Spellbound does not have fancy advertisments in magazines , neither are their brochures as widely distributed as comapared to other operators . It was introduced to us by our Hostel desk manager . A bit sceptical in the beginning as it offers almost the same attractions but prices are lower , Our guide Pete , made good groundwork amongst our small group of 12 participants . What really impressed me was his keen sense of details and how good he was with our names . Small gesture , but it makes the group feel " special "

Tour starts with a scenic albeit dusty drive up to the caves , polka dotted along the way with interactive commentary on the sights that pass by . Treks are also part of the program , so come in covered shoes and a nice camera . there will e sights that come by unaccessible by car .

We spent a day in Waitomo while we were touring the North Island in March 2008. Spellbound tours were recommended to us, and they certainly lived up to expectations.

We met up with the group in the village. There were eleven of us plus the guide with ages ranging from ten to sixty-five. We left promptly in a minibus and drove for about twenty minutes to reach the area of the first cave. The guide dropped us off to take a short walk down to the cave, and met us there to distribute hard hats. As we boarded a raft she explained about the glowworms, and as we travelled down the river we were amazed by the spectacle.

When we emerged from the cave, we had a short break for coffee or tea, then walked to the bus. The second cave was not as unusual, but still interesting. We saw several skeletons of animals that had fallen down sink holes, as well as stalagmites and stalactites.

We returned to the village about three and a half hours later, having thoroughly enjoyed the trip.

Pete our tour guide made our visit to the Glowworm Caves one of the highlights of our trip to New Zealand. His passion for his subject was evident and his concern and interest for all on the trip was genuine. Remarkably Pete remembered all our names very quickly and we were all really amazed when he produced tea and biscuits for us half-way through the tour. The caves were fascinating and the experience and knowledge of Pete made this a truly memorable day.

Spellbound is a small family-operated tour company based at Waitomo Caves. The tour is limited to the number of passengers a small mini-bus can cope with, about 12. The price includes transport to and from the caves (about 20 minutes each way), a cup of tea/coffee and a biscuit (good old Kiwi nosh!) and a very informative and chatty commentary, plus of course a tour of two of the Waitomo region's most amazing caves.
We thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. The caves themselves, one wet and the other dry, were quite different, and thankfully largely still in their natural state.
The trip was the highlight of our stay in the area, and our French and Finnish visitors really enjoyed it too.