Glowing Adventures

Natural Bridges & Waterfalls in Waitomo - New Zealand's Biggest Gap Year – Backpacking New Zealand

Day 29: Today we are going on a mini Waitomo road trip to check out Marokopa Falls and the Mangapohue Natural Bridge. It’s a day of free activities in Waitomo!

Yesterday - Day 28 -

Tomorrow – Day 30 –

About this video:

It’s Day 29 of New Zealand’s Biggest Gap Year and our fourth day in Waitomo! Today we are going to discover some of the free activities in Waitomo!

We hop in the Jucy camper and head on the road to our first stop: Marokopa Falls. The Falls are raging today due to all the wet weather – an awesome sight!

Next on our free activities in Waitomo list is the Mangapohue Natural Bridge – a huge rock archway going over a vertical river gorge. The Natural Bridge and Waterfalls in Waitomo are absolutely stunning.

Then it’s back on the road for another night at the Juno Hall Backpackers.

#Waitomo #BackpackerGuideNZ #NZMustDo #TravelNZ #TravelNewZealand #Travel #HamiltonWaikato #NewZealand

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New Zealand Biggest Gap Year

365 Days: 365 Activities

Join us as we, Robin and Laura from BackpackerGuide.NZ, take on 365 Days: 365 Activities in New Zealand! We call it New Zealand’s Biggest Gap Year! That way, we can bring you some of the most epic and off-the-beaten-track activities in New Zealand to inspire you for your own backpacking trip in New Zealand!

Read more about the Natural Bridges and Waterfalls in Waitomo on New Zealand’s biggest guide for backpackers:

Discover Waitomo Glowworm Caves | New Zealand

Discover the Waitomo Glowworm Caves, New Zealand's natural highlight.

World renowned and a magnet for both local and overseas visitors, the Waitomo Glowworm Caves occupy a high placing in the New Zealand vacation wish-list.

The glow worm, Arachnocampa luminosa, is unique to New Zealand. Thousands of these tiny creatures radiate their unmistakable luminescent light as our expert guides provide informative commentary on the Caves' historical and geological significance.

Waitomo Glowworm Caves are a must see for any traveller. Enjoy the world famous boat ride under thousands of magical glowworms and become a part of over 120 years of cultural and natural history.

Ruakuri Cave is Waitomo's longest underground guided walking tour.

​​According to Maori legend, Ruakuri Cave (rua meaning den, and kuri meaning dog) was first discovered 400-500 years ago by a young Maori hunting for birds. He was attacked by wild dogs just outside the original cave entrance. Re-opened in 2005, this cave is now an amazing example of engineering and natural cave structure.

Ruakuri Cave offers a captivating blend of Waitomo's most compelling subterranean experiences. Journey down through the spectacular spiral entrance, and marvel at the softly folding shawl-like limestone formations and crystal tapestries. Hear the distant thunder of the subterranean waterfalls and get up close to the glowworms.

With clever and innovative design, Ruakuri Cave has full wheelchair and pushchair access.

​​Aranui Cave is set in the Ruakuri Scenic Reserve, 5 minutes drive from the Waitomo Glowworm Caves. It is named after Ruruku Aranui, the local Maori man who first discovered this previously hidden gem back in 1910.

Aranui Cave has a natural cave entrance and is the smallest and most delicate of Waitomo's three main caves. As a dry cave without a river running through it, it houses very little life past its entrance.
However, just inside the entrance is a colony of native New Zealand cave wetas and further into the cave is the most beautiful collection of stalactites, stalagmites, flowstones and decorative formations.

New Zealand: Waitomo Glowworm Caves

Honeymoon in New Zealand, Day 4

February 11, 2015 - Driving south from Rotorua to Tongariro National Park through the North Island countryside, stopping along the way to go black water rafting in the Waitomo Glowworm Caves.

This is the 6th of 18 videos highlighting our various adventures in New Zealand. More can be viewed at



Music:
The Arcade Fire - Haiti (from Funeral)
Bag Raiders - Shooting Stars (from Bag Raiders)
Mason Jennings - So Good (from Always Been)

Waitomo Caves Zipline Adventure Park in 2019

Waitomo Caves zipline offer a growing trend of ziplining in New Zealand that involves an exhilarating mix of adrenaline, speed and nature.

Waitomo Caves Zipline Park is an exciting new activity that opened in May 2019. You will fly high on 10 zip lines through native trees and over limestone bluffs with fantastic views over the region. The longest zip line is a massive 280m long. You will receive a complete safety briefing learning to use the gear provided before navigating yourself through the designated course monitored by staff.

1.5 hours of Zip line fun flying through native trees, limestone rocks and high above the beautiful Waitomo Caves Skyline. 10 Zip lines in total with the longest 280m long.

New Zealand Waitomo Glow Worm caves & Black Water Rafting

I went on a weekend trip down to the Waitomo caves, located 2 hours south of Auckland, New Zealand to see the incredible glow worms. I explored two caves including the Ruakuri cave where you are allowed to take photos and videos, did some black water rafting and stayed overnight at the gorgeous Free Range Farmstay Air BnB.

Here's a recap of my weekend away. I took my mum along for the ride and yes she also took part in the black water rafting (and loved it)!!

Instagram = instagram.com/myblondebucketlist
Blog = myblondebucketlist.com

Waitomo Glow Worm Caves | New Zealand

An incredible caving adventure on a private tour seeing all the glow worms we could imagine!

WAITOMO CAVES // Rotorua, New Zealand

A trip to Waitomo to visit the glow worm caves and Jamie's review of abseiling. Then our last moments in Roto-Vegas? Who can tell us why it's nicknamed that?!

Jamie:
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SNAPCHAT - mari.johnson

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- GoPro Hero 4 Silver-

Californian in a constant state of wanderlust, currently traveling the world. I’m here to share my adventures and give you tips about travel, culture, language, and life.

I'm always looking for music to feature in my videos! If you're a musician and are interested, email me at missmarijohnson@gmail.com. Thanks!

Waitomo caving New Zealand

Caving in Helms deep at Waitomo caves New Zealand

2018 NZ North Island Maui Campervan Adventure (Day 4: Waitomo Glow Worm Park, Huka Fall, Taupo Town)

New Zealand Center of North Island Campervan Adventure
22 Nov (Thu) to 30 Nov (Fri) 2018

25 Nov 2018 (Sun)
Day 4: Waitomo Glow Worm Park, Huka Fall, Taupo Town

Subscribed to our channel for more exciting videos of the NZ Tour that covers more details of the individual day.

Equipments:
1) GoPro Hero 4 Silver
2) GoPro Hero 7 Black
3) DJI Spark

Song: Markvard - Time (Vlog No Copyright Music)
Music provided by Vlog No Copyright Music.
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Song: Markvard - Catch Our Moment (Vlog No Copyright Music)
Music provided by Vlog No Copyright Music.
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2018 GISH Winners' Trip: The Glow Worm Caves of Waitomo, NZ!

We made it to New Zealand! Our first stop: the bus. We deplaned and immediately drove 2.5 hours south to the Waitomo caves...

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GISH is the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt, a game played in over 100 countries each year.

GISH is the weirdest combination of all of the best things — creativity, compassion, courage, and some WTF for good measure. Play with your best friends or people who will definitely become your best friends and/or accomplices. (Bail money 100% not guaranteed.)

Complete fun, wildly creative GISH challenges on our app or join our annual Hunt for a shot at the Grand Prize — an all-expense-paid adventure with your team somewhere amazing (probably on Earth).

Join the Hunt:
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WAITOMO CAVES - day 11 - North Island, New Zealand

A fresh, foggy morning on day 12 at the Taumarunui Holiday Park. Alain and I went for a stroll to the Whanganui River. Today we keep heading north to Waitomo to check out the glow-worm caves.

We didn’t have far to go so we weren’t in a rush this morning. After breakfast we tidied up the campervan and all the necessary maintenance before hitting the road. We thought it was going to be overcast today, which didn’t bother us as we were going to be underground most of the day, but the clouds broke up and the sun peaked through throughout the day. It was a nice drive. We arrived in Waitomo before lunch but ate anyway because we didn’t know if we were going to have the time between caves visits. And we’re all glad we did.

Our first cave was the Aranui Cave. The tour group was small and our guide was fantastic, right from the get-go. We started with a little walk in the forest before arriving at the entrance. A fairly narrow cave that opens up into some high ceiling areas. A lot of small stalactites hanging from the ceiling and much larger ones on the walls of the cave. There were some beautiful formations. We were assured none would fall on our heads, hence no helmet, but nonetheless we were a little apprehensive.

The Golwworm Caves were our next visit. The entrance to the caves is a cocoon-like architecture over a wooden structure. There are cafes and souvenir boutiques and a large area sitting area. Unfortunately photos and filming are not permitted in these caves. A shame really because it’s beautiful but I understand why. There are at least three groups in these caves at once and if they had to wait for everyone, they would never get out of there. Apart from the cathedral area, a huge chamber, the rest of these caves and pathways are very narrow indeed. We finished this tour aboard a small boat in pitch darkness and silence, under millions of glowworms. Absolutely stunning! It would’ve been impossible to take photos anyway. Moving boat, low light (no light), handheld... impossible. Hence no video nor photos. This cave is very different to Aranui Cave. Though there’s limestone everywhere, there is very little stalactites and stalagmites. Very impressive nonetheless.

Our last visit was the Ruakuri Cave. The entrance to this cave is spectacular. A spiralling walkway heading down, I don’t know, about 40 metres deep. This cave is a combine of the last two. You get stalactites and stalagmites and glowworms, small passages, cathedral ceilings and great history to go along. You’ll notice there’s no video of it, that’s because my phone died. It pretty much confirmed the possible battery problem I thought I was having on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. I had a touch more time for photos on this tour as there was quite a bit of narrative. I was very lucky though, my second and last battery died just as we were leaving the cave. I didn’t think I took that many photos but I think the cold used them up quicker.

So the caves are a must and I highly recommend doing all three. It takes about 4 hours to do the walking tours of all three but may take longer if you intend on doing the abseiling or tubing in the caves. They cost more too.

It was mid to late afternoon by the time we’d finished so we searched for a free campsite for the night and found the Roselands Restaurant. They offer free parking for campervan in their carpark. Which is pretty smart because I think every campervan that was there ended up eating at the restaurant. We did too. They had a buffet but you could also pre-order your meat for a bbq that they cooked. It was well worth the price and delicious. We were pleasantly surprised.

Once again, the end of the day has arrived. Tomorrow we keep heading north back to Auckland. Goodnight.

p.s. you know what this is all about, a big thanks to Alain for the use of his material.

MUSIC :
Traditional Maori Sound Healing Session from The Sound Temple


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Amazing Adventures in NZ - Day 8 - Glow worms.

In which we drive to Waitomo and see a cave and some glow worms

Music Used:
My Happiness - Powderfinger (sorry only just realised I used it in two videos)

Waitomo Caves, New Zealand

The Waitomo Caves are a village and cave system forming a major tourist attraction in the northern King Country region of the North Island of New Zealand, 12 kilometres northwest of Te Kuiti.

Waitomo Black Water Rafting | Glow Worms

Spent the afternoon with Legendary Black Water Rafting co in Waitomo, black water rafting through the glow worm caves. Incredible experience from start to finish and couldn't recommend it more!

link to Sarah's channel -


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The tour we chose -

Waitomo Glowworm Caves Day Tour - GreatSights New Zealand

Take a luxury day tour from Auckland or Rotorua to a must-see North Island destination - the world-famous Waitomo Glowworm Caves, with their intricate and delicate limestone rock formations and sparkling glowworms. Only with GreatSights New Zealand.

waitomo glowworm caves new zealand

The Enchanted Glowworm Caves of Waitomo
Deep underneath the hilly landscapes of North Island, New Zealand is hidden an amazing cave lit with glowworms.
The Waitomo Glow-worm Cave is home to thousands of glow-worms that light up the cave ceiling like a starry night sky. This species of glow-worm, Arachnocampa luminosa, which is found exclusively in New Zealand, emits a blue-green glow that illuminates the underground cave river. Though, the glow-worms aren’t really glow-worms. They’re fly larvae. And what causes the glowing? Excretory organs. These insects produce a silk-like thread used to trap flies and other bugs for them to prey on. And the hungrier they are, the brighter they glow.
The cave system was first extensively explored in 1887 by English surveyor Fred Mace and local Maori Chief Tane Tinorau. However, the local Māori people had known about the caves for quite some time. Tourists started visiting in 1889 when Tinorau and his wife began leading tours. Today, many of cave guides are descendants of Tinorau and his wife.
Location: The Waitomo Glowworm Caves are located in the southern Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand, 12 km northwest of Te Kuiti.

Action pur! Abseilen in The Lost World! Höhlenabenteuer in den Waitomo Caves / Neuseeland

Ein spektakuläres Abenteuer! das Abseilen in die Waitomo Caves in Neuseeland... Der Travelnews-Reporter hat das Abenteuer live miterlebt! actionreiche und tolle Bilder!

Awesome View At Waitomo Glow-worm Caves, New Zealand

For Booking & Find Many More Natural Adventure on This Website.