Rotorua: Evening Starlight Gourmet Kayak Tour Glowworms

Kayak Lake Rotoiti at dusk, explore glowworm caves, enjoy a BBQ dinner, and relax in geothermal hot pools. Experience New Zealand’s natural wonders.

Duration: 4 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • 41C Otaramarae Road - Embark on an unforgettable evening adventure kayaking on the pristine waters of Lake Rotoiti, nestled amidst the breathtaking landscape of New Zealand. As the journey begins, be captivated by the awe-inspiring scenery that surrounds you.
    While paddling gracefully, be enchanted by the symphony of birdlife that fills the air,…
What's Included
  • Bottled water
  • Snacks
  • Dinner
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
Meal Options
  • Gourmet Kiwi BBQ Meal
Additional Information

Begin an enthralling twilight journey kayaking over Lake Rotoiti, a jewel in New Zealand’s crown. Submit to the captivating landscape and beautiful bird calls as you navigate towards the legendary Glowworm cave, a phenomenon of natural light. Enjoy a delightful BBQ feast at the hidden Manupirua Hot Pools, accessible solely through water, and surrender…

Location
41C Otaramarae Road
Otaramarae Road
We will meet you at the boat ramp Look for a Waimarino Kayak Tours Board and our Kayaks
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(38 Ratings)
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Carol_b
Feb 9, 2026
Alex and M were great... - Alex and M were great guides! Very informative. Hot tubs and food were great. Glow worm experience was cool and informative. We would definitely recommend this trip.
Review provided by Viator
775cw
Feb 5, 2026
Stars and all! - We had a mesmerizing experience on the lake with Cian. Kayaking across Lake Rototiti and then a delicious meal cooked by Cian lakeside was a memorable experience talking with other visitors from England. The highlight of the trip of course were the glow worms, which was amazing but honestly seeing the stars of the southern hemisphere and being on the lake at dusk was incredible! Thanks guys for a wonderful evening!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michael_m
Jan 17, 2026
A great afternoon/evening... - A great afternoon/evening kayaking, enjoying hot pools, eating a nice BBQ lunch on the waterfront picnic-style, and then seeing some glowworms. Royce and Cian were great guides, managing the logistics very well and providing lots of great information on what you're seeing as well as what you're doing (i.e., if you're new to kayaking, they explain it well). If I had another day in Rotorua, I would have done this tour a second time because I enjoyed it so much.
Review provided by Viator
832gillesc
Dec 2, 2025
Kayaking baths meals and shiny worms..super - Beautiful..an excellent team, competent available and smiling...a plus for me who is French: the dialogue with Idriss and his clear explanations in my language. Also highlight his professionalism..
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Renee
Sep 21, 2025
A wonderful experience - We did the starlight gourmet kayak tour Lake Rotoiti. Henry our guide was a top bloke. He made everything easy even when it didn’t feel like it! He makes a pretty good salad too. The experience is one of a kind and well worth it. We had everything we need to stay safe and warm including extra clothing, jackets and gloves that hooked onto the oars. Our light went out on our kayak on the way back and Henry still kept us on track and calm. A great experience. Thanks for keeping us safe, fed, watered and entertained!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ourgreatadventures
Jun 18, 2025
Fantastic experience. - Craig, our guide, was fantastic. From the beginning of our tour, we knew this was going to be a memorable experience. We paddled across Lake Rotoiti to the hot pools where Craig cooked up a BBQ for us, and we relaxed in beautiful hot pools. After relaxing and some food in our stomachs, we paddled across to the glow worm caves. It was nothing short of spectacular. After leaving the glow worm caves, we came out to a beautiful clear night of stars. We couldn't have asked for anything more. Craig was very informative and a great guide. I would highly recommend this to anyone who loves kayaking and beautiful scenery. Thank you so much.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Patricktm5077gx
Apr 29, 2025
Best part of our entire visit to NZ - Cam gave us an absolutely outstanding experience, highlight of our entire tour to NZ. Can't recommend highly enough! Breathtaking views, hard graft and a sense of achievement, and truly otherworldly cave kayaking.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Trip43463633114
Apr 9, 2025
Fantastic - Fantastic trip with awesome knowledgeable guides who made it fun and engaging and snacks to start where delicious and more glow worms than I had ever seen
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rusovarela
Feb 21, 2025
Excellent - Excellent and different tour. We did it as a family with two children aged 10 and 12. Great guides. A first kayak tour is made to the hot pools. I think the loosest point is this, great place but the pools themselves are ugly. I'd improve the facilities here. Very good dinner. Then comes the second part of kayaking to enter the caverns with the worms which is epic. He rows back at night, which makes him unforgettable. Good physical condition is required to paddle
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Meriel
Jul 15, 2025
Worth doing! - Kayaks were great and extra gear (jumper & jacket) was very handy. Tour guides were both super. We kayaked over to the hot springs 10/10!! Super quiet when we went, gorgeous spot, lake was fab for cooling down too. Dinner was delish. Headed to see the glow worms after that, v cool experience, learnt more about them too, both the Māori and the scientific versions. The Māori story was definitely nicer! Weather wasn’t ideal on the way back, but with all the extra gear we were all dry-ish and cozy, so it just added to the adventure! Only thing which brought the review down a bit was that on the way back, we (myself and the other girl in the kayak) felt like we were being slightly left behind. Apart from that, 10/10!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $206
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).