Villa Walton & Waitomo Caves

13 - 16 March 2023

Julie and Anthony at Wairere Falls.

On Monday, we took a 4.5 mile hike to Wairere Falls to walk off our Hobbit Dinner. We got a bit rained on, but that didn’t diminish the beauty of the falls.

We stayed two nights in Villa Walton, a beautiful B&B a short drive from Hobbiton.

Woodlyn Park in Wiatomo. We had the hobbit hole room for two nights. We were REALLY excited to stay here, but ended up being a bit disappointed. The room was adequate, but smelled very musty.

Hobbit hole interior, Bag End it is not.

Woodlyn Park also has rooms in a Boat, an airplane and a train (not pictured here).

Thursday morning, we donned wetsuits and went rafting through the Wiatomo Caves.

Glow worms live on the ceiling of the cave. The glow worms shine in the dark and drop thin filaments to snare insects.

There are also some large roadside fixtures near Wiatomo Caves. A large Kiwi, a life sized Moa and at big Apple (Azz).

We had a little time Wednesday afternoon, so we drove out to Marokopa Falls.

Looking for the Mangapohue Natural Bridge. The trail was closed, and the alternate trail just stopped.