Auckland & North Island Things to Do

As the largest city in New Zealand there is simply no way to experience all that Auckland has to offer over the course of single day. A sprawling city whose suburbs include beaches, wineries, harbors, and even islands, Auckland is a vibrant metropolis with dozens of different experiences. Despite her myriad charms, however, not all visitors have weeks to explore, so we’ve compiled an overview of how to spend one day in Auckland for those who are heavy on curiosity but a little bit short on time.

The subterranean Waitomo Caves are justifiably one of the most popular visitor attractions on the North Island. It’s believed that local Maori knew of the caves’ existence, although no one would dare venture inside for fear of what unknowns might potentially lie within. All of this changed, however, when a local Maori chief by the name of Tane Tinorau and the English surveyor Fred Mace ventured in to the caves in 1887. Once inside, the two explorers were greeted with a celestial scene of thousands of glowworms illuminating the ceiling and a navigable river meandering deeper into the unknown. Having made this discovery it didn’t take long for the caves system to be further explored, and in only a few years tourists were being led through the otherworldly caves in exchange for a very small fee.