Okere Falls is best known as the country’s premier white water rafting destination, but there’s also a lot on offer here when you’re not looking for an adrenalin fix. There’s a fantastic bush walk which showcases three thundering waterfalls, a gorgeous emerald swimming hole and even a secret glow worm cave if you are up for an adventure after dark. There are also several great spots if you simply want to watch the rafters.
Here’s everything you need to know to make the most of a trip to the stunning Okere Falls, one of our favourite places close to Rotorua.
The Okere Falls Track
The Okere Falls Track is an easy 3km return bush walk.
The well maintained gravel path takes you first to a viewpoint over Okere Falls, which are a set of tumultuous cascades by the old power station.
If you’re lucky you’ll also have the chance to spot white water rafters ride the powerful rapids. It only takes a minute to reach the viewpoint from the car park.
From Okere Falls you head along the wide gravel path through the forest and when you reach the junction, follow signs for Tutea Falls which is just 500m away.
Not only is it a stunning waterfall, it’s also the highest commercially raftable waterfall in the world and a great spot to watch the drama unfold.
If you see a raft at Okere Falls, you have enough time to get to Tutea Falls, which offers the best spot to watch the rafters along the whole trail. If you see a photographer waiting there with a whistle, you know a raft is on the way!
There’s generally a 50:50 chance the raft will tip on this grade 5 rapid so it’s always pretty dramatic to watch! Even if there aren’t any rafters or kayakers, it’s a fantastic view and the sheer amount of white water is mesmerising to watch.
From the viewpoint head down Hinemoa’s Steps for 150m to reach the Tutea Caves. Whilst there aren’t formations in the caves, there are a couple of passageways to explore and it’s good to get a feel for it in the day time before you return at night!
You then retrace your steps and follow the signs for Trout Falls. It’s just under 1km from the cave and is back in the forest on the well maintained track. It does head downhill but it’s fairly gradual.
You’ll then arrive at the exit point for white water rafters and kayakers which is signposted (and you can also briefly divert to the little pathway on the right to see the last of the rapids just before the signpost).
We just missed the last kayaker when we got there, but we were walking midweek when there is generally less activity on the water.
Once you’re back on the main trail you can follow the narrow dirt path past the large exit for rafters sign to arrive at Trout Pools.
You can then either retrace your steps or take the trail along the Ridge Track to form a loop. The loop track is the same distance, but it’s hillier and has countryside views rather than river. We normally always opt for a loop but chose to stick to the forest and river this time.
Trout Pools
You can drive and park at Trout Pools or follow the Okere Falls walking track. If you’re using the walking track, it’s just a couple of minutes along from the white water rafting exit ramp.
You’ll come to a little bridge over the water and from here you get a great view of Trout Falls. It’s another small but mighty waterfall. There’s a rope swing attached to the tree here, but the river was pretty crazy on our visit, with both a strong current and really deep water.
I am guessing in summer the water level is much lower but you’d still have to be very mindful of the current.
However, it is just 50m away from Trout Pools which is a much safer swimming spot because it’s largely sheltered from the major current.
To access the water you take the little path to the left before the bridge and there are a couple of rocky steps and then you can easily get into the water. It’s a glorious swimming spot, but definitely still check for currents as it’s much less calm after heavy rain.
The Okere Falls Track by night
At night the forest is totally transformed and less than a minute into the walk you’ll see your first glow worms. There are a few by the Okere Falls viewpoint and then you’ll find them lining the cliffs on the left of the pathway almost all the way to Tutea Caves.
There are also some on the right of the path, when there are cliffs or trees with big crevices.
Sometimes it’s just a smattering and sometimes there are quite big clusters. They were most abundant on the second part of the track in the areas where the vegetation was dense. You’ll see plenty on exposed sections of the cliff walls, but also peek around the big ferns and you’ll find lots more.
My favourite viewing area though was a little further along, at Hinemoa’s Steps, where you’ll find them on the ceiling of the arch above you and then down into the caves themselves. They are in both caves but there was more in the second cave, accessed via the tunnel from the first one, or using the steps on the left at the bottom of the main staircase.
The caves are very low so they feel like they are right above your head which is always fun! The majority were around the mouth of the cave where it was most damp. It’s definitely nothing like Waitomo or Waipu Caves but a great little spot where it’s highly unlikely you’ll see anyone else.
Make sure you turn your torch off frequently throughout the track to let your eyes adjust. If you don’t you will see much fewer numbers.
The glow worms likely continue further along the track, but we only went as far as the caves which was 650m each way.
If you love glow worms and want to find other great spots, we have lots more in this guide.
Tips for the best glow worm experience
Make sure you leave it at least an hour after sunset. If you’ve been exploring the area by day rather than making a special evening trip, it can be tempting to head into the bush just after sunset, but you really need full darkness to see the majority of the glow worms. You’ll see some earlier but only a fraction of what’s really there. The darker the better, so ideal conditions would be low moonlight, but it’s hard to get things that perfect when you’re only in the area for a limited amount of time.
As mentioned, you need to turn all light off to enjoy the glow worms, not just for your eyes to adjust but also because you shouldn’t shine light on glow worms. It can stop them feeding and also encourage them to stop glowing which also ruins the experience for you. You will see more and more glow worms the longer you stand in the darkness, leave at least five minutes to really get a sense of how many are there but the longer the better.
For photography bring a tripod and plan on taking long exposures. You don’t need any light to photograph them.
Getting to Okere Falls
Okere Falls are located in Okere Falls Scenic Reserve, roughly 20km and a 20 minute drive from Rotorua. There is plenty of free parking and toilets and changing facilities. You could also park at Trout Pools.
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