The world famous Waitomo Caves are known as one of New Zealand’s best natural attractions. It is an incredible experience! There are glowworms, multiple cave tour options and the awesome adventure of blackwater rafting.
We had the best time! Not only did we do the Ruakuri Cave Tour and went Blackwater Rafting through the same cave. But we stayed at the Waitomo Homestead and can’t wait to share about that too!
Here is everything you need to know to plan a fantastic day out at Waitomo Caves.
- About Waitomo Caves
- Waitomo Glowworms
- Waitomo Glowworms Caves
Ruakuri Cave Tour - Blackwater Rafting
Black Labyrinth Tour
Black Abyss Tour - Homestead Café & Restaurant
- Waitomo Caves Village
- Accommodation at Waitomo Homestead
About the Waitomo Caves
Our guide on the Ruakuri Cave Tour explained the incredible history of the Waitomo Caves to us. The caves were first explored in 1887 by local Māori Chief Tane Tinorau accompanied by an English surveyor Fred Mace.
In 1889 they were officially first opened to the public, fast becoming one of New Zealand’s earliest and most popular tourist attractions.
The glowworm – Arachnocampa Luminosa – is what makes the caves so famous.
This type of glowworm found in the Waitomo Caves is unique to New Zealand, making the Waitomo Glowworm Caves an absolute must-do.
The famous Waitomo Cave Glowworms
Arachnocampa Luminosa is the glowworm found at Waitomo Caves. The glowworms are the larval stage of the Arachnocampa Luminosa gnat.
But impressive formal names aside, these glowworms are truly incredible to see in real life. They are renowned for their dazzling display of bioluminescence.
Which in person, quite literally sparkles on the ceiling of the caves.
The glowworms in this larval stage emit a soft blue-green light that creates a magical, starry sky effect within Waitomo Caves.
- See that first photo from Discover Waitomo? It looks incredible like that. You can see literally thousands of these tiny creatures radiating their unmistakable luminescent light!
Things to do at the Waitomo Caves
Each of the experiences offered at Waitomo Caves is unique.
For a stunning glowworm experience, the Waitomo Glowworm Caves Tour including a boat ride inside the caves is the most popular and iconic option.
While Ruakuri Cave offers a more immersive and accessible experience with stunning rock formations and glowworms. This is a 1.5 hour tour.
But there is also Blackwater Rafting which caters to adventurous visitor. Plus the Waitomo Homestead Café and Restaurant with accommodation too.
We are going to tell you all about it!
Waitomo Glowworm Caves
There are three caves that make up the Waitomo caves network, each with it’s own unique experience.
In the same caves you can choose from three separate experiences: Waitomo Glowworm Caves, Ruakuri Cave and Aranui Cave.
Waitomo Glowworm Caves
This is the most famous of the glowworm experiences. It has been a tour at Waitomo Caves for more than 130 years! The Glowworm Caves tour last for 45 minutes and includes a short boat ride where you can see the glowworms above you.
Ruakuri Cave
This is the largest cave at Waitomo Caves and with a tour that goes for 1.5 hours. We did this one – and we can very highly recommend it!
Aranui Cave
In this cave there isn’t any water. But there are glowworms of course, and spectacular pale brown, pink and white stalactites.
We did the Ruakuri Cave Tour.
Ruakuri Cave Tour
We were very excited to do the Ruakuri Cave Tour on our experience at Waitomo Caves on this trip!
Ruakuri Cave is the longer of the cave tours and the only of the glowworm caves where photography is permissible.
The tour through Ruakuri Cave is roughly 1km long. But did you know the entire route through the caves is wheelchair permissible? The tour follows a boardwalk through the caves, starting with the initial descent down the grandly lit spiral walkway.
It is a guided tour through the cave. Where we learnt a lot!
The glowworms and stalactites and stalagmites are truly incredible.
Blackwater Rafting with Legendary Black Water Rafting Co.
The Legendary Black Water Rafting Co. offers two blackwater rafting tours:
- Black Labyrinth
- Black Abyss
Both of these tours take place inside the Ruakuri Cave.
Though the tours are different in that the Black Abyss Tour starts off by abseiling into the Ruakuri Cave.
Black Labyrinth Tour – Waitomo Caves
This is the tour that Gavin and Harry did. It is a 3-hour blackwater rafting tour that starts at the Legendary Black Water Rafting Co. base.
The first part is getting geared up.
At the base you are welcomed on the tour and given wetsuits, boots and helmets to change into. Our guide, Ollie was fantastic explaining how to wear all the gear and making sure everything fitted correctly.
Learning Blackwater Rafting techniques
After getting geared up and storing your belongings in a locker, you are driven from the base to a small creek near Ruakuri Cave.
This is the ideal spot to practice some of the techniques you will use inside the cave. Plus it is a chance to get a feel for the temperature (COLD) of the water before you get into the cave!
The Black Labyrinth Tour
From here it’s just a short 5-minute walk to the cave. You get to hike down and scramble over the rocks to squeeze through a small opening into the Ruakuri Cave entrance for the Black Labyrinth Tour.
From here it is a total blast!
The tour inside the cave is around an hour and fifteen minutes. It is a combination of walking through the river where the water is shallow and floating down on the tube!
There are a few optional detours where you can crawl through a tunnel and jump of a slightly higher waterfall. Harry said jumping off the waterfalls was the best fun!
The glowworms inside the cave are incredible to see from the tube. There is a section floating on your inner tube, looking up at the ceiling of the cave which is covered with literally thousands of glowworms.
We reckon the Black Labyrinth tour was the epitome of glowworm experiences at Waitomo Caves. Because not only do you get the adventure of blackwater rafting and tubing down the river. But you get to experience the incredible glowworms too!
It truly is a one of a kind New Zealand experience.
- Tip: Read all the details of the Black Labyrinth Tour on the Legendary Blackwater Rafting Co. website.
The Black Abyss Tour
The other option for blackwater rafting with the Legendary Blackwater Rafting Co. is the Black Abyss Tour.
This one is a 5-hour tour. But instead of entering the cave through the small opening, you get to abseil down into the cave to start. Plus there is a short zipline on part of the track.
- Tip: Read all the details of the Black Abyss Tour on the Legendary Blackwater Rafting Co. website.
Waitomo Caves Village
The small Waitomo Caves Village is a great hub for the cave activities and blackwater rafting.
On the day we visited there was the annual Waitomo Caves Sports Day which was a unique rural day out. We saw horse riding, shearing and wood chopping sports events. Plus there were lots of kid-friendly activities.
Albeit this event happens once a year. Though there are other events on the Waitomo Caves Domain (next to the Top 10 Holiday Park) at times.
Restaurants and Cafes in Waitomo Caves Village
There is a small store and several cafes in the Waitomo Caves Village:
- Huhu Café
- Tomo Bar and Eatery
- Waitomo Glowworms Café & Restaurant
The Waitomo Homestead Café is fabulous for lunch or breakfast. But in the evening it is convenient to have dinner at Huhu Café or Tomo Bar and Eatery.
Waitomo Homestead Cafe
The Waitomo Homestead is situated on State Highway 3, just 10 minutes’ drive from Waitomo Village.
There is a café and restaurant, accommodation options, cave tickets and a gift shop.
It is a spacious restaurant with a lovely open air seating area. There is delicious cabinet food with homemade pies and the option of a buffet lunch or a la carte menu.
We chose coffees and the menu food which was divine! I had a yummy black bean burger. Gavin had the Homestead Big Breakfast and the kids had a burger and fries from the Kids Menu.
It was the perfect lunch to relax, fill up and refuel for the afternoon Black Labyrinth adventure!
Where to stay to visit Waitomo Caves
The Waitomo Homestead also has cabins. These are the perfect place to stay to make the most of all the Waitomo Caves experiences and the Waitomo Caves Village.
We stayed in a family cabin with four bunks. There are modern shared facilities in the beautiful homestead villa.
Plus, in the morning we were right there to make the most of another delicious meal at the Waitomo Homestead. We all enjoyed a beautiful breakfast of eggs and waffles. Plus you guessed it – Gavin had the famous Homestead Big Breakfast again!
- Check availability to stay at Waitomo Homestead.
Motorhome Accommodation in Waitomo Caves Village
If you are travelling in New Zealand by campervan, take a look at Waitomo Top 10 Holiday Park.
We have stayed here before in our motorhome while we were travelling all over New Zealand!
Where is Waitomo Caves?
Waitomo is situated within easy reach of the North Island of New Zealand’s main centres.
Hamilton is the nearest major city just 1-hour drive away.
- Read about things to do in Rotorua.
Recommending Waitomo Caves
We had a truly amazing time! If you are choosing an activity in the North Island we can highly recommend Discover Waitomo, the Waitomo Homestead and the Black Labyrinth Tour!
If you have any questions about how to visit the Waitomo Caves or the Blackwater Rafting experience – or if you would like to share your experience, let us know in the comment section below.
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More about travel planning for New Zealand and beyond
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