Firstly, the Waitomo Cave trip was a big letdown! The journey along the small stream was too short (like less than 100m?) and not much glow worms to look at, if compared to my last trip 20 years ago. After taking such a long bus journey, traveling from Auckland City, it's not worth paying or visiting such a non event. The guide was trying his very best with some interesting narratives but, was let down by the uninteresting boat trip. The worst was the metal boat used (unlike the previous wooden boats), the 'seats' were cold and pretty wet, my jean was thoroughly soaked at the bottom! I would definitely give a 5 stars to the Hobbiton trip, pleasant, green, refreshing and interesting. The French lady guide was fantastic, jovial and knowledgeable in her 'story telling' and narratives, coupled with perfect English! Our bus driver, Ms Nikki, drove with much care and safety consciousness, supplemented with her very informative narratives throughout the long journeys. If not for the uninteresting and almost worthless Waitomo Caves trip, I would have scored 5 stars for this overall trip assessment.

Kind of pricey, and it was not even a small group.