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The smaller names, clearly sorted

Other glowworm caves in New Zealand

Waitomo and Te Anau are not the only places the glowworms live. Here is what else exists — and how much of it we can actually vouch for.

The smaller Waitomo-area caves you can book

Every option side by side, with the same facts for each. Open a card for the full tour details.

Off the Beaten Track cave tour
Down to Earth Waitomo - Glowworm Cave Tours

Off the Beaten Track cave tour

Small-group caving in a private cave on a family farm: about 2 hours underground, wading, climbing and crouching. Phones welcome, the guide takes photos. Age 12+, own transport.

  • Duration: 3.5 hours (about 2 hours in the cave)
  • Language: English
  • ✓ Free cancellation up to 24 hours before
from NZ$ 219 ★ 5.0 (298 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide →
Full tour details

About this tour

A small-group trip into a privately owned cave system on a family farm in the Waitomo district, away from the crowds and the developed show caves. After about 15 minutes of preparation and a safety briefing, you walk 10 to 15 minutes through native bush and the Mangapū Gorge to the entrance, then spend around two hours underground: walking, wading through shallow water, climbing over rocks and crouching through smaller sections, with larger chambers and glowworm displays along the way. There are no paved paths or handrails, no boat and no abseiling.

The group is limited to eight people, and caving clothing and boots are provided; afterwards there are showers, tea, coffee and biscuits. Phones and small cameras are welcome, and the guide takes photos of the group that are sent to you afterwards. This is the operator's regular group tour — not to be confused with the same operator's private photography tour. You arrive under your own steam: no transport is offered.

Meeting point

1199 Oparure Road, Te Kūiti (Waitomo district) — arrive 15 minutes early. No transport is offered.

Know before you go

  • A natural cave with no paths or handrails: wading, climbing over rocks, crouching and 200+ steps — moderate fitness needed.
  • Minimum age 12; maximum weight 120 kg.
  • Phones and small cameras are welcome (a lanyard is recommended); the guide takes free photos of the group.
  • No transport — you drive to the meeting point yourself.
  • Tours can be cancelled for safety, e.g. flooding, with a full refund; no refunds within 24 hours or for no-shows.

Not allowed

  • Professional cameras
  • Tripods

Not suitable for

  • Children under 12
  • Travellers with back problems, heart problems or mobility impairments
  • People over 120 kg or with low fitness

Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.

Spellbound caves day trip from Auckland
Expedigo NZ

Spellbound caves day trip from Auckland

Glowworms without Hobbiton: a 9-hour small-group day from Auckland to the Spellbound caves, with a boat ride under the glowworms and CBD hotel pickup. Gentle walking; lunch not included.

  • Duration: 9 hours
  • Language: English
  • ✓ Free cancellation up to 24 hours before
from NZ$ 309 ★ 4.8 (161 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide →
Full tour details

About this tour

A glowworm day trip from Auckland that does not go to the Waitomo Glowworm Caves themselves but to Spellbound, a separately run, guided cave experience in the Waitomo area. The day runs in a small group of up to 11: about 2.75 hours by air-conditioned van to the caves, around 2.75 hours on the guided Spellbound visit, a one-hour break in Otorohanga and the drive back. At Spellbound you visit a glowworm cave with a boat ride under the glowworms and a second cave, Te Ana o Te Atua, with the guide explaining the geology, the history of the caves and the glowworms' life cycle.

Hotel pickup and drop-off in the Auckland CBD, bottled water, light snacks, tea and coffee are included; lunch in Otorohanga is at your own cost. The walking is gentle — up to 40 minutes at a time on easy paths, no climbing, crawling or stairs inside the caves — but it is not suitable for wheelchairs or walking frames, and a 40 cm step is needed to get into the van and the raft.

Meeting point

Pickup and drop-off at one of 20 hotel pickup points in the Auckland CBD — you choose yours at checkout.

Know before you go

  • Small group of up to 11 in an air-conditioned vehicle; pickup at 20 Auckland CBD hotel points.
  • About 2.75 hours of driving each way.
  • At Spellbound: a glowworm cave with a boat ride plus the Te Ana o Te Atua cave, guided throughout.
  • Water, light snacks, tea and coffee included; lunch in Otorohanga at your own cost.
  • Gentle walking only (up to 40 minutes at a time), no stairs inside the caves; a 40 cm step into the van and the raft.

Not suitable for

  • Wheelchair users and people using walking frames
  • Travellers with back problems or mobility impairments
  • People with claustrophobia

Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.

The New Zealand glowworm — Arachnocampa luminosa — is not confined to the two famous cave systems. Glowworm sites exist across both islands, some with organised tours, some as free roadside walks. This page collects the ones that come up in research and traveller questions, sorted by how much we can actually verify. Where we have not checked something, we say so instead of dressing it up.

Smaller caves near Waitomo

You do not have to leave the Waitomo district to get away from the main visitor site. Two separately run cave experiences nearby are bookable here. Off the Beaten Track by Down to Earth takes a small group of up to eight into a privately owned cave system on a family farm near Te Kūiti: about two hours underground, wading, climbing over rocks and crouching, with glowworm displays along the way. It starts at age 12, and you drive to the meeting point yourself. Spellbound is reached here on a small-group day trip from Auckland: a guided visit to a glowworm cave with a boat ride and to a second cave, Te Ana o Te Atua, with gentle walking and no stairs inside the caves.

Waipu, Northland

North of Auckland, the Waipu area has karst caves with resident glowworms, and organised day trips exist — among them a cave-and-coast combination that shows up on the booking platforms. We have not yet verified a bookable product well enough to list it with a price and a button, so for now Waipu stays a pointer: if your route runs through Northland rather than south past Waitomo, it is worth a search. For a first glowworm experience with guiding, boats and infrastructure, the big two remain the safer booking.

Kawiti caves, Bay of Islands

Near Waitangi in the Bay of Islands, the Kawiti glowworm caves are a known stop with guided visits. The booking platforms list the area, but we have not verified specific tours, prices or current opening — the same rule applies: a pointer, not a recommendation. We cannot compare or link a tour there yet; if you are planning a dedicated glowworm outing, Waitomo and Te Anau are the documented choices.

Aranui — the Waitomo cave without glowworms

One clarification saves disappointment at Waitomo itself: the cave system there has more show caves than the Glowworm Caves and Ruakuri, and not all of them glow. Aranui Cave is prized for its formations — and it has no glowworm display. If glowworms are the point of your visit, the boat tour and Ruakuri deliver them at the main visitor site, and the smaller caves above have glowworms of their own; treat Aranui as a geology add-on, not a substitute.

What about Australia?

Glowworms of the same genus live in Australia too — the best-known viewing sites are in the rainforest of the Gold Coast hinterland, visited on guided night walks rather than cave boat tours. It is a different kind of experience, and it is outside what this site covers: we focus on New Zealand’s caves, where we can verify the tours we list. If that changes, this page will grow a section rather than a footnote.

i
Why so few buttons on this page

Every tour on this site is listed with live data and a working booking link, and that requires verification we have only completed for the Waitomo and Te Anau tours. The Northland sites above are real, but we will not put a booking button next to something we have not checked. When a Waipu or Kawiti product passes verification, it will appear here properly.

FAQ

Are there glowworm caves other than Waitomo and Te Anau?

Yes — glowworm sites exist across New Zealand, including the Waipu caves in Northland and the Kawiti caves in the Bay of Islands. The two famous systems are the ones with the most developed tours and the ones we have verified; the smaller sites are worth a look if they are already on your route. Near Waitomo, two smaller, separately run cave experiences are listed here with a booking link: Down to Earth's private farm cave and the Spellbound caves.

Is the Waipu glowworm cave worth visiting?

If you are in Northland, it can be a rewarding stop, and organised day trips exist. We have not verified a bookable tour there yet, so we cannot vouch for prices or current details — check the current details before building a day around it.

Does Aranui Cave at Waitomo have glowworms?

No — Aranui is admired for its limestone formations, but it has no glowworm display. At the main Waitomo visitor site, the Glowworm Caves boat tour and the Ruakuri walking tour are the tours where you see the glowworms.

Can I see glowworms outside of caves?

The species lives where conditions suit it — damp, dark, sheltered places. Some sites outside the famous caves are free roadside walks known locally. This site only documents the organised cave tours we can verify, so treat local tips as a bonus rather than something we can confirm.

Are the Australian glowworm sites the same thing?

Related, not identical: Australia has glowworms of the same genus, typically visited on guided night walks in rainforest rather than cave boat tours. This site covers New Zealand's caves only.

Related on this site

Waitomo Caves hub →

The verified North Island tours.

Te Anau Caves hub →

The verified South Island tour.

Waitomo vs. Te Anau →

Which of the big two fits your route.

Sticking with the big two?

Every verified glowworm tour, side by side.

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