The Waitomo Glow Worm Caves are one of the most popular tourist attractions in New Zealand, at least on the North Island. We have really been looking forward to visiting the caves for ourselves, and we finally did! It was a stunning experience, and certainly did not disappoint.
Unfortunately, there is a strict "No Photography" rule inside the caves…hence, the above photo is one that I found online. While we were waiting for our tour to start, someone took a photo of our family in front of a green screen. We almost never buy those "exit" photos, but since it turned out pretty cute (and since we hardly have any whole-family pics), we bought the package. I'll use a few of them in this post.
Before I talk more about the cave tour, let me rewind a bit. We reached Waitomo at about 11:30am and had about an hour until our tour started. We found a spot with some shade, and commenced to pull out some sandwich fixins for lunch (after pricing the cafe at the Visitor Center and calculating that lunch would cost us about $100). Now that Luke and Landon are getting older and more mature, we are open to the idea of occasionally going out to eat together, but we might need to wait until we return to the US. :)
So, sandwiches all around. (deafening applause…not!)
The first part of the cave tour was cool, similar to other caves we have visited in the past, with stalactites and stalagmites. Steve and I were worried a bit before hand that one of us might have to abort the cave tour if Luke and Landon didn't do well, but they loved it! They oohed and ahhed and made the cutest observations with their sweet little voices. We love them.
As the tour progressed, we learned about the cave formations, and also about the main attraction -- the glow worms. The most interesting thing for us was to learn that, while the glowing part is the only portion visible in the dark, when lit you see that each worm produces a silky, sticky strand that traps insects as food:
We descended deeper into the cave, reaching an area known as "The Cathedral." It was a very large, open room with amazing acoustics. The tour guide invited anyone to break out into song to test the sound, but we were too bashful. The guide sang a Maori song instead. He was very friendly and knowledgable, and is actually a direct descendant of the original Maori chief who discovered the cave.
Although a few glow worms were visible in different parts of the cave, you have to board a boat to float to the most impressive areas:
Contrary to the above stock photo, our boat tour was pitch black other than the glowing worms, and the guide didn't speak a word as we gracefully floated under the twinkling lights. It was nothing short of magical. We will never forget it. It was like gazing up at the night sky, only more enchanting.
That's the last of the green-screen photos, I promise. :)
None of us wanted the tour to end, but we were eventually dropped off at the exit ramp. This is the view looking back into the cave:
A nice German-speaking couple took some family photos for us, the only ones of the day with a real background:
Oops. That won't do. Let's try again:
That's better.
We very slowly made our way back on the trail and through the beautifully-designed visitor center. No one wanted the experience to end…it was truly one of our best adventures in New Zealand so far!
Thumbs up for glow worms!
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