Caves & HEIGHTS: Waikato & Auckland District

The Waikato region is known for countless and particularly large glowworm caves! With a guided tour, I ventured into the underground world. The Waikato Caves are millions of years old and are still growing! During the tour, we were taken on a boat ride over an underground river... with a starry sky of glowworms above us. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed in the caves, but the experience was truly unique!

Also well-known are the countless Hobbit and Lord of the Rings filming locations in Waikato! Driving through the region feels like being in Middle-earth...

In Raglan, the top surf spot in NZ, I got on a board... unfortunately, I'm not very good at surfing yet! But it was definitely fun. Raglan is also just a really cozy coastal town, so I ended up staying there for almost a week, splashing around in the water and watching the pro surfers. (Once, my surfboard got away from me in the water and almost hit someone... oops, but those things are really difficult to control!)

And then, spontaneously, I went back to Auckland! I've really grown fond of this city. After three visits, I know my way around the streets better, and I've already experienced so much there. This time, I climbed Mount Albert, the volcano! From there, you have a gigantic view of the entire city and the harbor!

And then there was the other tiny highlight... I won't say more because everyone is probably already annoyed by my raving, but the John Mayer concert was unique! The best evening of my entire trip.