Auckland: Rotorua Māori Village, Waitomo Caves & Lunch

Whilst this is a long day from Auckland, it was thoroughly enjoyable. The caves are interesting and the guides are fun. The Maori village gives you some interesting insight into their culture, and the Geysers were amazing. Our guide Chris, drove safely and gave us plenty of breaks to stretch our legs. He was punctual as well. The lunch was generous enough. We are glad we did this trip.

We had a fantastic experience on this tour, and a huge part of that was our driver, Jason. He was truly outstanding — funny, knowledgeable, and incredibly engaging throughout the day. In fact, I enjoyed his company so much that I booked another tour with him later that week. He also gave us excellent dinner recommendations, which turned out to be spot on. The bus ride is on the longer side, but Jason made it feel easy. He was a confident, safe driver, and kept things interesting with commentary along the way. As for the tour itself, it was really well done. The Waitomo Caves were a very cool and unique experience — definitely something special to see. But for me, the highlight was the Māori village. It felt immersive, thoughtful, and genuinely memorable. Overall, a great tour made even better by an exceptional guide.

Our guide Wayne was phenomenal. His driving was smooth, he drove by several historical and natural sites not mentioned on the tour description as an added bonus, and was exceptionally knowledgeable when it came to NZ history and landmarks. Whakarewarewa Māori Village was eye opening. The chief/guide was has so much knowledge and passion to share. Hāngī was great! They boil the sweet corn and served it as part of the tour, but I also tried the hāngī beer pie as well. The thermal vents and geyser were spectacular and the Haka performance was nothing short of moving. From here we rendezvoused with Wayne and were off to Waitomo. The original site for the picnic lunch was thoroughly occupied. Fortunately, he already knew an alternative site. The lunch itself was a chicken Caesar wrap, chips, apple, and juice. Wayne pointed out some fun sites (giant Kiwi statues and the like) en route to Waitomo. Waitomo Caves was stunning. When you first arrive, you watch an informative video, then embark. The first leg of the experience does not allow photos or video due to sensitivity of the wildlife. The final stretch does allow photography. Honestly though, there is something romantic about such an unplugged tour into such a natural wonder. We also saw some eels, which was super cool. For both sites, you have limited but adequate time to shop. The ride home home was more quiet (people were tired) and waters & muesli bars were offered. A little more knowledge was dropped. Overall, this was a long (12+hr) journey and worth every mile & every penny.

Our guide Wayne was phenomenal. His driving was smooth, he drove by several historical and natural sites not mentioned on the tour description as an added bonus, and was exceptionally knowledgeable when it came to NZ history and landmarks. Whakarewarewa Māori Village was eye opening. The chief/guide was has so much knowledge and passion to share. Hāngī was great! They boil the sweet corn and served it as part of the tour, but I also tried the hāngī beer pie as well. The thermal vents and geyser were spectacular and the Haka performance was nothing short of moving. From here we rendezvoused with Wayne and were off to Waitomo. The original site for the picnic lunch was thoroughly occupied. Fortunately, he already knew an alternative site. The lunch itself was a chicken Caesar wrap, chips, apple, and juice. Wayne pointed out some fun sites (giant Kiwi statues and the like) en route to Waitomo. Waitomo Caves was stunning. When you first arrive, you watch an informative video, then embark. The first leg of the experience does not allow photos or video due to sensitivity of the wildlife. The final stretch does allow photography. Honestly though, there is something romantic about such an unplugged tour into such a natural wonder. We also saw some eels, which was super cool. For both sites, you have limited but adequate time to shop. The ride home home was more quiet (people were tired) and waters & muesli bars were offered. A little more knowledge was dropped. Overall, this was a long (12+hr) journey and worth every mile & every penny.

I had a wonderful journey with our tour guide, Doug. First of all, the tour itself was amazing. I saw many beautiful blue and green glowworms in the Waitomo Caves, and then had an incredible cultural experience at the Māori village. I spent around two hours in the Māori village listening to their beautiful singing and dancing, and learning about their culture as a Māori guide showed us around the village. It was a long tour, but Doug was very patient, both in sharing his knowledge and in driving. I sincerely felt that Doug did his best to make sure we had a memorable experience on this journey. I would give both the tour and the tour guide a 10 out of 10.

Amazing expérience with Duck, very good guide !! A recommended this tour so muchhh to discober the cave or the village with the HAKA

Our guide Jaime was very kind helpful and informative. The caves and village were amazing! Wonderful experience, would recommend!

We had a very short two days in Auckland and I wanted to make sure and have a Māori experience while in NZ and it was a bonus to see the glowing worm caves on the same tour! It is a long day but worth it! Wayne our driver/guide was great! Very personable and funny and even made a couple unexpected bonus stops /photo ops for our group. There was a downpour at the Māori village but Wayne had umbrellas for us to use! Nice touch! FYI, there are a lot of stairs at Waitomo caves, this may be an issue for some folks. I would definitely recommend this tour to Rotorua!

Enjoyed visiting both sites. Aaron our driver and guide for the day is very knowledgeable about New Zealand and pointed out various places of interest along the way. I liked the 10 minute stops along the way! Added places for quick photo ops. He even brought water and a snack which was nice to have on the way back to the hotel. New Zealand is a beautiful country!

The Rotorua Māori Village tour was much better than I expected. The day started with John picking us up at the hotel right on time. There were only two other people on the tour (4 total) so it was quite comfortable. John provided engaging conversation and made a few stops along the way there and back to make pit stops, see extra things and get some food. Our tour guide at the village was an older gentleman called Chief and he was absolutely perfect for the tour, a real wealth of cultural knowledge and experience who was willing to share it all in an engaging and funny way. They cook food in the hot spring and the chicken in the cafe was among the best I've ever had. After the tour we were able to walk around the village a bit to explore the different little shops there which had unique Māori items for sale (some of the best gift shops from our whole trip to NZ). The Waitomo Caves were a little less than I expected as it was a fairly short event. After a short walk through some nice, comfortable caves, you enter a boat for a short trip through the rest of the cave by water. You are not allowed to take photos in the first cave as it was once used as a burial ground, but you can take them from the boat towards the end. It is very dark and difficult to get a good shot, but I was able to get a few decent photos and videos using my iPhone. Overall a very nice day and a good way to learn about the interesting Māori culture.

This is a very good tour provided by Expedigo via GetYourGuide. They use newer and comfortable vehicles. The group size is really small (6 max). Our tour guide/driver, John is very friendly and shared his information throughout the journey. Highly recommend this Waitomo caves and the Māori village tour!!

Excellent day trip and well guided and driven by John. Had a good opportunity to experience Māori culture and the glow work caves. John had a lot of energy providing a lot of commentary during the drive. Recommend this trip!

Two excellent destinations - both unique to New Zealand - with well organised, interesting tours. Also, the journey there gave an opportunity to see something of the country.

We really enjoyed our trip. Our tour guide was Ali. He was knowledgeable and kind. Tour was well organized. We had a good time at Rotorua. The geothermal village and Māori cultural dance was great. Recommend this tour!

Fantastic day trip with Huzefa. Great organisation and communication throughout. Very fun day. Would highly recommend!

Excellent tour guide he was vey kind. excellent tour!! The places were amazing. The visit to the village was wonderful. The Spa excellent.

Amazing tour overall ! Our guide Huzefa was great, he’s very resourceful and he always made sure we were comfortable, he had water, snacks and was ready to assist us anytime. The visit of the Maori village and of the caves were really interesting, we learned a lot and the guides were really nice as well. Highly recommended !

Excellent tour! Hufeza was our driver/ guide. He kept us informed, on time, and most importantly safe on our all day tour from Auckland to Rotorua to Waitomo and back to Auckland. The geothermal springs were amazing! The Maori cultural experience was better than I could have imagined! And the Gloworm caves were fascinating! We traveled with 3 generations of family members from toddler to senior citizens and all had a splendid time. Communication with Fatema to book the tour was fantastic and thorough. Couldn't have asked for more! I highly recommend you book this tour!

Great tour. Definitely recommend this tour. It is a big day, but worth it. Huzefa was our Guide. He was fantastic. Very professional. And made sure the whole day was on time. Thanks Huzefa.

Excellent! The excursions include breakfast tea (on-charge), Maori Village tour, battle dance performances, car breakfast box (on-charge), cave adventures and blueberries, boat and souvenir purchases, and guided tour recommendations!

BORING TRIP; listening all the way (12 hours) to the guide talk privately to a Dutch woman who was not being listened to by her husband