There is a ceiling covered in living lights underground in the Waikato, and it is one of the most quietly extraordinary things you'll see in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The Waitomo Glowworm Caves have been drawing visitors for well over a century. The glowworms (Arachnocampa luminosa, if you want the full name) are found only in Aotearoa New Zealand, and the Waitomo cave system is where you'll find them in serious numbers. You float through the grotto on a boat in complete silence and darkness, and the ceiling above you looks like a night sky from another planet.
It sounds like marketing. It really isn't.
The caves themselves
The Waitomo region has around 300 known limestone caves carved out over 30 million years. The three main ones open to visitors are the Waitomo Glowworm Cave, Ruakuri Cave, and Aranui Cave, and they each offer something different.
The Waitomo Glowworm Cave is the classic. A guided 45-minute tour takes you through the cave system and ends with the boat ride through the Glowworm Grotto. Ruakuri has a dramatic spiral entrance ramp and the most impressive limestone formations of the three. Aranui is the quietest and most intricate, no glowworms but serious stalactites and a pink-hued cave system that looks like something from a geology textbook.
You can do all three, and honestly if you've come this far, you probably should.
Black water rafting (yes, really)
If floating quietly through a glowworm grotto sounds a bit tame, Waitomo has a whole other side to it. Black water rafting involves floating down underground rivers on an inner tube through cave systems lit only by glowworms. The entry-level option includes jumping off waterfalls. The advanced option adds a 100-metre abseil to the cave floor.
It's properly good. The kind of activity that sounds slightly unhinged when described and immediately makes sense once you're doing it.
The history worth knowing
The caves were first explored by Māori Chief Tāne Tinorau and English surveyor Fred Mace in 1887. Tinorau's descendants run the Waitomo Glowworm Caves tourism operation today, having had management returned to them in 1989 after the government took over in 1906. That context matters when you visit.
Where Waitomo fits on your route
Waitomo is about 2.5 hours south of Auckland and an hour from Rotorua. Most people visit as a day trip from Auckland or as a stop on the way south, and it works well either way. It's also one of the most popular combo day trips from Auckland alongside Hobbiton, two of the North Island's biggest drawcards in one long day.
If you're travelling on a hop-on hop-off pass or a guided North Island tour, check whether Waitomo is included as a stop or available as an add-on. Most routes pass through or near it.
Browse our Waitomo cave tours above or get in touch and we'll help you sort it.
…Read more
