Go Caving & visit Castle Hill Rocks ex Lyttelton(Shore Excursion)
Overview
Available languages
7 hours
Mobile ticket
Morning - Castle Hill/Kura Tawhiti
Castle Hill/Kura Tawhiti is an amazing labyrinth of giant limestone boulders. The area is rich with cultural and recreational significance and has been granted Tōpuni status “A symbolic cloak of protection”.
Your guide will show you around, if you like you can have a go at bouldering and test your climbing skills, or use your time here to explore the endless maze of boulders. We stop here for lunch at Castle Hill.
Afternoon - Cave Stream
It will take us approximately 45 minutes to make our way through the 594 meters of the limestone cave. Our route follows the crystal-clear water through the winding chambers and small waterfalls.
Not interested in caving? No problem; you're welcome to explore the paths and trails in the area or sit and relax with some afternoon tea in this very peaceful landscape instead of going through the cave.
Additional Info
Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What To Expect
We start our adventure by travelling west towards the mountains across the flat farmland of the Canterbury Plains. We make a stop after 45mins at the “Darfield Bakery” (We will provide lunch, but you might like to sample a classic Kiwi pie or coffee) before continuing our journey to Castle Hill/Kura Tawhiti. After stopping at Lake Lyndon for morning tea, the tour continues onto Cave Stream Scenic Reserve, where you will get ready to go caving. It will take approximately 45 minutes to an hour to make your way through the 594 meters of the limestone cave. Our route follows the crystal-clear water through winding chambers, high passages and rock steps. The final section has a 3-meter fixed ladder to climb out of the cave and back into the daylight. Lunch will be laid out before beginning the journey back towards Christchurch & Lyttelton. If time allows, you will have the opportunity to visit Kura Tawhiti Senic Reserve and explore the giant limestone boulders.
What‘s Included
Private transportation
Use of caving equeptment including head torch, helmet and safety belt
Snacks
Lunch
Air-conditioned vehicle
Coffee and/or Tea
Options
Cave Stream & Castle Hill
Reviews
1 review
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Cave Steam and Kura Tawhiti (Castle Hill) - cruise excursion
J A778,,Dec 2, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We booked this as a cruise ship excursion on our own. We were picked up at 0835h at the Lyttelton bus stop where cruise passengers are dropped off. There was one other person with us on the tour and there is a maximum of 8 people. Our guide, Gemma, provided commentary about the local area along the way. We first stopped at the Sheffield pie shop where we picked out our lunch and a snack, provided by the company. We drove to Lake Lyndon to eat our snacks and Gemma provided hot drinks, juice, and fruit. Then we went to Cave Stream and changed into our caving gear. Everything was provided, even a towel hoodie like thing that we could wear and change our clothes under. All we needed were swimming clothes for under the wet suit. The cave had medium-high water levels and a strong current. Footing was unstable at times due to loose and/or slippery rocks. It took about 60 minutes to go through. We were lucky and had the cave all to ourselves! The water was chest deep at the entrance, but mostly knee deep the rest of the way. Watch out for (harmless) spiders living inside! After the cave we went to Kura Tawhiti for 45 minutes to explore the boulders and take photos, and then a quick stop in Springfield to see the doughnut statue from the Simpsons movie. We were back at the cruise port at 1645h, right on time. This was the most organized tour we have ever been on. Gemma provided absolutely everything one could ever need for the day, including water, sunscreen, hand sanitizer, caving gear (helmet, headlamp, wet suit, jacket, thermal top and bottom, gloves, socks, sneakers, beanie). The scenery was magnificent along the way.
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Operated by Adventure by Nature