14 Kayak Tours in Rotorua: What to Book First

1.Twilight Glowworm Kayak Tour – Lake Karapiro

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 493 reviews · from $92Our pick

Review of Lake Karapiro’s twilight glowworm kayak tour, with practical details on price, paddling, guides, weather, and what to expect.

“Never done a kayak before and the first time was both tiring and fun. The lake view was so beautiful and I saw many glowworns glowing like stars. In the night there was also silver river in the sky and kayaking under the silver river was unforgettable. Our guide was very interesting and knowledgeable, I learned a lot from this tour. I highly recommend this!”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Glow Worm Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 351 reviews · 3 hours · from $116

Kayak Lake Okareka at dusk, visit glow worm caves, and stargaze under New Zealand skies on this gentle Rotorua night tour.

“This was probably my favourite excursion of my whole trip! We were lucky, we had a clear night that was not too cold. Before we started onto the water, they offered warm rainproof jackets and pants, which helped. We wore water shoes, but they didn't even get wet. We were on double sit-on-top kayaks. The lake was calm. We started off in twilight and ended when it was dark. Everyone wore headlamps that we could use out on the lake, but not in the caves as that would confuse the glow worms. We were guided into 2 tunnels and 4 or 5 small caves with glow worms, and the guide…”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Glow Worm Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 342 reviews · from $121

Review of Rotorua’s Glow Worm Kayak Tour, with pricing, gear, cave access, stargazing, weather tips, and advice on who should book.

“An extremely beautiful and serene experience. Gorgeous views, engaging and knowledgeable staff, and not too strenuous.”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.Lake Rotoiti Evening Kayak Tour including Hot Springs, Glowworm Caves and BBQ Dinner

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 60 reviews · from $135

Review of Rotorua’s Lake Rotoiti evening kayak tour, with hot springs, glowworm caves, Māori stories, BBQ dinner, pickup, and practical tips.

“It was a lovely trip. We were lucky with the weather, the shower happened whilst we were in the hot pools.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Daytime Scenic Lake Rotoiti Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 37 reviews · from $114

Paddle Lake Rotoiti to a glowworm cave and thermal pools on this 3.5-hour Rotorua kayak tour with guide, gear, snacks, and hot pool entry.

“We had to cancel because the pick-up and drop- off point was a 45 min drive from the cruise port. There was no way to reasonably arrange transportation to/from the ship and still have time for the activity. Otherwise, we had very much hoped to do this.”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Private Waimangu Steaming Cliffs Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 35 reviews · from $232

Review of Rotorua’s private Waimangu kayak tour, with steaming cliffs, Lake Rotomahana, Māori stories, lunch, transfers, and practical booking advice.

“The geyser was unexpected surprise. Our guide Jessica was fantastic and share a great deal of information and stories. We meet at the visitors centre so we could do the self guided walk. We arrived about 11 and spent all the time exploring before the kayaking trip. Perfect day!!!. We meet Jessica for the 1.30pm kayaking trip”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Evening Starlight Gourmet Kayak Tour Glowworms

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 35 reviews · from $217

Review of Rotorua’s evening kayak tour, with glowworms, Lake Rotoiti hot pools, BBQ dinner, guide tips, price, and practical advice.

“The kayaking experience is fun! But the glowworm is soooooo underwhelming. They squished all the kayaks in this tiny cave and told us to have a look at the glowworms. The whole glowworm experience was not how it was advertised. I’ve Read more”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Lake Rotoiti Guided Hot Pools Kayak Trip

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 23 reviews · from $104

Paddle Lake Rotoiti to Manupirua Springs Hot Pools with a guide, hotel transfers, gear, and a possible glow-worm cave visit.

“Highly recommend this tour. Fantastic activities with all fun along the paddle to reach to the beautiful geothermal pools and an extra to visit the cave of the glow worm. Our tour guider Justin who helps and demonstrates us about all kayak gears we needed and skill of the paddle. and he is a story teller. We learned lot of the local history and love story.”

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Hot Pools Kayak & Evening Barbecue

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 12 reviews · 6h 30m · from $130

Paddle Lake Rotoiti to hot springs, enjoy a Kiwi barbecue, watch sunset, and visit glow-worm caves on this six-and-a-half-hour Rotorua adventure.

“Awesome experience, tour guide was outstanding. Had a fun time, only suggestion is do not turn up over the weight limit as it makes it abit harder haha”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Daytime Scenic Lake Rotoiti Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 12 reviews · 3h 30m · from $101

Paddle Lake Rotoiti, visit a glowworm cave, and soak in Manupirua Hot Pools on this guided 3.5-hour Rotorua tour.

“We had a wonderful afternoon kayaking with our knowledgeable guide Sarah. We saw the glow worms in the cave and enjoyed the hot water pools across the lake.”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Daytime Canyon Kayak Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 10 reviews · from $73Best value

Paddle through Waikato River’s Pokaiwhenua canyon, learn Horahora’s submerged history, and enjoy a calm family-friendly kayak tour.

“This is not a big fancy tour company. This has the feel of a family run operation with all the personnel touch you’d expect. We were a little disappointed when we first arrived because it looked like we were kayaking on a big lake. We did Read more”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Epic Tandem Kayak Tour down the Kaituna River Waterfalls

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6 reviews · 2 hours · from $177

Review of NZ Whitewater Academy’s Kaituna tandem kayak tour, including Tutea Falls, safety, price, itinerary, requirements, and booking advice.

“Milly, Nico and Sam really made this experience very special. They really know what they are doing and make sure you are staying safe all the time. This is the must do tour when you are near Rotorua. Once you‘ve done kayaking on this river you will never do rafting anymore. Try it out and you will love it!”

Check availability →Read our full review

13.Evening Starlight Gourmet Kayak Tour with dinner

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6 reviews · 4h 30m · from $209

Review of Rotorua’s evening Lake Rotoiti kayak tour, with glowworms, Māori legends, hot pools, and a cooked Kiwi dinner.

“Thoroughly enjoyed our evening kayak trip with Cian. He was fun, knowledgeable and told us Māori creation stories in a magical glowworm cave. The hot pools were really lovely and dinner was delicious. The weather gods were kind and we had the moon and stars reflecting off the glassy lake on the way home. Can totally recommend 😊”

Check availability →Read our full review

14.Glow Worm Adventure Kayak

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6 reviews · 4 hours · from $176

Kayak across Rotorua at night to reach glow worm caves, enjoy Kiwi snacks, and stargaze under clear skies with Taiao Adventures.

“It was super nice! Our driver and guides were so sympathetic and we had just the best snack plate at the beach. The glowworms were absolutely stunning and we learned a lot about them during the trip. We would definitely recommend that trip!”

Check availability →Read our full review