years old with an 18 year or older caregiver present on the trip
What you'll see
This isn't just a trip through a cave. From the drive in through stunning New Zealand farmland, to soaking in a hot tub in beautiful native bush, this trip is a luxury and bespoke experience that will stick with you for a lifetime.
glowworms
The Okohua Cave and surrounding bush has tens of thousands of glowworms that illuminate a blue/green glow. They transform their environment to look like a shining night sky light up by stars. Certain areas of the trip, the glowworms are so condensed they light the cave ceiling up which you can view by floating in a tube down the river to view their spectacular display.
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Limestone formations
Fresh springs that run underground have carved out incredible limestone formations over millions of years. Stalactites and stalagmites grow from the ceiling and floor of the cave, creating a breathtaking display of natural beauty.
cedar hot tub
Once completing your caving trip, you have the option to have a shower and hop into our cedar hot tub to warm up and soak in the beautiful nature surrounding you.
Customer testimonials
Don't hear it from us, hear it from the explorers who’ve been underground.
Vaughan our guide was not only friendly but also highly skilled, offering knowledge and great customer service.Would highly recommend."
Our guides were legends! warm, knowledgeable, and full of great stories. We climbed, splashed through water, explored hidden corners of the cave, and learned heaps along the way. The gear was in great condition, clean and comfy, and the cherry on top was a relaxing soak in the hot tub afterwards.
If you’re looking for a unique, well-run experience that goes beyond the usual tourist trail - this is it."
exclusive experience
To ensure each trip is an intimate and informative experience, our tours have a maximum of six visitors per trip. This allows our guides to get to know you and your interests to ensure everyone has a unique and meaningful experience. It also allows us to keep foot traffic to a sustainable level through the cave, to take care of the natural environment.
If you have more than six people, it's no problem, just hit ENQUIRE NOW or give us a call and we can cater to your needs.
Meet your guides
Meet our highly experienced team to take you on your tour.
With over a decade of adventure tourism under his belt, Vaughan leads The Waitomo Experience with enthisiasm, wisdom and determination to ensure every visitor has a memorable experience.
Vaughan is passionate about creating exhilirating adventures and teaching guests about the magical subterreanen world.
When he's not underground, you'll find Vaughan out adventuring with his kelpie dog, Dusky.
Ollie was born and raised on the farm the Okohua Cave lies within. He has grown up exploring and caring for the land to ensure the cave is well preserved and looked after.
He brings to his tours a passion of sustainablity, and history of this beautiful, natural asset we are lucky enough to explore.
When he's not taking adventure seekers through the cave, you'll find him above ground caring for the whenua around, or playing some sort of social sport.
Undeniably the best looking of the crew, Dusky the Kelpie is our resident pest control agent. Whether it's scaring away any unwanted pests around the cave, or relaxing in the sun, Dusky is a key member of the Waitomo Experience team.
When he's not on duty at our headquarters, you'll find Dusky out on adventures with his best mate Vaughan, chasing sticks and swimming in rivers.
educational experience
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Rock jumps, tube floats and swim throughs
Make your trips as exhilirating or relaxing as you'd like, with the option to jump off rock formations, squeeze through tighter passages, or you can stick to the main route and have a more relaxed adventure.
glowworms, limestone formations and fresh springs
Experience the beauty of this ancient, secret world. Traverse through the cave and view thousands of glowworms, stalactites and stalagmites.
cedar hot tub
Once you've submerged from the cave, wind your way back to the head quarters through a beautiful native bush path, to warm up in showers and a cedar hot tub to soak in the natural beauty and debrief on your adventure.
Built on Trust
SUSTAINABLE
We operate on a carbon positive farm.
INTIMATE EXPERIENCE
We have one guide for every six people, with a maximum of 12 people per trip.
ADVENTURE OPTIONS
We provide a range of different options throughout your trip to ramp the adventure up or keep it more relaxing.
Built on Trust
Sustainable
We operate on a carbon positive farm.
SAFTEY FIRST
Audited and certified by AdventureMark, governed by WorkSafe NZ.
FAMILY OWNED
We are a family owned and operated business .
FAQs
Frequently asked questions about the trip
The temperature inside the cave remains the same all year round, however the temperature of the water does vary depending on the season. We provide state of art, custom made, fully insulated wetsuits that keep you nice and toasty throughout your trip.
That's no problem, we can cater to larger groups. Simply hit ENQUIRE NOW or give us a call and we can cater to your needs.
Yes, it is our guarantee you will see glowworms through the cave.
Yes, parts of this trip require you to float through the underground river. There is also a swim through. You will be provided a warm, caving specific wetsuit and gumboots to keep you warm during your adventure.
No, caving experience is not required for this trip. However you do need a moderate level of fitness to be able to navigate through the cave system.
Your swimsuit, a towel and some socks to wear in your gumboots. These will get wet so it's best to bring and old pair or some you won't mind getting wet.
Unfortunately for health and safety reasons for you and your equipment, we cannot take camera gear for our guests into the cave. Our guides do have a camera and will endeavor to take some great snaps of you underground, which we will send to you at the end of the trip, free of charge. However please be aware our main priority is getting people through the cave safely and everyone having a great time, meaning our stops for photos are kept minimal. If you are a photographer or would like to take underground photos, take a look at our private tours which does allow gear and photos to be taken in the cave.
Still have questions?
Contact us, we are here to answer any other questions you may have.
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Kaitiakitanga (the Māori concept of guardianship and protection of the land and natural resources) is something we take seriously at The Waitomo Experience.
The Okohua cave lies on a third generation family farm that has planted thousands of native trees. For every visitor that comes through the Okohua Cave, we plant a native tree. We developed this initiative to always give back to Papatūānuku (mother earth) and protect our natural asset for generations to come.