ALERT: this is one of the, if not the, best tour you will ever have in New Zealand. Stephen, the tour guide, is passionate and continues to do this tour despite COVID's effects on tourism. The cost/price is more reasonable than other tours around NZ.
You may think that the highlight was seeing hundreds of glowworms from a few centimeters away near waterfalls but this wasnt the case. Dont get me wrong, that was spectacular but the trip itself was extraordinary.
Stephen picked us up from the tourists help centre on time. He drove us in a very comfortable high tech specialised van. He handed us different types of tourches and we walked about 2Km in the dark; including our 3 and a half year old child. You aim your tourch up to see the trees forming a bridge hiding the whole sky from you. We saw tens of wallabies (tiny kangaroo like creatures) hopping meters away from us, Wetta like insect shells (forgot their names) and different types of trees and plants. Ive been in New Zealand for 21 years and this was the first time I saw the real Silver Ferns; they arent as evident in day light. You end the journey with hot chocolate to replenish your energy.
I cannot recommend this tour enough. Thank you Stephen for the hollywood like photos you took of our family in the dark :)