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Story: King Country places

Waitomo Caves: black-water rafting

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Waitomo Caves: black-water rafting

Underwater adventures are on offer for more daring visitors to the Waitomo Caves. Black-water rafting involves wetsuit-clad rafters travelling down underground streams on inflated tyre inner-tubes. Here, rafters explore the Ruakurī Cave on a Black Water Rafting Company tour. Founded in 1987, this was the first black-water rafting tour company in New Zealand.

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The Legendary Black Water Rafting Company

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How to cite this page

Kerryn Pollock, King Country places – Te Kūiti, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/34679/waitomo-caves-black-water-rafting (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Kerryn Pollock, published 6 December 2011, updated 1 March 2015.