We visited the Waitomo Glowworm Caves as a part of the coach tour that I am on. Waitomo means: “water entering a hole in the ground” and it is home to an incredible underground world that has to be seen to be believed.

Visitors experience the magic of an ancient labyrinth of limestone caves and formations – it’s really exceptional. Then, you are taken by boat through the Glowworm Grotto. Here, you look up to see thousands (maybe millions) of tiny glowworms hanging from the ceiling. From the boat, it looks like an incredibly starry night. The experience is surreal.

About 30 million years ago, when Waitomo lay quietly beneath the sea, the remains of countless marine creatures settled on the seabed and began to form the rock strata – which is now called limestone. It is almost entirely made up of fossils and the mineral Calcium Carbonate.

The caves have been shaped by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Being inside the caves, you feel like you have stepped into another world (or are an extra on Raiders of the Lost Ark!).  The feeling that surrounds you is exciting and calming at the same time. It has taken millions of years for these caves to form and I felt the wonder that the Maori people must have experienced so long ago when they stood in the same spot.

There is an area on the tour called The Cathedral that is famous for its acoustics. Apparently, choirs and singers from the world over come here to sing because the natural formations of the limestone allows for exceptional acoustics. So that we could fully understand how good the acoustics are, our group sang a little song. As I was listening to the notes bounce off the walls and ceiling of the cave, I looked over and saw that two from our group – a man and a woman from the UK, who have been together for more than 60 years – were singing their hearts out. He stood behind her with his arm on her shoulder as they sang, “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.” It was moving and I was incredibly charmed by the pair, especially when the rest of us finished the verse and went to move on and they went right into the second verse – solo!

Our next stop was the water, where we got into the boats to see the glowworms. Here, you are asked to be silent so that you can get the full experience – wrapped in darkness, the glowworms above, with the sound of the water quietly lapping against the caves. It was quite a spiritual experience – until the couple from above got the giggles. I was a little farther back from them, so I am not sure what started it. But it was our oldest couple that got shushed several times from our tour guide for giggling together. Too funny!